West Palm Beach, Fla.-based Mesocore Modular Homes introduces a scalable housing model aimed at improving affordability and disaster relief, a critical issue in a climate prone to devastating hurricanes.
Positioned as an affordable housing solution for both homebuyers and city leaders, planners, emergency management professionals, and resilience experts focused on weather-driven hazards, the Mesocore expandable home can start as a 420-square-foot, one-bedroom, one-bath home with a private bedroom, full kitchen, living area, and built-in desk.
Basically, the first model is the size of a small ADU. If homeowners later decide they need more space, they can expand the home into a two-, three-, or four-bedroom home.
CEO Joe Esposito Sr Builder’s Day that homes, designed for expansion and expansion, are a great option for entry-level buyers and first-timers. Although the ADU model is not intended for families, owners can expand the living space at their discretion when they need more space, instead of buying and moving to another home.
“This one-bedroom home that can be expanded into a full-size home could be something that could … bring startup homes back to work,” Esposito said.
Smaller and smaller houses
The expandable ADU model is intended to provide an affordable, entry-level opportunity for home ownership as an alternative to the condo. According to Esposito, most municipalities in Florida require a minimum lot size of 5,000 or 6,000 square feet for a primary family.
However, Mesocore is aiming to place homes in areas as small as 3,000 square meters to increase affordability. That’s why the builder chose Gainesville, Florida as its first stretch of affordable housing, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026. The city of Gainesville adopted a new land development code in 2024 that allows for single-family homes on smaller lots of up to 3,000 square feet.
Dense communities with smaller lots can mean more affordable prices. In a college town like Gainesville, which is home to a limited number of seniors, providing affordable ownership opportunities is important.
“The advantage of having a smaller lot is that it’s more competitive. You have more units per acre,” Esposito said, explaining that many single-family communities in Europe have smaller lots and higher densities.
In the United States, large estates and homes have become the norm, but that may change as affordability issues increase.
“There’s no reason to believe that every community or development needs to have multiple sizes that demand larger homes. It’s a cost increase in every way,” Esposito said.
Disaster relief and emergency management
Florida, which has no hurricanes in 2025, was spared Mother Nature’s wrath last year. However, the state often faces devastating storms that can wipe out the entire area.
According to Esposito, Mesocore has been in discussions with FEMA and federal officials about using a scalable home model for disaster relief. The model can help those in affected communities rebuild quickly, as houses can be built and placed on site in as little as two weeks.
When natural disasters displace residents, the first place they go is temporary housing, usually a hotel. After that, there should be some kind of permanent housing, a solution that can be worked on immediately. The longer it takes to find a permanent solution, the greater the financial cost to FEMA and federal agencies.
“We can build a community of these expandable homes right away, because they are modular. They generate enough electricity to run off the grid, and they collect and store enough water to satisfy a family,” Esposito said.
