Australian Small, Tiny and Holiday Container Homes

 

XMAS PRESENT

To celebrate Xmas and our beginning, all orders within 300k by road of the delivery port and made before the installation of our new office will get free delivery. 

Be warned. If you have been looking for a holiday home for yourself, somewhere for the kids to live, or a granny flat on site, please sit down before viewing this website.  The price, quality and speed are a definite shock risk. 

These are brand new, unlike the many overpriced secondhand ones on the market.

And if you need a new one urgently, please look at the bottom of this page.

What began many years ago locally as 'shipping container homes' has advanced amazingly in design, quality, versatility and economy, with these buildings being designed and built specifically for each buyer's needs worldwide. Now for less than the cost of a car you can have an incredibly cosy little home.

Once delivered to a pre-prepared level site, generally in a container or container sized unit, these expandable buildings can be positioned as needed, then the sides and ends can be folded out and sealed to create a home nearly 3 times as big as the original unit. For example, a 6m x 2.4m home package will expand out to a 5.9M by 6.8M house.  4 or 5 men, hand winches (which I can provide), or a mini excavator, will be preferable to lift the floors down, but the rest of the assembly is quick and easy.  It can be done in 31 seconds according to the video put here, but this video is only here to demonstrate the general assembly procedure. I would recommend taking much more time to make sure it is done perfectly. Many sealing strips are to be placed, bolts tightened, sometimes windows installed, and cupboards assembled to ensure the building is totally intact and weatherproof. Full instructions are supplied with each building. This will take much less than a day even for inexperienced people, depending on the home size ordered, and then will only need furniture and service connections to be completely livable.

While not considered as a usual option, these homes can also be relocated as required. It would need the furniture removed and the walls folded back in, but then it could be easily transported by tilt tray or low loader to a new site.

These new homes, mainly built in China, are becoming in worldwide demand, and we are beginning to import them into Australia. There are many manufacturers producing them, with some cutting corners on quality, with several even being difficult to get a final price quote.   They give you a cheap advertised price but then warn you that is only a deposit or only per sq meter, may be in $US, not $AU and doesn't include shipping. Their price seems to have many jump-ups along the purchase path. Trusting them about anything is difficult.

However, we have decided to concentrate on the standards of the manufacturer and the quality of their homes. We will be an agent for them, based in Bordertown, but we can deliver anywhere in Australia.  

Some of the quality improvements we have are as follows

The kitchen features an L-shaped cabinet with a double sink.
① The countertops are made of Nano-Ceramic Panel, which is durable, easy to clean, environmentally friendly, and has excellent antibacterial properties. (Customizable colors available.)
② The cabinets feature double doors and drawers, providing ample storage space.
③ We install the sink, faucet, and complete drainage and water supply lines.
④ We can install a PSU socket in your kitchen that meets Australia's specifications. Typically, a kitchen is equipped with three outlets for appliances like a refrigerator, oven, and gas stove.

The bathroom features a separate wet and dry area, with space for a washing machine available if needed.
② The bathroom floor is constructed from a single piece of marble, which is durable, non-slip, and 100% waterproof.
③ The bathroom is equipped with a bathroom cabinet, vanity mirror, and other amenities.
④ The bathroom walls feature integrated wall panels (UV panels), which are more aesthetically pleasing, waterproof, and easy to clean.

Doors and Windows
All our doors and windows are made of the highest-quality material, Broken Bridge aluminum, which improves thermal and sound insulation by 50 times.
① The house is equipped with double-glazed insulating glass for enhanced thermal insulation.
② This material effectively prevents drafts, poor insulation, and sound insulation during use.

The windows have drainage holes at the bottom to prevent rain from entering the house.
③ Each window is equipped with a mosquito screen, effectively preventing mosquitoes from entering the house when the windows are opened for ventilation in the summer.

Our products fully meet the requirements for airtightness, thermal insulation, and sound insulation.

For spaciousness we make 2.4m ceilings as standard while most others are about 2.2m. But if you prefer them lower it can be done.

Wall Panel Thickness
Our exterior wall panels and roofs are constructed from 75mm thick, fire-retardant EPS material. Thicker wall panels not only improve thermal insulation but also provide greater support and stability for the building.

Flat Bottom Design: We have upgraded the design to have a flush bottom frame, with both sides and middle frame the same height.

Our expandable houses are easy to install and assemble. They don't require a large construction site.

If the land is flat and firm, our houses can be placed directly on the ground.

If the soil is unhardened, a concrete foundation or concrete foundation blocks can be used to secure the house in place

Our house floor uses 20mm reinforced MGO board: it has good fire resistance, corrosion resistance, high compressive strength, environmental protection, mildew resistance, and insect and ant resistance.

The standard is 2MM PVC floor leather on the MGO board. In fact, our PVC floor covering is sufficient. If you need, you can lay carpet etc. yourself.

The only issue we have found with these homes is local council lethargy. Some councils have been all for their residents and very helpful, while others are stuck with an outdated policy and limited point of view. Hopefully time will heal these, but it is the one thing we cannot control or guarantee. But if you look down at the design options there is a possibility there which might help.

We do not expect people to make decisions blindly so are currently having a 6m home being delivered to Bordertown and erected here by early 2026. We invite anyone who is genuinely interested to come down and view the quality and discuss the options. One reason for our Bordertown site is an attempt to be a little bit central for most people to visit, and it is where we eventually hope to be able to have several display homes of differing sizes. There we will be able to show the options that are available. Once we know the options people require, we can give a fixed price. This price will generally range from $30,000 to $60,000, figures which most people consider impossible considering the current Australian market. And this website will give you pictures of what is included, and what options are possible. 

To buy a home, a 1/3 deposit will be required to get things under way. Once a home has been ordered, generally the time for construction will be around 6 weeks - 2 months unless it is a special design or order. On completion and payment of the 2/3 balance, the home will be shipped to an appropriate port, about 2 weeks on the water and all-inclusive in the original price.  From that port we will cart it to your site but because this delivery can vary widely depending on distance and home size, if it is considerably difficult or greater than 300k from the delivery port it will be at an extra cost which can be discussed at order time.

These homes generally will have bathrooms and basic kitchens, so no internal plumbing or wiring is needed. It is all done to Australian standards. However external site plumbing and wiring will have to be provided by the purchaser. Also, no furniture, oven or fridge are provided and will need to be chosen as desired once the home is on site and ready for occupation.  If alterations to the basic design are required by the purchaser for particular needs, (for example cupboards modified to suit planned fridge or oven size, or extra doorways ordered) they can be discussed with the manufacturer at order time.

Currently we are setting up for selling only 6M (20 ft) homes, but sometime next year we plan to bring 30 and 40 footers for display and sales as well. Maybe even smaller ones too. The non expanding super cheapies. But if you are interested in these now, we can investigate.

We will not be officially up and running until early 2026 when our first 6m display home arrives and is set up. We will be using it as our office where we can show the product and the available options. While waiting for this display home to be delivered, we will not always be available at short notice on the phone. If you require more information, or want to jump in ahead of all the expected purchasers once we are under way, we can be contacted by email at contact@smallhomes.online  

 

Standard fittings are:-

Lower kitchen cupboards and sink.

Bathroom basin, toilet and shower and instant water heater

2.4M interior height

Single main front door

 

Some of the other possible options are:-

sloping or V roof

number of rooms or bedrooms

single front door or others put on the sides

2.4m internal height or reduced

full electrical connections

front verandah of varying length

Kitchen overhead cupboards

Many different layout options.

Extra doors or windows on the sides

Kitchen overhead cupboards

Width of lower kitchen cupboards adjusted to suit existing equipment

Ceiling height lowering

External air conditioners

Roof style variations (V or flat)

Maybe put wheels on so they can be classed as caravans to satisfy difficult councils

Extra rooms or room size changes

Front verandah varied lengths

Side carports of varying lengths and widths

Possible building supports for particularly bad sites. 

Or don't be shy. Bring your own suggestions

 

VERY IMPORTANT

The pictures are often of previous special orders and are here to give you ideas. They may not be exactly what any quoted price allows for, so it is best to spend some time to tell us exactly what you need. We can avoid making mistakes and will be able to fulfil your dreams exactly.

 

Or if you are really desperate for a place to call home, would be happy with a dark grey 2-bedroom nearly 6m x 7m home with a V roof and front verandah like the first three pics at the top of this page, can afford $29,835 plus a transport charge for anything over 300k from Port Melbourne, then pay the 1/3 deposit and our new office can be your new home by about Xmas, 2 weeks after the final 2/3 payment. It is being built now. You can see the full design on the design page, and it is the smaller video on the internal page. It only means we will be later with our new office when we can officially start 

                                                                                      You can't say we are not cheap and helpful