More on the Last Days of the Modern Homes Department

The final Sears Modern Homes catalog was issued in 1940, and the Modern Homes Department stuck around for a few years afterwards.

The 1940 Book of Modern Homes.

Sears made many changes to its business model after the Depression:

• They listed complete pricing so customers could see the true cost to purchase a house (this included lumber, millwork, hardware, plumbing, roofing, wiring, lighting fixtures, heating system, etc.). Complete house "packages" ranged from $3,500 to $7,500 in 1939. 
• They primarily sold houses through their Modern Homes district offices. In the Chicago area, there were offices in Aurora, Chicago, Gary, Hammond, Peoria, Rockford, and Milwaukee.  If a customer came into a Sears, Roebuck retail store, they were directed to a Modern Homes office. Orders rarely came in directly from the mail.
• Sears only sold homes in the East and Midwest United States. There were no sales west of the Mississippi or south of the Mason-Dixon line.
• Sears no longer offered home construction services. They would offer an inspection service to ensure "the job is done right".
• Sears no longer offered financing. The buyer was responsible for obtaining financing through FHA or a private lender. Sears would help advise the purchaser through the financing process.

A Rare Authenticated Homart Home in Glenview

In 1942, Sears, Roebuck stopped selling Modern Homes made with pre-cut lumber, but it wasn't long before they were selling houses again.

From 1946 to about 1952 Sears sold "ready to erect" Homart Homes in a limited distribution.

These houses consisted of factory-built wall panels with windows and doors already installed. Roof gables, front door canopies, roof panels, and basement stairs were also pre-assembled at the factory. The floor and ceiling joists, sub flooring, and other trim parts were delivered as pre-cut lumber. Basements were optional. 

The Sears, Roebuck catalog from Fall 1949 showed how easy it was to assemble a Homart Home.

Sears advertisements claimed that three men could get the building "under roof" in three days.

Sears sold Homart Homes through mail-order catalogs and through the company's retail stores. For $1.50, Sears would sell you a full-color, die-cut cardboard miniature of your Homart Home, complete with furniture and landscaping. "Plan it inside and out!" said the advertising.

Ad from the Garfieldian newspaper, 1946.

Homart Homes were sourced by the factory nearest the customer: Cairo, Illinois or Trenton, New Jersey. Usually the materials were delivered by truck directly to the customer's lot. If the customer lived more than 400 miles away from either factory, the materials were shipped by rail.

Homart Homes were designed by Richard B. Pollman of Home Planners, Inc.

Prefabricated housing was popular in the years after World War II. Not only was Sears in the business, but so were firms like General Houses, Gunnison, Mobilhome, and Lustron, to name a few.

About 11 Homart Homes have been authenticated nationwide. One of those is in Glenview.

1654 Elmdale, Glenview.

A typical model from the Homart Homes catalog. 

Many of the Homart Homes had the same exterior dimensions and the same arrangement of the front door and windows. But the interior layouts varied among the models.

I could never have spotted this one. There was an article about the house in the Glenview Announcements in 1996.

Jerald Stephens and his wife Verda purchased the house in 1951. Jerald was stationed at the Glenview Naval Air Station. He built the family home on an empty cornfield near the base with the help of a few friends.

Jerald, who had no building experience, was able to complete the wiring, the plumbing, and the foundation for the basement.

Looking for more information about Homart Homes? Check out this blog post on Instant House or check out my article about a Homart Home in Oak Brook Terrace.

Sears Modern Home No. 229

This is an authenticated Sears model No. 229. "Sears Roebuck" is listed as the architect on the building permit.

5926 N. East Circle, Chicago.

No. 229 from the 1914 Sears Modern Homes catalog. Actually it was called No. 264P229 that year.

Photo of the house taken during an architectural survey in the early 1970's.

The Model No. 229 on East Circle was built in the fall of 1913. Model No. 229 was offered from 1913-1916, and in later years the floor plan changed and the house was called the Somerset. The front door of the house is on the same side of the house as the dining room, which is another clue that it was a very early version of the No. 229.

This isn't a model you see every day!

Floor plan from the 1914 catalog. The front door is on the same side of the house as the bay window.

The original owner was Otto Hannelman and the carpenter was W.G. Stoll. Hannelman paid $2,400 for the house, including labor. Sometime in 1919 or early 1920, William and Emma Foerster moved in. William was a mail-order clerk with Marshall Field & Company. The Foersters were still in the house in 1923. But by 1928, Rosalie Stier was living in the house.

The Bellewood of Des Plaines

The Sears Bellewood was an English cottage sold from 1930 until 1933. It must have been a decent seller, because Sears offered two versions of the house in the 1933 catalog--a model with different exterior finish was called the Pembrook. 

I think found a Bellewood in Des Plaines.

1470 Henry, Des Plaines.

The Bellewood from the 1932 Sears Modern Homes catalog.