FAQ’s

We work directly with you (or your architect) to design your shell and floor plan including foundation detail. The floor plans on our site are primarily used for design inspiration. We can make changes to any exterior/interior floor plan to better suit your individual needs or start from scratch to design a truly custom home to meet your specific site requirements, your lifestyle, wants and needs.

Building costs are often comparable to a custom stick frame when using the same level of quality materials and design elements. Actual finish costs depend on the region and builder chosen to complete the home. We find that our homes have a finish cost of $350 (minimum) and up per square foot, depending on factors including interior finishes. Finish cost does not include land or site work.

Our plans have a copyright and are not for sale.

Yankee Barn Homes may be able to assist you in finding a builder in your area. We have years of experience with quality builders in most parts of the country. Yankee Barn Homes also has crews available who are willing to travel for a shell assembly; these crews would be responsible for getting the Yankee Barn Homes components assembled. Some customers choose this option, and then hire local tradesmen to finish the job. Our crews have completed shell assemblies coast to coast.

Yankee Barn Homes does not recommend that you act as your own general contractor unless you are a contractor yourself.

SIP’s, or Structural Insulated Panels, are manufactured composite panels used in the construction industry. They are a sandwiched panel with a core of polystyrene or polyurethane foam between two layers or OSB (Oriented Strand Board/ Particle Board), or drywall. The interior of our Yankee Barn roof panels are finished with either drywall or tongue and groove pine wood. The roof panels begin with 2×10 or 2×12 conventional framing to meet building code standards. Individual parts of the panel are fastened with nails rather than with a chemical bond or adhesive, as SIP’s are constructed, to maintain structural integrity. We use a rigid foam insulation which provides the highest attainable R-value per inch of thickness (R59-R71+). Each panel incorporates two criss-crossing layers of insulation to reduce thermal breaks and heat loss. Built into the panel design is a full width roof vent space to assure a cold roof deck, as required by many shingle manufacturer’s warranties. This air space also helps to minimize ice dams and prolongs the shingle life. Yankee Barn’s roof panels are more forgiving during installation.

The Yankee Barn Homes exterior walls are structural and designed to carry the roof loads at the eaves, as part of our Building System, and they meet or exceed all national and local building codes. The Yankee Barn wall is framed using conventional 2×6 studs and 1/2″ Zip® sheathing, and comes with most windows installed. Our standard wall is insulated within the stud bays with 4″ of solid polyisocyanurate foam, leaving an air space of 1 1/2″ to the inside for wiring chases. By building our own panels, we can offer a complete wall system with windows as well as having a wall which is very easy to wire for electricity. The wall panels come larger than SIP’s; they can easily be trimmed or modified; they install quickly and you can hang cabinets without extra bracing. Our unique wall and roof panel construction allows for complete design flexibility, unparalleled by other post and beam companies. You can have as much or as little timber as you would like, span farther and have more glass. If a highly energy efficient home without timber is for you, we are happy to do that as well.

Yankee Barn uses a system of joinery over 1,000 years old called Half Lap Joinery. Picture the way bricks are overlapped and laid in a chimney; one brick is half lapped over another. This joinery system is known for its great strength and for its ease and cost efficiency of fabrication and assembly. Because of these simpler connections, our frame can be assembled by a general carpentry crew without the need for a specialized joinery crew. When completed the half lap joints offer a more attractive look with clean, simple lines. Mortise and tenon joinery is significantly more labor intensive to cut and assemble, and all of the workmanship disappears from view after installation.

Yes, but it is important to understand the process, submission, requirements, timing and payment structure required. 

Pre-approval only approves you based on your credit. It does not take into account your specific design, appraisal potential, prefab build, delivery disbursements, and any other restrictions. Therefore, it is not an indication that the bank will finance your Yankee Barn Home. Because each bank and construction loan have their own set of requirements, it is important that you understand what and how payments will be disbursed. Before scheduling production, written confirmation from your lending institution is required regarding payments for your Yankee Barn Home.

Be sure to ask your lender these questions before starting design: 

• Do you finance home shell packages that are pre-built in a facility then trucked to the job site for assembly and finishing? 
• What do I need to provide as part of the loan process? 
• What is your disbursement process and requirements? When will you disburse funds for the home shell package?

Provide to your lender the following Yankee Barn Homes key process & payment requirements.

• The design agreement ($5000.00 or more depending on your build complexity). 
• 20% deposit for engineered stamped construction plans. 
• 30% deposit to order materials and start production (i.e. at this point you’ve paid 50% before the production phase).
• Balance due final week of production prior to delivery, unless your bank arranges an alternative with YBH.
• If you opt for a Yankee Barn Homes Labor Crew to assemble, that payment is due two weeks prior to delivery.

A commitment letter is required from your lender establishing their intent to pay and structure of payments. Pricing and plans will be shared with your lender during the design process.