March has been a pretty busy month for me. The starting of new connections and the abandonment of others. Overall, the scales are balanced and here I am in April starting off with a growing concept: Shipping Containers = Your New Home!
About 7 years ago I read an extensive article about shipping containers used for housing all over the world. Sometimes it was the only protection people could find (abandoned containers), others wanted to live off the grid so container homes were very easy to construct, and yet others loved the idea of a container home and spent the time and money to make it happen. Some like a container home because you can afford a starter home for under $100K, and it lends a hand to the affordable housing issue in America. Overall, the concept is taking root.
In this article, Top 20 Shipping Containers Home Designs and their Costs 2019, you’ll find some basic ideas about cost. It also gives you some words of wisdom from people who had container homes built. The first thing people think of is “how much does it really cost for one of these?” Here’s a clip from the article:
Base cost to build per container:
There are two standard sizes for shipping containers: 20 x 8 x 8 ft. covering a surface of 160 sq. ft. and 40 x 8 x 8 with a surface of 320 sq. ft. A used 20-footer costs anywhere between $1,400 and $2,800, whereas a 40-footer costs $3,500 – $4,500.
You will also have to pay for labor (about $50-$150 per hour) and for the modifications needed to make the container livable. Expect to pay at least $10,000 for labor, more likely $15,000 per container.
There are some prefabricated shipping container houses sold for as little as $15,000. A big and luxurious house made of shipping containers can cost more than $250,000, but it’s still only a half of the price for a high-end home of a similar size.
I hope you find the container housing an interesting topic. Please go to my blog/POST page and subscribe. If you have any questions, feel free to write to me via my web page.
All the best, Valerie Jurik-Henry
