Barndominium Builders in Monroe, LA

Floor plans are the fun part of working with barndominium builders in Monroe, but the questions that decide whether a project goes smoothly are about the land. Monroe is the seat and largest city of Ouachita Parish, in northeastern Louisiana, at about 72 feet above sea level. The parish is named for the Ouachita River, which flows down through southern Arkansas and northeastern Louisiana. Here are the questions we work through with every Monroe-area landowner, and why each one matters for a barndominium.

Did this land flood in March 2016?

In March 2016, 15 to 20 inches of rain fell over three days, the heaviest three-day total on record for the area. In Ouachita Parish, about 9,500 homes had flood damage, 5,400 were completely flooded and more than 1,700 high-water rescues were carried out. If you are buying acreage, ask the seller and the neighbors what happened on that parcel in 2016, and look at the current flood zone. A barndominium can be raised on a built-up pad, a stem-wall slab or piers, but that decision has to be made before the site work starts.

What is the soil, and how does it drain?

Low river land in northeast Louisiana is often heavy clay. The USDA's Perry soil series, whose type location is in neighboring Morehouse Parish, formed in clayey alluvium on the alluvial plains of the Arkansas and Red Rivers and their distributaries. It is poorly drained, very slowly permeable and carries 60 to 85 percent clay between 10 and 40 inches deep, and it floods for short periods nearly every year unless protected by levees. Not every Monroe lot is Perry clay, but ground like this explains why we ask for a soil report before designing a slab, and why the same report shapes what kind of onsite wastewater system a rural lot can use.

How will it handle 55 inches of rain?

Monroe's 1991-2020 normals show about 55.10 inches of precipitation a year. On flat, tight clay, that water does not soak in quickly. Site drainage is part of the design: a pad raised above surrounding grade, swales to carry water around the building, gutters sized for heavy bursts and downspouts that discharge well away from the slab. A barndo with a big shop roof sheds a lot of water in one place, and we plan where it goes.

Is the building ready for a tornado?

On April 12, 2020, a low-end EF3 tornado struck Monroe during the Easter tornado outbreak. Damage was severe, though advance warnings prevented deaths and injuries. Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are common in spring and summer here. For a steel or post-frame home, that means an engineered load path from the roof to the foundation, properly sized anchors, wind-rated overhead and entry doors, and a conversation about a storm shelter or safe room inside the floor plan. A reinforced interior room is far easier to build in at the design stage than to retrofit.

Will the house be comfortable in July and safe in a freeze?

The average July high at Monroe Regional Airport is 93.2 degrees F, the record high is 109 degrees F and the record low is -2 degrees F, with an average January low of 36.7 degrees F. A metal home here needs both: closed-cell spray foam to stop condensation on the steel and hold back summer heat, HVAC sized for humidity, and plumbing kept inside the insulated envelope for the cold snaps that do arrive.

Which code applies?

Statewide, Louisiana adopted the 2021 International Residential Code and related 2021 codes, plus the 2020 National Electrical Code, effective January 1, 2023. New homes are now inspected for energy code compliance, roofs follow revised high-wind nailing patterns with secondary barriers, and GFCI protection covers most 110-volt and some 220-volt outlets. Land inside Monroe falls under the city; land outside it falls under the parish or another municipality. We confirm that for your parcel before drawings are final.

How far is it from town?

Interstate 20 runs through Monroe, along with U.S. 80, U.S. 165 and Louisiana 15, and Monroe Regional Airport serves the area. Ouachita Parish borders Union, Morehouse, Richland, Caldwell, Jackson and Lincoln parishes, so a land search can easily cross parish lines. The parish grew from 153,720 people in 2010 to 160,368 in 2020, even as Monroe itself went from 48,815 to 47,702, which says a lot about where people are choosing to live: on land around the city rather than in it.

A little history

Monroe began in 1785 as the government center of the Poste du Ouachita. Fort Miro was built in 1791 under Spanish rule, and the settlement took the name Monroe after the steamboat James Monroe arrived in the spring of 1820. It incorporated as a town in 1845 and as a city in 1906.

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and bring your answers to these questions. We will help with the ones you are not sure about.