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The Museum Modern Art In New York is one of the world’s premier showcases for modern art. 

Last year, more than 1 million people visited, drawn by works such as Henri Rousseau’s “Sleeping Gypsy,” Henri Matisse’s “The Dance,” and Vincent Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night.”

But not one of those visitors saw a Momo Home. 

Because MoMa doesn’t have a Momo.

Yet.

What’s the equivalent of the 10,000-steps-a-day metric when it comes to the environment?

I really have no idea what the answer should be, but I think there’s a metric we can create, and if we can create it, solar-powered homes can be a kind of catalyst for positive change.

There’s a reason trees don’t grow from concrete slabs. 

Turns out a slab isn’t the most stable way to anchor something to the earth. 

They can sink, buckle, crack, break, or, in a flood, just slide away. 

That’s why our homes don’t have concrete foundations.

Could it get any tougher for homebuilders?

On one hand, housing demand is high. Like, really high. We’re facing a massive shortage in affordable housing, with middle-income buyers faring the worst.

On the other, builders face skyrocketing materials costs, huge labor shortages, and long build times that mean fewer capital turns.  

It’s no wonder, then, why new builders in the construction industry face tougher survival rates than many other industries.

So what’s the solution?

Timber is the popular kid. It’s still the most widely-used framing method in U.S. residential housing.

But its days as a building material are coming to an end. Here are six reasons why and what will likely replace it.

Concrete is a pour substitute.

For home foundations, that is.

Concrete slabs can crack, slide, break, and leach.

Plus, concrete has a gnarly carbon footprint. 

And working with concrete is messy. Have you ever tried to get dried concrete off work pants?

We have enough.

Energy.gov says the amount of sunlight that strikes our big blue planet’s surface in 90 minutes could handle the entire world’s energy consumption for a whole year.

Harnessing that power is another matter. But we’re getting there.

With solar power costs dropping and federal incentives rising, now’s a good time for sunnier thoughts, like saying yes to residential solar power.

“We’re getting worse at construction.”

That’s the opening line of a recent New York Times op-ed.

They point out that a construction worker in 2020 was less productive than her 1970 counterpart. They then contrast that fact with the labor productivity of the overall economy, which grew by 290 percent in the last forty years.