Feb 18, 2025
Lexi Newkirk and her husband, Diego, weren't interested in cramped city living. Instead, the young married couple from Austin, Texas, created their very own path to home ownership.
“We grew up in the city and we wanted to escape it,” Lexi said in an article by content company SWNS.
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So, they decided to buy a plot of land for $180,000 in a rural area nearby and have spent $60,000 building their dream home out of two 40-foot shipping containers.
“We’re living on 12-and-a-half acres and I love it,” Lexi said.
From the ground up
Lexi, 24, owns a digital marketing agency, while Diego, 25, works in mold removal, reports SWNS. The couple could've saved up to buy a home in Austin, where according to Zillow the average price runs just north of $500,000, but they had other ideas.
“We didn’t want to put that money towards an apartment," Lexi said. "Where my mom lives it’s a lot of homes right on top of each other. They are all the same.”
After buying their land in October 2023, they built a foundation and basement before stacking two 40-foot shipping containers on top of one another. The containers cost $5,500 apiece, per SWNS. Slowly, over about a year, the couple have added plumbing, wiring and insulation to the 640-square-foot home.
The couple hoped to have the home finished completely by early March. They plan to live there while they work to build up the rest of the land they bought.
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Before you build a home
Lexi says she and her husband “want to give people inspiration for different projects you can do.” But the reality is that building a home from scratch is no easy feat, and it's important to know what you're getting into.
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For one thing, not everyone has the handyman skills necessary to construct a home. Diego performed most of the manual labor on the home in the story above, according to SWNS, but social media posts of their progress show help was needed at various stages. This included during the installation of a septic tank and when using a crane to align the shipping containers.
HomeAdvisor puts the average cost of building a home at $122,500 to $411,500, with labor and materials making up the bulk of the expense. Complexity of the project and location are also factors.
Building a home can also be more complicated than expected. For one thing, zoning laws might limit your ability to construct your dream home. And don’t forget you need all of the necessary permits to proceed with construction.
Connecting your home to utilities, such as electricity, can also present a challenge, assuming they’re available. That’s something you’ll need to coordinate with your local utility department. Or you may decide to produce your own power, such as by installing a solar system — which can cost tens of thousands of dollars.
All told, building your own home may be doable. Just be sure to research the costs involved and consider the time commitment. How much time do you have to focus on such a project? Make sure to set realistic expectations so you don’t get overwhelmed or cut corners to rush through it.
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Maurie Backman has been writing professionally for well over a decade. Since becoming a full-time writer, she's produced thousands of articles on topics ranging from Social Security to investing to real estate.
