Acclaimed San Francisco-based designer Yves Béhar has thrown his hat in the prefab game, by launching designs for ‘fully-customisable accessory dwelling units' with LivingHomes (of Plant Prefab) as the Los Angeles' Summit festival this week. The relatively compact structures are set to offer a viable alternative to help solve housing issues, without compromising design or production quality.
Called YB1, the design is extremely flexible and can adapt to different roof lines, sizes, layouts for windows, various interior requirements, as well as different climatic conditions. There are three versions currently readily available, with more in the pipeline. The residential interior can include a full kitchen, bathroom with a shower, a living room, and a bedroom or office, while some details, such as electrical appliances, can be selected by the owners. Overall sizes can range from 23 sq m to 111 sq m.
The structures are designed to be prefabricated without any compromise to design or production quality. Image: Yves Béhar Living Homes
Environmentally friendly production methods at Plant Prefab's facilities add to the scheme's environmental credentials; while materials such as Forest Stewardship Council certified wood siding and cement panels mean that the design is climate-sensitive too.
‘Following our work on efficient living with robotic furniture company ORI, I’m excited to extend the passion for tiny homes and prefab by partnering with LivingHomes', says Behar. ‘For me, the next frontier of design is to think of the entire home as a product that a homeowner can shape to their needs in terms of size, usage, aesthetic and lifestyle. The design goal of the LivingHomes ADU is adding urban density with a range of sizes and home designs while providing a building system that delivers on sustainable and efficient living in urban areas'.
The small homes may offer a solution to housing issues caused by rising land prices and density in global metropoles like Los Angeles; in fact, their creation was sparked by ‘updates to California’s legislation, encouraging increased urban density while limiting the environmental impact of new construction', explains the team.
This is set to be just the beginning for the ambitious scheme. This design is only the first in a line of prefab structures to be launched by Behar and LivingHomes; watch this space.
Unveiled at the city’s Summit festival, the structure is called YB1. Image: Yves Béhar Living Homes YB1
The design is set to be only the first in a line of prefabricated homes from the same team. Image: Yves Béhar Living Homes YB1
These small units could be an answer to density issues in fast growing metropoles like Los Angeles. Image: Yves Béhar Living Homes YB1
INFORMATION
For more information visit the website of Yves Behar
-
Highlights from the transporting Cruise 2026 showsThe Cruise 2026 season began yesterday with a Chanel show at Lake Como, heralding the start of a series of jet-setting, destination runway shows from fashion’s biggest houses
-
Behind the design of national pavilions in Venice: three studios to knowDesigning the British, Swiss and Mexican national pavilions at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025 are three outstanding studios to know before you go
-
Premium patisserie Naya is Mayfair’s latest sweet spotHeritage meets opulence at Naya bakery in Mayfair, London. With interiors by India Hicks and Anna Goulandris, the patisserie looks good enough to eat
-
Los Angeles businesses regroup after the 2025 firesIn the third instalment of our Rebuilding LA series, we zoom in on Los Angeles businesses and the architecture and social fabric around them within the impacted Los Angeles neighbourhoods
-
‘Fall Guy’ director David Leitch takes us inside his breathtaking Los Angeles homeFor movie power couple David Leitch and Kelly McCormick, interior designer Vanessa Alexander crafts a home with the ultimate Hollywood ending
-
The Lighthouse draws on Bauhaus principles to create a new-era workspace campusThe Lighthouse, a Los Angeles office space by Warkentin Associates, brings together Bauhaus, brutalism and contemporary workspace design trends
-
This minimalist Wyoming retreat is the perfect place to unplugThis woodland home that espouses the virtues of simplicity, containing barely any furniture and having used only three materials in its construction
-
We explore Franklin Israel’s lesser-known, progressive, deconstructivist architectureFranklin Israel, a progressive Californian architect whose life was cut short in 1996 at the age of 50, is celebrated in a new book that examines his work and legacy
-
A new hilltop California home is rooted in the landscape and celebrates views of natureWOJR's California home House of Horns is a meticulously planned modern villa that seeps into its surrounding landscape through a series of sculptural courtyards
-
The Frick Collection's expansion by Selldorf Architects is both surgical and delicateThe New York cultural institution gets a $220 million glow-up
-
Remembering architect David M Childs (1941-2025) and his New York skyline legacyDavid M Childs, a former chairman of architectural powerhouse SOM, has passed away. We celebrate his professional achievements
