# Do you live in or know anyone that lives in a Sears Catalog Home?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [December 10, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980 "2013-12-10T15:13:05Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![jrsone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jrsone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrsone)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/1 "2013-12-10T15:13:05Z")

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I love the idea and concept of houses being shipped to you for you to build yourself. It would never work today (for various reasons) but it was a neat idea.

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**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/2 "2013-12-10T15:31:50Z")

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My great grandfather did. He had a farm in imperial county, California where he had the home. During the Great Depression he had to abandon the farm but he loaded the house on a truck with the rest of his possessions and set it up on his new farm in what is now part of the greater Los Angeles metro area.

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**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/3 "2013-12-10T15:47:26Z")

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My house is a modular – similar concept. I didn’t buy it from Sears, though.

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**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/4 "2013-12-10T15:53:38Z")

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I used to. Bought my first house about 11 years ago, and it was a Craftsman Bungalow, built some 80+ years ago. No insulation in the walls, so the heating bill was atrocious. It had a lot of other issues too, so I was quite happy to marry a few years later, buy a nicer house with my wife, and sell the bungalow just before the market imploded.

Shortly after I moved in my friends gave me a book, [The House In The Mail.](http://www.amazon.com/House-Mail-Rosemary-Wells/dp/0142400610/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1386690419&sr=1-1&keywords=the+house+in+the+mail)

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**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/5 "2013-12-10T16:08:32Z")

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No, but there are two [Lustron Houses](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lustron) in my neighborhood. They’re unusual-looking, to say the least.

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**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/6 "2013-12-10T16:17:27Z")

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There’s several Sears houses around our town. My Dad (who was a carpenter) points them out sometimes.

My aunt owned one for a while. It was a pretty good house. I don’t think anyone would know it was from a catalog if you weren’t familiar with them.

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**Author:** ![jrsone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jrsone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrsone)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/7 "2013-12-10T16:19:43Z")

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> [@kenobi\_65](#):
>
> No, but there are two [Lustron Houses](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lustron) in my neighborhood. They’re unusual-looking, to say the least.

Apparently there is a Lustron house in mine too according to a Lustron-locator website. Just a few blocks from here. Quite a few in neighboring cities too. The design looks very familiar.

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**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/8 "2013-12-10T16:49:59Z")

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There are some Lustron houses where I live, too. They are clustered in several different neighborhoods around here.

My sister’s BFF lives in a Sears house, constructed in the 1930s. Only an F5 tornado would damage that thing - it’s SOLIDLY built and while it isn’t big (2 bedrooms, maybe 600 or 700 square feet) it’s gorgeous. I was only there once, and they had just moved in and hadn’t done anything with the yard, but I bet it’s spectacular now. They finally had a baby a couple years ago after nearly 20 years together; of course, the reason was NOMB but it turned out they used IVF. The house is plenty big for a family with a single child.

Menard’s has sold house kits, although they’re probably nowhere near the quality of a Depression-era Sears house.

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**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/9 "2013-12-10T17:56:07Z")

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A friend of mine does. The numbers are still visible on some beams in the basement.

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**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/10 "2013-12-11T05:51:50Z")

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Yes, I live in a 1926 [Vallonia](http://hookedonhouses.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/The-Vallonia-house-plans-Sears-Roebuck-Co.jpg) [home](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gqgkJBfHUmE/T5G_5eKIoQI/AAAAAAAAAW4/XX5KHGVKaj4/s1600/valloniainteriors.jpg). [Example](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v108/rosethornil/Vallonia_Sears/Vallonia_Columbia_2.jpg). It’s been beautifully maintained, with a few modifications, but it’s hellaciously drafty.

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**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/11 "2013-12-11T06:22:50Z")

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> [@jrsone](#):
>
> I love the idea and concept of houses being shipped to you for you to build yourself. It would never work today (for various reasons) but it was a neat idea.

The technology and retail of building supply has changed. If you walked into any building supplier today with a Sears floor plan they could have everything you needed to build your home delivered to your lot within a few days down to the number of nails and wire nuts you’ll need. The pieces would lack numbers but anyone capable of putting a home together didn’t actually need the numbers to put it together. It’s a hell of a lot better now than waiting months the months you’d have to wait for your Sears home.

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**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/12 "2013-12-11T12:36:30Z")

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> [@jrsone](#):
>
> Apparently there is a Lustron house in mine too according to a Lustron-locator website. Just a few blocks from here. Quite a few in neighboring cities too. The design looks very familiar.

Huh. Apparently I used to live [almost directly across the street from one](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neville_and_Helen_Farmer_Lustron_House).

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**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/13 "2013-12-11T15:05:47Z")

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I owned and lived in [this](http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af169/staubej/ChaneyRd_zps3a253d58.jpg) (~1955) Craftsman Bungalow in Raleigh for about 10 years. It was a small place, \<950 sq. ft, but was perfect for me and my hound. One impressive “feature” of this house was its hand-dug basement. The guy who built the place also carved-out ~300 sq ft below the house with a trap door access. Some of the old neighbors told me stories of him carrying buckets of soil out from under the house while the basement was “under construction”. He did a good job, with brick/mortar support walls and poured (or more likely, mixed and wheel-burrowed) concrete steps. The basement area wasn’t very large, but allowed easy access to all the plumbing and most of the electrical. Some days I really miss this place (sniff, sniff).

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**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/14 "2013-12-11T18:20:20Z")

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> [@jrsone](#):
>
> It would never work today (for various reasons) but it was a neat idea.

There are still companies that sell such kits. I learned about them here on the SDMB, but I can’t find the thread now. A few examples:

> **[DIY Home Building Kits | Shelter Kit, USA](https://www.shelter-kit.com/)**
>
> Shelter Kit has been designing and producing DIY house and garage kits, for assembly by owners with no prior building experience, for over 50 years.

> **[Hammond Lumber Company](https://www.hammondlumber.com/?id=739&sub_id=742)**
>
> 22 locations across Maine & New Hampshire. Free material estimating, design and drafting services, window & door showrooms, kitchen & bath centers, and statewide delivery!

> **[FirstDay Cottage House Kits For Owner Builders](http://www.firstdaycottage.com/Main.html)**
>
> FirstDay Cottages are all wood do it yourself, owner built house kits.

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**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/15 "2013-12-11T19:00:43Z")

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> [@somepumpkin](#):
>
> I owned and lived in [this](http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af169/staubej/ChaneyRd_zps3a253d58.jpg) (~1955) Craftsman Bungalow in Raleigh for about 10 years. It was a small place, \<950 sq. ft, but was perfect for me and my hound. One impressive “feature” of this house was its hand-dug basement. The guy who built the place also carved-out ~300 sq ft below the house with a trap door access. Some of the old neighbors told me stories of him carrying buckets of soil out from under the house while the basement was “under construction”. He did a good job, with brick/mortar support walls and poured (or more likely, mixed and wheel-burrowed) concrete steps. The basement area wasn’t very large, but allowed easy access to all the plumbing and most of the electrical. Some days I really miss this place (sniff, sniff).

That’s more in the style of a mid-century ranch. I wouldn’t call it craftsman style.

I do love small houses, though. Nobody really builds them anymore.

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**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/16 "2013-12-11T19:12:48Z")

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> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#):
>
> I do love small houses, though. Nobody really builds them anymore.

Agreed. Some people build them - this book, [The Not So Big House](http://www.amazon.com/Not-So-Big-House-Blueprint/dp/1600851509/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1386788923&sr=1-1&keywords=Not+so+big+house), has great ideas and pictures of small homes.

Always wanted to do this - until I married and got 3 step kids as a side benefit.

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**Author:** ![jrsone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jrsone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrsone)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/17 "2013-12-11T19:31:06Z")

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> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#):
>
> That’s more in the style of a mid-century ranch. I wouldn’t call it craftsman style.
> 
> I do love small houses, though. Nobody really builds them anymore.

Watching HGTV must make you want to rip your hair out. A 20-something couple wants at least a 4 or 5 bedroom, you know, for their dog and plenty of room for enteraining of course. Not that anyone would want to visit them after spending any amount of time with their smugness anyway.

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**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/18 "2013-12-11T19:58:02Z")

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There are a ton of those homes in the town I live in. Looked at a bunch when I was in the real estate market.

They are pretty cool, but like many old houses they generally on the smallish side.

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**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/19 "2013-12-11T20:36:19Z")

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Recently On This Old House they are airing shows of pre-fab houses that are constructed in a huge warehouse and shipped to New Jersey where people are rebuilding after hurricane Sandy. These pre-fab homes are something and it is not shabby at all. It was two weeks from start to finish.

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**Author:** ![somepumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@somepumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/somepumpkin)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-live-in-or-know-anyone-that-lives-in-a-sears-catalog-home/675980/20 "2013-12-11T21:06:05Z")

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> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#):
>
> That’s more in the style of a mid-century ranch. I wouldn’t call it craftsman style.

Well, i don’t have any official history on it, but i was told it was (and it was recorded as) a Craftsman home. From the limited research i did do, I’m sure it was a catalog home. I thought that was what the craftsman part of the term was… that it was a Craftsman “brand” in stead of a style. And i agree that its more of a ranch style, but i was told that it was a craftsman bungalow. That’s one of the reasons that i posted, though… to either confirm or refute the \*history \*in my mind. I think i should retract the bungalow, but i’m stickin’ with the Craftsman part :D.

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