ADU - Refurbished Shipping Container

[Dakota Mivshek]

Hi All,

As an agent I'm working with a client that had an interesting idea about an ADU. Of course I'm not at liberty to consult him on whether it would work well or not, but it got me curious. There is a company out of Canada called Honomobo that makes live-in ready studios/1 bedrooms ect. out of old shipping containers. I've read the ADU guidelines on the city of Portland, and don't see how one of these wouldn't work. Outside of permitting and plumbing, what else would have to be considered when putting something like a Honomobo on a residential property?

Best,

Cody

[Account Closed]

Unless they're on a foundation, container buildings will be considered by banks as "personal property," and banks won't finance the main house if there's a "trailer" on the property when the next buyer takes possession.  Also, unless they're on a permanent foundation, the city won't permit them as ADUs.  

Also, and while I haven't tried to permit a container building myself, I've been told by people who have that, because it's out of the ordinary for them, the city will require all the engineering drawings and stamps from an engineer registered in Oregon.  So it may prove to be more time-consuming to permit than stick-built.

Lastly, I suggest that whoever considers converting/buying a container home actually physically tour one first.  Depending on how it's been converted, they may prove to be a bit too narrow and low-ceilinged for some.  

Oh, and actual lastly, I've seen some nice-looking modern container-to-habitable structure conversions, and I've seen some fugly ones.  If on the outside it looks like there's a shipping container in the back yard with a couple window cutouts, that might not make the neighbors happy, and might reduce the value of the main house.