Rising rent, especially in urban areas, has become a world-wide problem forcing people to move further out of the cities they work in.
With this is mind, various cities have begun to use shipping containers as potential affordable housing options. Cities from Mumbai to Amsterdam and Berlin all have these shipping containers as housing options, being utilised by students, housing associations and more recently asylum seekers.
England is no different when it comes to rising rent. According to figures from the English Housing Survey, London tenants are now spending 72% of their earnings on rent. As a result, we have seen these containers popping up across the country in places like London and Brighton. But are they are viable option?
Advocates of shipping containers promote their speedy installation, ability to be re-used and relatively cheap initial costs.
However, installation costs rise if you want to adapt the structure of the shipping container.
Further, their relatively low installation cost is balanced by the rent that can be charged - in Amsterdam, units are being rented for €450 a month (£335) in contrast to the average rate of €600 that many people can end up paying for flat share in central Amsterdam. In addition containers in Brighton are being rented out for £650 a month, which is 75% of market rent.
Shipping containers may be the next big thing in affordable housing construction - however commentators have suggested that there's still a long way to go before people will be entirely happy living in a steel box.
If you have any queries relating to this or any other commercial property matter, please get in touch with our Commercial Property Law Team.