How Much My 2-Story Container Home Cost to Build 

When RU-vidrs 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!

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

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)

Love it! Killing it man

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.

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?

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 👍

Brilliant breakdown! Thanks for taking the time to do that. That was significantly more than I was expecting it to be, but I guess you did go super flashy on the build. It looks fantastic!

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!

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

I cant believe that real wood flooring was only $17k. You got a real good deal on the flooring. The house is beautiful ❤

Really appreciate the thoroughness and transparency in this video. Very helpful for those deciding if they want to take something like this on.

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

Love the attention to detail and thorough explanation of costs in this video. The Bin looks sick, dude!! Great stuff!

This is an incredible, very thorough break down of the costs from beginning to end. Thank you so much for sharing.

You killed it!! When u stated "cost breakdown" I thought it would be like others just giving us the "what we want you to know costs" but you actually broke it down for us, thankyou for this, it has given me something to think about for when I decide to build my shipping container home. I whole heartedly believe you will certainly get all the funds back and then some when you put it up for holiday rental. Congratulations on such wonderful job🙏🏾🧡

mad props for taking the time to do the cost counting properly man. first time watching your channel, really like how you put the vid together so clearly. dope house man.

I know that with getting the power out there a lot of the cost is running the lines to the location if it's "off the grid" then it's going to be significantly more expensive. Just want to say thank you so much though. This is the best full cost of assembly/construction video that I have ever watched on youtube. It's truly a massive help to anyone considering a similar project. I can't say thank you enough times, you did an amazing job.

I like that you brought up having to make the Conex (the name for these containers when they aren't being shipped to anyone that wasn't aware) structurally sound. As someone that was a industrial welder for structures that was the most important thing I heard.

The amount of dedication is truly impressive, I know this was such a pain lol I hope you make so much off of it

What a gem! My 16 year old son and I learned so much of how to navigate a dream of how this could be built. Treble Interiors loves what you do.

This was the best container home i have ever seen!! Everything was so well done.

Really beautiful home. And very honest presentation of costs, that I certainly appreciated. Sincerely hope your airbnb guests respect it.

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

This was a great breakdown and earned you a subscriber because most cost breakdowns are done this thorough! Also, very eye opening to see how many hoops you jump through in comparison to where I currently live (a state directly east of you)!

Was NOT disappointed. Wow. Editing. Price breakdown. Views. Everything. On point!

I like everything about it! such a clean design! even the painting in the kitchen is spot on with dark red and gold yellow colors breaking the wood white and black!

This was the most helpful video I’ve seen in awhile thanks for being genuine

Wow, you did an amazing shipping (no cheap) container home. Great job.

You’ve made a beautiful home. Best wishes on your short term rental efforts. You’re going to do great. Thanks for sharing this video with us.

I really enjoyed the video! 1. you are a likable guy 2. your presentation was very complete and honest. 3. No fluff 4. While a bit on the fast side a person can run it again if needed. Ninja is completely correct... EXCELLENT JOB. And yes, Washington is a bit pissy even in the country. I am from Seattle.

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

That was insane! Lol, I don't know how you have energy to build, document and edit all of that but it's super impressive! Definitely best construction and cost break down I've ever seen! Well done

I’ve always wondered how much building a home would cost. I love the aesthetic look of homes like this. I could live in that house and never get tired of where it’s located or how beautiful the home is. This is literally all I need to be happy forever 😂

Hey Devon, you mentioned a couple times throughout the video that you were going for a Scandinavian inspired design and use several wood finishings throughout the house. Have you heard of a company called Alpine Lights? They make lights that I think would compliment the house extremely well.

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

Wow! thank you for all the numbers and information! It's incredible how much costs to build something like TPB. Nice work, right now looks INCREDIBLE! I would love to have a home like that! Greetings from Spain!! 👋

Awesome job Devon, really cool to see it finally come together! The final product is absolutely gorgeous. Well done!

I love the design, its on point! Ive been hunting nice large open floor plans for shipping containers & they are all too small. This one is perfect!

Thank YOU SO MUCH. I HAVE COMPLETELY CHANGE MY THOUGHTS AND FELINGS AND NOW I VIEW THEM IN A NEW LIGHT. MY BOYFRIEND HAD SUGGESTED OHECKING OUT CONTAINER HOMES AND HIS INTEREST IN CONTAINER LIVING IS WHERE HE WANTS TO GO TO

Can we talk about how families used to build houses from Sears catalogs but because of bureaucracy, this house was $40k without a single nail being driven.

I have been binge watching Containables and was wondering about resale and appreciation and really thinking about selling my current home to move to a smaller container home. THIS VIDEO WAS AWESOME and that home is absolutely stunning -- thank you so much!!

YES!!! It’s the “little” stuff we don’t get a lot of times. The land study and clearing of the land, even soil testing and finding/digging a well!! Even the cost of moving the container to the site and equipment rentals!!! (YES rock is SUPER expensive)I wanna know the costs down to the screws, site Gatorade, and all those lil fees and bribes!! (jk….) This is an AMAZINGLY informative and really entertaining too!! This answers ALL the little questions I had!! *NEW SUB* for sure!!! Y’all do anything on the east coast?! Lol!! Y’all would make a *killing* building a few of these in the Grand Strand SC area and *ONLY* keep them for locals and as list some as “affordable housing”. Let the touristas and “newbies” keep their $472,000 900sq ft 2br/1ba homes on less than a 1/4 acre lot with scary HOAs… (real home for sale here) I’ll take one of these beautiful container homes, in the middle of the woods, away from all the noise and HOAs.

Cool for the transparency, very enlightening. it is amazing how much location factors into home building. Here in "rural undesirable america", that same build would cost me probably 1/3 of the cost minus all the promo items. Location really is everything

This whole process was absolutely insane to watch!!! Honestly congrats to you, that's a lot of hard work and money!

Thank you so much for sharing this journey!! You’ve done an amazing job with this home 👏🏽 👏🏽👏🏽My husband and I would like to build single family container homes like this and this helps to have a ballpark idea of costs. Wishing you much success in all your endeavors!!

I dig the cost breakdown, that’s a massive leap ahead of what most others do. But what on earth do I have to do for a living to get a loan for $700k to achieve such an awesome build.

Well brother I been building homes for about the past 12 years for myself here in missouri I usually build 1500 to 1800 square foot homes I can usually get it done for 65 to 100,000 grand do it three or four times a year that's minus furniture and appliances but that's a crazy number but yall did a good job great work keep it up

Holy cow Devin! This is super cool! I live in north Sultan and I would totally love to book this for a relaxing weekend away from the house with my girlfriend! I’m super stoked you did this!

If someone pays a million dollars for a “Bin House” I’ll be shocked. Especially comparing what else you can buy for a million

Pro tip: If you want a modern/custom home, just buy a prefab modular home from an independent builder. It will be a much more sound and solid structure for a much better cost.

I love this video! Thank you for sharing this and being so transparent with your overall costs. Love all the high end features and the hickory floors 👌🏾.

Wow that was much higher than what I thought it would be. I don't doubt the market value, but I'm having a hard time imagining a buyer that will pay that amount for a container home, which tends to attract more frugal buyers in the first place. I know the pandemic had a major impact on construction, but I feel a similar sized log cabin could have been built.

Thank you. I live here in Washington and bought property last year. With the same idea as a short-term rental. I'm in the planning phase of what I can put on the property I bought and what I want to offer to renters. This information is very helpful

Beautiful . . . I love repurposing materials (shipping containers, etc.) that otherwise would have had a single use. You've taken these containers and created a wonderful home or getaway for someone to enjoy.

That's beutiful, I love how healthy the landscape around the house is, so much litchen!

Really great breakdown, super transparent. Can't believe you were almost 200k in by the time the foundation was poured, costs are crazy these days!

Looks like you built a beautiful home! Congrats!

This would be my dream home! One day me and my kids will have something similar ❤ beautiful home by the way

It’s people like this that raise the cost of someone trying to build something affordable.

Thank you for doing this! I’ve been exploring this option here in Florida, but finding contractors is almost impossible due to the boom in housing construction and the recent hurricanes.

The home is STUNNING! I love the color choices both inside and outside... The design is incredible, So open and inviting... You did an Amazing job on this home! I have to say that I am thoroughly shocked at the high prices for permits, etc.... I live in Washington State and I love it here but they sure don't make it easy or affordable for us when it comes to building.... Well Done Young Man, This home is STUNNING 🤩

The box doesn't cost 27,000. The equipment and labor cost 27,000. They had to shut down part of the existing system to tie you in, then run a directional bore (this is lots of $$$) from that tie in all the way to your site. as well as any excavation to run conduit or 'stub ups' into the concrete pad.

Wow thanks for this informational video. I feel like I can go build my own home now given the proper steps. Thank you. I appreciate it. 👍

Great job devin! Thank you so much for your transparency. Your drive and determination through all the unknowns have been inspiring! Looking forward to chatting w you as I build the portlandiaframe this year! Looks like I just found my builder this week!

Thanks for sharing, great job and great info! You'll go far in life with your attitude and work ethic, excited to see your future endeavors!

I love that you gave an honest breakdown of costs. So many people are floored at why things cost so much; everything adds up, and there are always unexpected costs. It's a beautiful, high-end build that will have a great ROI.

I clicked on this needing some background noise at work, but that was truly fascinating. One question that I’m left with is the cost benefit analysis of using containers for this house considering all of the steel reinforcements required to support it versus more traditional materials.

Me Deus! Never would have expected a container home to cost that much. Congratulations on finishing the project. Hope all your effort pays off.

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.

I love seeing cool local stuff. Love life out in the valley

I have to admire the detail in planning, design and detail in execution. You did good with this project. Furthermore you showed that container homes are a viable option.

That's a beautiful home. I wish you much success in your endeavors.

I have been planning and designing to build my own container home for several years but land cost and construction costs have made me pull back. Love what you did here.

You did an excellent job on the house and the video. Strong work!

You’re an angel!! Thanks for doing all of this work to show us!

This looks incredible. Some people are focusing on the fact that they wouldn’t want to stay in a shipping container house. But honestly, the shipping containers were just the base design. You’re not just buying shipping containers. You’re buying a really nice house. The containers are just essentially a gimmick as there is just as much work as building a house and it looks amazing.

Great container home. One of the best ive seen. Its a shame that it cost so much. Youre not alone in this pain. If it was before covid it probably would have been half the price

God bless you for the large crawl space for the workers.

I am a project manager for my local DNO(Distribution Network Operator) and buying a connection to the network comes at a premium as there are limitations to how much power can be generated on the network. Some businesses literally buy connections just to make their land more valuable, and then sell the land on.

This home is fantastic! Yep, in other parts of the country it would be quite a bit cheaper to build, but prices vary a lot even within a state. The "location, location, location" realty phrase applies. Add in state and local building codes, permit costs etc. Those DO cost a lot. That is a beautiful area. I've been up in that same area a couple of times and enjoyed it greatly. As for costs - dang you got taken on some of those. OTOH, as many have mentioned, the trades are pretty overtaxed at the moment, so costs have gone way up pretty much everywhere. The materials you used are high quality - e.g. not exactly Home Depot or Ikea (though some Ikea stuff would work well there). That drives up costs as well. One has to compare apples to apples in all this, and you had a high quality build there, not a standard home. Congrats on the 5' crawlspace btw! You will make some future repair person very happy!

Incredible build. I love contemporary design. The total cost isn't bad for the no maintenance high quality home you ended up with.

What a Beautiful home. It's so stylish. Ur presentation was so captivating to watch, great job!

Fantastic video! Very helpful and informative. I love your build, it's gorgeous!

The cost of that $27000 box (transformer) is in engineering, copper, safety controls (it's high voltage) and likely installation. Just as you identified, equipment to install the units costs money too. On the infrastructure side, these transformers regularly exceed $200,000.

Hey Devon! First time viewer here. Thanks for sharing the break down. I'm currently going to school for Architecture (have 1 year left) Did you hire an architect at all or design 'The Pacific Bin' yourself? I love the money shot you have on the Airbnb listing. :) Also just subbed. I love the passion you have in everything you do man! Keep up the awesome work.

Love this video, straight to the point and gave us honest numbers .

Wow, great job, beautiful finish!!! I have land right now upstate NY and this might work there. Love it!

This was so informative. Thank you so much!!! I'm an architect in South Africa and planning to do build something similar in RSA.

In my country for this price you can obtain really big house. And not from the old containers, but from solid materials.

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.

Builder here. Thanks for the breakdown, very well done. Good to see that you included the not so sexy costs in here. The whole project looks really sharp, but there always things I would have done differently ( like the fireplace should have been wood burning IMO.) This said, you are right, the cost of building in your area is a bit out of range for most folks. Great job overall!!

Currently building a 5 Container Vacation home on remote Island in The Bahamas that's gonna clock in about 2X the costs of this build. Unfortunately all the logistics nightmares and challenges for having to barge in everything coupled with post Pandemic and Supply Chain inflationary pressures it's been a real rollercoaster ride that will be well worth the final product in the end...

Depends how far the ditch was to get to that transformer, but primary wire gets pretty expensive. The transformer itself is about $3-5k

Wow beautiful man seriously I wish I can do something like that for my wife and our 5 kids and to be able to live off tge grid. Really love seeing your wife with you all the way and helping that shows alot. Congrats guys.

Great video breakdown, thanks for being transparent with your audience. Love the modern finishes you did with the home, and to end it all with 200k in equity! Great job!

I’ve been watching your build from Scotland since you started and it’s been amazing! I can’t wait to see more of what you do!

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

Wow you did a AMAZING JOB ON THIS VIDEO EVERYONE SHOULD LIKE IT TWICE

Super late on this one but I loved the video and there's a bunch of useful information. But you asked about the transformer and why it was so expensive. I used to work for a transformer manufacturer and the short answer is its filled with magnetic steel and thick coils of solid copper. The majority of the weight of that transformer is copper and magnetic steel and there's A LOT of it. So I know its pricey but based on the size of that unit you were not ripped off if that helps at all :)