Shipping containers are becoming incredibly popular for everything from makeshift homes to workshops, but the price of buying one can add up fast.

According to one trade group, at least 20,000 shipping containers have tumbled overboard in the last decade and a half. But tracking efforts are incomplete.

Wanted: New homes for over 2,000 massive metal shipping containers that once served as a makeshift barrier at Arizona's southern border. Price: $500 to $2,000 each. They may come with stains, rust ...