To be fair the first product I saw on the site was a pre-fabricated shipping container home, which could be a money saving / minimalist home. But I have no idea if 36k is a good price for a 320 square feet home.
That's actually not a bad price if the insulation is halfway decent. Look at the Q&A though. It'd be hard to buy and plop down in most towns (though some progressive cities allow cargo container homes).
I also noticed in the product description that they use a brand new shipping container. Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose of using a shipping container?
I think they're lying, or at least I hope so.
That depends. What is the whole purpose of using a shipping container?
Well I guess it's not the "whole" purpose, that would be having a place to live :)
I meant that shipping container projects are typically viable only because the used containers cost too much to ship empty and we have more imports than exports. If I were going to build a modular house unit I would think it would make more sense to design something as a house rather than take a product meant for something else, buy it new, and then alter it.
I suppose the price could work out due to economy of scale that exist in shipping container manufacturing but not in modular homes but even so, why not use used containers?