Importing a kit/prefab house from Europe

[vaul10]

Hi there,
I have seen an older thread on this topic, but I since a few years have passed I wonder if there is meanwhile anyone around who has imported a house from Europe and can share his experience?
I don't want to open any discussions around why and how good or bad the NZ building industry is or whether European homes are suitable for NZ conditions (unless you have done it yourself). I just want to know if anyone has actually done it, how it was done and how everything worked out in the end.
Cheers, Anke

[kiwieagle]

Yes. I'd be interested in reading any experiences with this.

[Super_BQ]

From my knowledge in building, I have not seen ANY examples of physically importing an overseas pre-fab house into NZ. All the pre-fabs I've seen (in the area of SIPs or some prefab works) are imported into NZ under the basis of approved testing in NZ. That is their pre-fabs have been approved for NZ use and certification. PassiveHaus NZ, Formance SIPs, there are plenty of companies that market in NZ using overseas pre-fab materials AND overseas design approaches.

Believe me, you do not want to go down this path of trying to prove to gov't that your superior pre-fab house in Europe will work in NZ because that's not how things work in NZ. After the NZ leaky house syndrome crisis, you can be sure any overseas building material / method or system will be closely scrutinized for NZ use. I know a guy that has gone through the certification process of PVC windows from Canada for use in NZ. Testing alone for that component was over $50K !!! If you're introducing a whole house pre-fab from overseas... lol it'll cost ya. I've looked down this path recently.

[RobBerg]

Hi there,
I have seen an older thread on this topic, but I since a few years have passed I wonder if there is meanwhile anyone around who has imported a house from Europe and can share his experience?
I don't want to open any discussions around why and how good or bad the NZ building industry is or whether European homes are suitable for NZ conditions (unless you have done it yourself). I just want to know if anyone has actually done it, how it was done and how everything worked out in the end.
Cheers, Anke

I am also interested in importing a Boxabl casita from the USA for only NZD $72.000 + shipping and installation and this price includes insulation on walls and floor plus double glazing. That is less half of what I have been quoted for a similar product in New Zealand.
If anyone has information on custom rules and regulations for this sort of product I would appreciate it.
Rob