Lustron Alert in Virginia $115K

Lustron alert! The prefab, enameled steel, Lustron homes were introduced in 1948 in response to the need of housing after WWII. Our featured home today is the dove gray two-bedroom Westchester model. The Westchester is easily recognized  by its notched porch outside of the living room. You can date the Westchester design by the bedroom windows. The earliest homes had pairs of small slit windows set high on the wall. In 1949 and 1950, they changed to the larger single window design like this one has, so this home’s build date must be 1949 or 1950.

In most cases, like our featured home, the foundation was a basic concrete slab. Windows were casement with aluminum sashes, and the skeleton framing of the house was steel. Porcelain steel panels formed the siding, interior walls and roof. The Westchester’s exterior came in four colors: surf blue, dove gray, maize yellow and desert tan. This one is dove gray.

Lustron homes like this one sold from the factory for about $7,500. By the time a foundation, erection costs and other fees were added, the total could amount to $10,000. At a time when similar-sized frames homes were going for $6,500 complete, $10K seemed a high price to pay for a small, plain looking house. Although about 2,500 Lustron homes were sold, the company soon folded.