Habitat for Humanity of Long Island hands over its first 3D-printed home, and says it cost about half as much

BRENTWOOD, N.Y., Feb. 20, 2025 — Habitat for Humanity of Long Island handed the keys to its first partially 3D-printed house to a family who had lived for years in a cramped basement apartment. Here's what happened, what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of Feb. 21, 2025)

Outcome: House dedicated in February 2025; the family was still waiting to close with the bank when Newsday reported. (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025; CBS New York, Feb. 20, 2025)
Cost: Habitat Long Island says the house cost about half the price of a typical single-family home; no dollar figure was published. The Town of Islip added a $250,000 subsidy. (CBS New York, Feb. 20, 2025)
Build time: CBS says the house went up in two weeks; Newsday says construction began in June. (CBS New York, Feb. 20, 2025; Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)

What was built

The house in Brentwood was built with Patchogue-based SQ4D, which specializes in 3D-printed homes, Habitat Long Island CEO Diane Manders told Newsday. SQ4D and Habitat officials said more than 50% of the house, including its foundation, walls and insulation, was printed. SQ4D calls it "the world's first predominantly 3D printed home." (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)

Forte Construction, which sent volunteers, says the home is 1,600 square feet, was built with SQ4D's Autonomous Robotic Construction System, and drew 175 volunteers. (Forte Construction)

"It looks different. It is different," Manders told Newsday. "Built of concrete. It's fairly indestructible." (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)

The cost claim

CBS New York reported that the house took weeks to build and cost half the price of a typical single-family home, according to Habitat Long Island. Newsday reported that Manders said the method is cheaper, and cited its own earlier reporting that a 3D-printed home costs about half the price of a traditional single-family house. It also reported that SQ4D says its printed structures are more than twice as strong as the industry standard and that a home can be built in under 48 hours. (CBS New York, Feb. 20, 2025; Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)

Neither report gave a dollar cost for the house, so the halving can't be checked.

Who paid

Because the building method was so new, the nonprofit couldn't use its usual grants, Manders told Newsday, and the Town of Islip made up the difference with a $250,000 subsidy toward construction. The roughly 0.43-acre site was donated by Suffolk County and the town, which has conveyed 28 parcels to Habitat Long Island over the years. (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)

CBS reported that New York state, the federal government, the county and the town contributed through grants and donations. (CBS New York, Feb. 20, 2025)

The new owners helped build the house and will put in 300 hours of "sweat equity" on other Habitat homes, both outlets reported. (CBS New York, Feb. 20, 2025; Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)

What went wrong

Grants didn't fit. Habitat's usual grants couldn't be used for a printed house, so the town covered the gap with $250,000. (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)
Hard first job. "It's been very challenging because nothing has been done like this on Long Island," Manders said. (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)
Only partly printed. Newsday describes the house as partially printed; SQ4D's figure is "more than 50%." (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)
Closing delayed. The family hadn't moved in yet because they were still waiting to close with the bank, a spokesman told Newsday. (Newsday report, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025)
What we don't know yet: the dollar cost of the house and of a conventional Habitat build to compare it with.

Our follow-up question for Habitat for Humanity of Long Island

What did the Brentwood house cost in dollars, before and after the $250,000 subsidy, compared with a conventional Habitat home?

Sources

Newsday (Brianne Ledda), report on Habitat for Humanity of Long Island's first 3D-printed house, as reposted by SQ4D, Feb. 21, 2025. sq4d.com
CBS New York, “Habitat for Humanity builds 1st 3D-printed home on Long Island,” Feb. 20, 2025. cbsnews.com
Forte Construction, “Celebrating the Dedication of Habitat for Humanity's First 3D-Printed Home in Brentwood.” fortecc.com

Disclosure: [not in copy] Editor placeholder