5 Things to Consider in a Shipping Container Conversion
Affordable Rent Container Development in Boise, Idaho
A new shipping container housing development in Boise, Idaho, USA was oversubscribed by tenancy applicants in just the first day it invited people to live there.
The new, four bedroomed homes are being rented out at a below-local-average rent to residents who have in income of below 30% of the Boise average income.
Decent, affordable housing
Looking at the video of the homes, this shows just how shipping container architecture can be used to provide decent housing for people who might not otherwise be able to afford it.
The homes are built of three repurposed shipping containers and have four bedrooms, as well as all the facilities that make a home a nice place to live – the rent even includes the cost of utilities.
Some ‘cargotecture’ is in your face about the shipping containers that make up the building. These however really aren’t. They appear to be spacious single-floored bungalows, though the give-away that they are containers is in the large square windows that replace the containers’ doors.
Thanks to being shipping containers they are modular-built homes that can be put together very rapidly and with minimal man-hours. This means that the costs of building a decent home are a lot less than a wood, or brick-and-mortar home.
Some of the luxury homes we look at at the Gateway Gazette are all about luxury and the final selling price of the homes differs little from that of the regular housing market. Other organisations, however, pass on the cost savings to the tenants / new owners.
Affordable housing crisis in Boise
As with here in many parts of Australia, a simple law of economics – supply and demand – has driven home rents and sale prices out of the reach of many residents in Boise, Idaho. Rental prices for an apartment in West Valley (where the container development sits) are $1,068 a month, while the median income in the city is $55,000. These homes will cost just $843 a month including utilities.
The homes in question are being let out specifically to those who are earning less than 30% of the median income – $18k a year – which would force people to pay uncomfortable chunks of their income to afford an average home.
This is no doubt why the developers were so overwhelmed with applications as soon as the homes went on the market! Twenty four families applied for just four units.
IndieDwell looks to the future
The homes in question have been commissioned by a local housing charity, but IndieDwell mass produces these homes in a factory for shipping nationwide. They currently build 130 units a year using repurposed shipping containers and homes cost as little as;
- $78,000 for a single bedroomed home, and
- $115,000 for a 960 square foot, four bedroomed home.
The homes are extremely energy efficient, with the company estimating that energy costs will be as little as $35 a month. That’s so cheap that the owners will laugh all the way to the bank!
Looking ahead, indieDwell hopes to develop operation sites across the country to expand their ecosystem of empowerment, well-being, and inclusivity, and to maximize energy efficiency. Sparking interest should not be difficult given that individuals, housing authorities, foundations, and nonprofits across the nation are initiating requests for indieDwell’s model. “Everyone is hungry for an innovative solution to our housing crisis,” said IndieDwell’s co-founder Pete Gombert.
Gateway Containers for Affordable Shipping Containers
Like the sound of affordable living in a shipping container home? Get in touch with our friendly team at Gateway Containers, we sell 20ft and 40ft secondhand shipping containers for homes, storage and many other uses. Depending on your requirements we can put you in touch with the right builders, architects and interior designers who can help you create a modern, stylish home based on your budget.
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