Moving a house to a new location
Have you ever moved a house to a different location? It's possible to do, but can be very costly. I haven't done anything like that myself, I know trailer homes are easy to move around, because they're made to, but traditional houses are a big tougher. I know people who simply take a house apart and build it back up, but there are ways of moving a house. You need to take into account that a lot goes into it. You would need to hire professionals all around, for electrical, gas, water, and so on.
As well, the home needs a clear path to the next location, so you need to take into account traffic and whether your home can squeeze on through to the new location.
Has anyone here moved an actual house to a new location? What was the process like for you?
5 answers
A friend of mine moved their home to a new lot because it was taking on too much water and the land itself was sinking. It was not cheap and took quite a lot of work to get done but it is doable. The house was on the smaller side though so I am not sure how much it would be for a larger home but the cost was around 30 grand.
House moving requires picking the house up from its foundation and setting it down in another spot, sometimes miles away. ... If a home is subject to dangers such as flooding, you can relocate it to a safer spot. Homes may be moved because they're in the way of development, such as encroaching shopping centers or highways.
The distance that your house needs to travel is certainly a factor. However, the nature of the route can often have a greater impact on the cost of moving the house than simply the distance. For example, moving a house along fairly straight, flat rural routes through the Midwest could cost less than having to move the same house through the crowded, twisty roads of New England.
Homes are usually lifted from under the sills. Most professional movers use unified hydraulic jacking systems to raise the building to limit the chance of damaging the structure. Those jacks are supported by cribbing, and a network of beams keep the structure in place.
If it's just a short move on the same lot, the building can just be placed on rollers and pushed or pulled to the new location.