Fisher House (Hatboro, Pennsylvania)
The foundation of the home is built entirely of stone in, for Kahn, a traditional style of building. The stone foundation was necessary due to the home’s placement on a slope and its need for a solid anchoring into the ground of the site. The exterior and interior portions of the home are made from the same cedar wood sourced from the local Pennsylvania area. This was done to keep down costs. The woodwork of the Fisher house is often viewed as the most comprehensive of any of his woodwork during the period. Later projects were said to lack the continuity of the Fisher House, often smaller details such as interior doors were left unadorned in a way that left the project feeling incomplete to viewers. It was best in the end that Kahn was not allowed to build from all stone, because if he had the home would have been lacking in much of the great detail work that makes it so famous. The use of cedar wood throughout the interior and exterior of the home compelled Kahn to create amazing details in the building simply by folding windows into the building envelope to provide new habitable space on both the interior and exterior of the building. Had Kahn been left to build the Fisher House entirely from stone on the exterior then the details he created from windows never would have come into existence.
Earth shelter
Typically earth sheltered structures are more costly to build compared to a regular house. This is due in part to the cost of excavating the earth, having to use structural materials in the walls and the roof which withstand greater load, and increased expense on waterproofing. Many financial institutions outright exclude financing on earth-berm homes or require this type of property to be common for the area. However, as with other types of buildings the cost of construction varies greatly. For example homes built in the style of Oehler would tend to be significantly cheaper than regular houses since he emphasizes the owner(s) doing much of the excavation and work themself and using recycled materials for windows for example.