Should I Purchase A New or Used Shipping Container?

Shipping containers are used by businesses all over the globe to safely transport and store goods of all shapes and sizes. When you or your company needs to purchase a shipping container, it’s important to consider whether you should buy a new or used cargo container.  The decision between new or used containers often comes down to how many containers you want and how quickly you need them.  The fact is, there is actually very little difference between a brand new container and a used one – outside of the price.  Depending on the size of container, a brand new model can cost anywhere between $3,000 and $5,000, whereas used units tend to sell for around 30-50% less.

 

New containers are normally used by companies that deal in large volume shipping, and even then they only purchase new units because they need a lot of them on a regular basis.  Purchasing new containers works out to be less expensive for them due to the costs involved with repositioning the container back to where it’s needed. These companies tend to sell their used, or “one trip” containers to dealers or list them on websites like ContainerAuction.com in an effort to offset their costs; smaller companies and individuals can benefit from perfectly good containers that may have only been used for a couple of months.

If you only need a single container that you plan to keep at a storage location, which many people do as it saves them rental fees on a storage unit, then there is absolutely no reason to purchase a brand new container.

For many people, used shipping containers from a reputable source will perform just as well as a new unit. Companies that deal in refurbished containers tend to buy them in bulk, and then they take them apart so that the basic components can be cleaned and repaired. Once that is done they assemble the units on demand, checking as they do so to ensure that they meet the required safety, storage and transport standards.

Due to the way cargo containers are built, dealers are able to modify used units just as easily as they can with new ones. Sometimes the request to modifify a container will require a dealer to use new parts, but if they happen to have used ones in stock which match your requirements then you stand to save even more money.

Overall, no matter what your need ContainerAuction.com can help you to find the right container, at the right price.  If you have any questions or need some seasoned advice, feel free to contact any of our staff and we’ll be glad to help you.