Flat Pack Container Housing: An Affordable Way to Build Your Dream Home

Have you ever thought about getting your dream house but having second thoughts because of a tight budget? Then you are in luck! Stay tuned on this page for we will discuss flat pack container homes. This post can be your ticket to unlocking your dream house goal.

A flat pack container house is a modified shipping container house. With a flat pack home, you can style your house exterior, the layout, and everything in between with sustainable materials manufactured for you.

Are you thrilled to know further about this type of housing? Then let us get this started!

The History of Shipping Container Housing

Shipping containers were created to solve a problem in quickly transporting goods back and forth across lands and seas. However, the possible excess buildup of these containers in ports was overlooked. Due to this unforeseen event, the ports were blocked, and there was a global trade imbalance.

Fortunately, a brilliant idea came out from such creative people. They thought of a way on how to provide supply on the increasing housing shortages and reduce global wastes at the same time. Thus, shipping container housing was discovered and developed.

Why Are the Flat Pack Homes Affordable?

Although there may be times that flat pack container housing is not that cheap compared to traditional homes, most people still find container houses affordable. The key is the combination of factors such as model choices, overall size, and DIY labor. Shipping containers indeed have certain advantages over traditional structures, and if you associate them all together in the correct way, inevitably, there will be economic benefits.

How to Reduce Home Building Expenses Through Container Housing?

You technically save a lot when you purchase a shipping container. How? Even though it is considered passive savings, it is still in the form of provisioning. Not to mention, a container home has a different line of item costs compared to traditional houses. Yet, these vary depending on the style of your house.

Here are some of the common areas of savings that you will incur automatically due to container housing.

Foundation

It is known that shipping containers have a durable metal frame that only requires support at the four corners. This merely conveys a lot more floor area coverage with less foundation work compared to traditional housing.

Roof

Shipping containers have a flat metal roof that is enough in terms of security from such elements.

Exterior Walls

The container’s corrugated metal skin is robust enough to tolerate unwanted elements. You don’t have to place new exterior walls. Except you want to put insulations or for the beautification process of your home.

Flooring

You can cover your container’s existing plywood floor with a cheap coating of epoxy, and you are done. Now that is one less stuff to worry about.

On the contrary, there are some areas where flat pack containers may push you to spend more money like:

Insulation

Most homeowners insulate their container homes to live comfortably inside. Without proper insulation, the household will experience extreme heat on hot climate and extreme coldness on cold weather.

Offloading

In offloading, a container can be slid off the back of a tilt-bed trailer, which will require renting a heavy machine or a crane for a few hours.

Reducing the Building Size

A logical answer to minimize cost is to reduce the building size of your planned home.

Big house or small house?

The thought of living in a small house may not be for everyone, and if you want to build a large house, that is fine. However, the point here is trying to be wise on every expenditure that you will do. Think of the pros and cons of living in a big house versus a small, simple house. Yet, by the end of the day, you’re the one who will still call the shots.

“Bigger is always better” – it really depends on the person

The society and the media may have imposed on everyone that bigger is better. But that is not really always the case. Well, not for everyone. To find a better way of maximizing your money being spent in house building, you need to realize the right questions to yourself. For instance:

  • How many rooms do you need?
  • What should be their size?
  • Do you need to put a bathroom per room or no?
  • Do you need really need a bigger space?

You may think you need a bigger space because you have formal dining events twice or thrice a year. But wouldn’t it be better if you rent function rooms in a hotel or rent a space in a restaurant for those required yearly events?

Now think of the money you will save from construction, utility, furniture, maintenance costs, et cetera. This type of question is helpful to determine how many square meters do you need to meet your house requirements.

Note this; there’s a significant difference in what you need and what you can afford. Both may be essential, and there is nothing wrong with buying more than you need. Nevertheless, always be analytical and make a conscious choice in spending.

Be Easy on Spending Your Money

Adjusting and managing the level of your expenditure towards house building is another factor that can affect the price of your home. Keep in mind that you are the one who is in control of what you add in the house.

Conclusion

In brief, container homes are affordable as long as you set your expenditures straight to the actual needs of your house. Hopefully, this article has helped set your priorities in building your dream house.