A Couple Spent $ 100,000 Building A Shipping Container Home – ryan

  • Lexi and Diego Newkirk Built a Two-Storary Shipping Container Home on their Land in Texas.
  • They Invested About $ 100,000 in the Home, Building a Full-Size Kitchen and A Luxury Bathroom.
  • The NewKirks Plan to Rent Out the Home on Airbnb Down the Line.

Lexi and Diego Newkirk Had Big Plass for the Sprawling Piece of Texas Land they Bowht in October 2023.

The NewKirks Dreamed of Filling Their 12.5-Acre Proppers with Homes Made of Shipping Containers, A More Whimsical Alternative to the Traditional Tiny to Appeal to Adventurous Travelers.

Wen a Disps with a Neighbor Put a Wrerch in their Bounts, Lexi, 25, and Diego, 26, decoked to Just Build One Shipping Container Home for Themselves Instead, Investing $ 100,000 in a Space Plan to Live in for the Line Down.

The NewKirks Bought Land in Texas Hill Country in October 2023 with Big Plass to Create A Rental Community.

The Newkirks.


Lexi Newkirk


LexA Digital Marketer, and Diego, Who Works in Home Restoration, Bought Their 12.5 Acres of Land in October 2023 for $ 180,000. Their Property is About An Hour from Austin.

Lexi Told Business Insider They Envoioned Creating a Community of Tiny Homes People Could for Short-Term Stays on the Property. Specific, They Pictured Homes Made Out of Shipping Containers.

“People Wold Much Rather Stay in a Shipping Container versus a traditional Little Tiny House Out here,” She Said. “It Wold Also Rent for a Lot More.”

The Couple Decidated to Make the Dream A Reality, Buying Two Containers for their Texas Property in November 2023. They opted for single-use containers, which are priciers they have less and tear than contains Multiple Times. They Cost $ 5,500 EACH.

The NewKirks HAD to Pivot Their Plass AFTER BUYING TWO CONTAINERS.

The couple on their land.


Lexi Newkirk


JUST AS THE COUPLE WAS ABOUT TO BREAK GROUND IN NOVEMBER 2023, One of their Neighbors Approaches to Concerns About Their Places for A Tiny-Home Community.

“We got a call from NeighBor Basically Ascing US What the Heck We’re Doing,” Lexi Said, Adding that the Neighbor, Who Threatened to Sue, Took Issue With the Tyni Homes Waoul. Neighborhood.

The couple didn’t want to end up in a lawsuit, so they decided to shift their plans. They Moved the two storage contains they have Already Purchased to the Center of their Proppery and Deceded to Build One Slightly Large Home With That.

They start contemporary in January 2024 and wrapped the interior in april 2025.

During Construction, They Lived in an RV. Now that they moved into the shipping container home, they plan to stay for a year or two before tourning it into an airbnb.

They designated the home to have two floors, plus a Basement.

The Shipping Container Home.


Lexi Newkirk


The Couple Thought Two Containers Made the Most Sense for the House, as they will have Additional Space with Building a Separate Roof.

Together, the containers are 640 Square feat, and the Newkirks Also Built a Basement for the Space.

“My Husband and i did the layout Together,” Lexi Said of the Design Process. “We didn’t hire anyone. We budilt it ourselves.”

Diego Built as Much of the House as he could.

Diego Building The Home’s Basement.


Lexi Newkirk


“He did the Most of the Construction Himself,” Lexi Said of Her Husband. “He did the stacking of the containers, all the welding.”

SOMESTEMES, HEKED WORKERS TO HELP WITH LARGER PROJECTS, and the couple outsourced their leading and electrical work. Still, Having Him Him on Much of the Work Saved The Money.

The Main Floor Features a Spacious Kitchen.

The Kitchen.


Lexi Newkirk


Lexi Said She and Her Husband Love to Cook, so they want to use more of their footage for the kitchen, particularly after having only an rv-size kitchen for a year.

Details Such As Butcher Block Countertops and A Tiled Backsplash, as well as the full-Size Appliances, Make the Kitchen Feel Homey.

The Main Floor Also Features a Washer and Drain so the newkirks can do laundry at home.

The Living Area Has Ample Natural Light.

The Living Area.


Lexi Newkirk


The NewKirks have a small living room that just off the kitchen.

IT HAS ROOM FOR A SMALL RECLINER COUCH AND IS FULL OF LIGHT BECAUSE IT’S NEXT TO A SLIDING GLASS DOOR.

Hardwood Floors Also Add to the House’s Cozy Feeling.

The Main Floor Has a Half-Bathroom.

The home has a half Bathroom.


Lexi Newkirk


The House Runs on a Water Tank Sinces in a Remote Area. The NewKirks Get Water Delivered Each Month so they can user toilets and other water-based Appliances.

A Spiral Staircase Connects The Two Floors.

The Spiral Staircase Under Construction.


Lexi Newkirk


The staircase leads to the center of the second story, adding a touch of whimsy to the Space.

There’s a small desk and work area at the top of the stairs.

A Large Primary Bathroom was also a priority for the newkirks.

The Primary Bathroom.


Lexi Newkirk


Much like the kitchen, the newkirks didn’t want to feed in their bathroom like they did in their rv.

They decide to make their Bathroom Spacious, Complete with a Double Vanity, A Walk Shower, and A Standing tube with a View of the Property Through a Large Window.

“The Bathtub Faces the Sunset, so you can take a bewfying the sunset or shower,” Lexi Said.

A Glass Window Covers Nearly an Entire Wall in the couple’s bedroom, Allowing say to wake with the sunrise each morning.

The Sunrise is Visible from the Bedroom.


Lexi Newkirk


“The Way We Engened and Built the House, The Bedroom Wakes Up to the Sunrise,” Lexi Said. “And there’s a huge Window, so you can see all the stars and the moon.”

Though the bedroom stands out to her, she said she loves each inch of the home Because and her husband designed it.

“We Kind of Poured Our Hearts Int,” She Said.

The couple is building out deck space to increes the home’s Square Footage and Allow to Enjoy Outdoor Living, but the House is Complete Otherwise.

They estimate that they invest $ 100,000 in their Dream Shipping Container Home.

The House took a Year to Build.


Lexi Newkirk


Building the House ITSELF was expensive, but lexi said the remote Nature of their Property made the Construction more Costly.

“For Example, Our Electricity pole was 300 Feet Down, so we have had to have a 300-foot trench,” She Said. Getting Water Delivered Monthly is Also Costly, and Their Electricity Costs Are High.

They Hope to eventually use solar power on the protire, but it will take some time to budild it out.

Though the Build was Pricey, the Couple Saved Money by Living in an rv on their Proppery During Construction.

Doing Much of the Work Thermves and Not Taching Out a loan for the project also helped, as they do not have a mortgage payment, though it did make -up Longer than it would have otherwise.

The newkirks plan to turn their property into a homestead with a barndominium.

They have Big Plass for the Home.


Lexi Newkirk


Now that the Shipping Container House is Complete, the NewKirks are already Starting to Fulfilli Next Dreams for the Property: Making it into a homestead.

They already have 20 chickens and plan to bring some cows onto the protire in the next few years. They Also Want to Build a Garden and Mostly Live off their Own Property.

They Also plan to build a barndominium for themselves in the not-toio-day future, Moving ino the bigger house so the canry of the Shipping Container Home. For now, though, the tiny home is perfect for the couple.

“Everything in our house is super custom Because of the size,” Lexi Said. “The Tiny House is Only 640 Square Faet, but it has Everything We Need.”