Rare Huf Hauses up for sale (From Wiltshire Times)

Rare Huf Hauses up for sale

1:58pm Friday 29th February 2008 in Corsham By Katie Adams

A DEVELOPMENT of four German designed kit homes near Lacock are now on the market for £1.4m each.

The four Huf Hauses have been constructed in Bowden Hill and are a far cry from the architecture usually associated with the National Trust village.

It is thought there are only about 130 Huf Hauses in the UK, and they have featured on Channel 4 show Grand Designs.

Huf Hauses are designed and built in Germany on a post and beam construction, so internally there are no load-bearing walls.

They are primarily made of glass supported by timber beams, so are light and quick to put up.

Each one is designed by computer and constructed on a reinforced concrete box, which makes the basement.

The sections are built to millimetre precision with all the wiring fitted in the walls, before being shipped over from Germany.

Andrew Marshall, associate director of Hamptons International based in Marlborough, who is dealing with the sale of the properties, said despite their modern appearance he has seen the homes with both contemporary and traditional furniture inside and both looks work.

He said: "People can take a look at the outside and how modern they are, but they are actually very homely once you are inside."

Mr Marshall said the Huf Haus brand is like a bespoke home which customers can tailor to their needs.

He said there is a Huf village near Cologne in Germany, which allows people to pick out what they want for their home, right down to the window frames to the door hinges, before it is built.

Huf Haus came to the UK ten years ago. They are made from sustainable and non-toxic materials, creating an eco-friendly building with one of the highest heat efficiency ratings available.

The homes near Lacock are built with natural slate roof tiles, tilt windows and doors and electronically operated aluminium blinds, among other state-of-the-art features.

Heat insulating glazing and the turn tilt windows coupled with concrete floors heating help to provide high levels of energy efficiency.

Since the majority of the walls are not load bearing it allows the owners to make changes with ease.

To view the homes call Hamptons International on (01672) 516256.