How Much My 2-Story Container Home Cost to Build

In this video I answer the most asked question throughout the build which is "How much does it cost?" The Pacific Bin is a vacation rental located in Sultan, Washington built from 5 shipping containers.

Stay at the Bin

[NinjaNaruto]

When YouTubers often say “I’ll give you a cost breakdown” it’s usually followed by some fluff and it doesn’t include the smaller charges. Your video is the golden standard of breaking down costs while building a home. Excellent job!

[AlleyCat]

Cost breakdown video that doesn't spend 70% teasing us but breaks down the cost from start to finish. I salute you sir. Well done. This home is STUNNING

[nightcrawler]

As a project accountant at a construction company, I can honestly say he got rolled on some of these prices. But kudos for the honesty!

[xJust_Pizzax]

Step by step breakdown of how an affordable container home can be made just as expensive as a regular home.

[nd-place]

There's something wrong in the world when it costs $10K to have a couple guys mark off your property for a couple hours but it also costs $10K for complete engineering and structural plans. Like the latter is way much more work and takes way more skill and time.

[rolandbujeiro]

As a contractor In South Florida I can tell you the window lead times are averaging nearly 6 months. It's insane. Construction costs post Covid are astronomical, now is definitely not the time to custom build unless your independantly wealthy and have money to burn.

[moisteroyster]

My wife and i stayed here and it was genuinely nice and didnt skimp in any locations. Felt like a very welcoming and enjoyable space. Mad jealous its not our house. Well done and appreciated the opportunity to stay here 👍

[TheFrostHydra]

That electrical box costs that much because you're also paying for the conduit, the copper wire, and the manpower required to trench/pull/connect/energize your property. Depending on the distance the wire had to cover, you could easily be spending 20k just on a wire spool (also depends on the wire gauge)

[HotSteppa]

ive been looking all over for something like this. thanks for making me realize this is more money then i thought it would be

[ericrobin]

Thank you for this honest video for its transparency on price, as it's tiring to see projects that cost $100, 000 but actually cost much more, especially when considering building a home

[taromilkvt]

Genuine question on the deck: you stated that timber is better than cedar. Cedar as a deck has a 15-20 life expectancy, has a natural resistance to rot, decay, and termites/bugs. Timber has a life expectancy of 10-15 years, is prone to splintering/splitting and needs annual upkeep of being refinished to not rot/decay etc. who lied to you? Or was there something I missed on that?

[MyWictor]

this video is by far the best I have ever seen. detailed out. the work that goes into it. great job !!!

[hvanta_]

as a person from vancouver the first thought i had about the price was "thats really cheap" not actually considering how much half a mill is, but just how bad housing prices are here. if this house was made in vancouver, i guarantee it would be at least 5mill total in CAD

[weirlive]

"I sneezed.. that was $10k.. I needed a Kleenex.. that was an additional $10k" amazing video thank you for sharing!!! The build looks great.

[kweaver]

So I do that exact work for my local power company. We just did a job similar to that (longer distance but not in pipe, it was direct burial so cheaper) and the material cost to the customer was about $12k mainly being the transformer and primary cable. I didn’t see what the company bills for labor but they definitely over charge. We have a similar job coming up and they billed three 8 hour days just to dig the trench.

[blackwolfsyndicate]

As someone who has worked in construction and a certified HVAC technician.

You got ripped off on everything man ...

They really did a number on you.

How many mini splits total did you have? That's too crazy.

[becorations]

This is a freaking beautiful design! I hope you get plenty of rentals to pay off all those building costs, but it all looks like money well spent. You didn’t cut any corners. Nice! Thanks for sharing all the details!

[Dimrain]

Honestly this was a breath of fresh air. I hear so many people missing costs and forgetting all the details, but you seem to have calculated it all. Over in the midwest we are about 1/2-1/4 those costs, but if you buy in an area that is in demand you can make some good money. Did you end up doing a cashout refi to pull your money back out?

[DAL-Designs]

Designer-turned-building contractor-turned-urban planner here. A few observations, and two questions for Devon.

1. Your site considerations will very greatly from region to region. You won't have to worry about wetlands in some areas, for example, but you may have to worry about windstorm or seismic. And, in many states if you are building outside of city limits your permitting will be much different and often less odious. As another example, the cost Devon mentions for the water well is probably twice what a water well would cost here in Texas: most well drillers charge more like $50 per foot, and we can typically get good water at 120' or less (except on the coast due to brackish water intrusion).

Point being: do your due diligence. Know your local conditions. Figure all that stuff out first before you buy a single nail!

2. Same with permitting and design professionals. For example, the fees for permits that Devon mention are outlandish in most parts of the U.S. So don't think those are representative; they may be less or (God forbid) maybe even more!

3. I like that he talks about some special considerations with shipping containers like what happens if you offset the containers, or cut them. All those cuts have to be reinforced (but in a site-built wood-framed house, doors and window openings have to be reinforced as well). And of course you can avoid the other issue by simply not offsetting or angling the containers.

4. Know your lead times for construction materials too. Time is money, after all. And if you aren't a building contractor and have never done it, by all that is good and holy on God's green earth don't believe the DIY Network shows that make ti seem like self-contracting is so easy. It's absolutely not; you're watching experienced professionals on scripted TV. Hire a reputable contractor.

Now the questions for Devon:

1. What is your cost per square foot for the habitable structure only, with all the site and utility stuff removed?

2. What is the average cost per square foot (habitable structure only) for site-built wood-framed houses in the area? I'm curious to see if there were any cost savings per square foot.

[jaysmith]

When I get ready to build my home I hope I’m able to pick your brain because you have inspired me so much you have no idea I just like to thank you for this video and your time and your effort because I greatly appreciate it