My cage cost me almost $200 to build, so it was quite expensive. I built it from scratch, so I had to buy all of the wood, and then I had to buy the wire and the paint sealer, nails, locks, etc. I can't really make an accurate guess about how time-consuming making a cage would be, as I didn't work on mine very often. Only about an hour every second day, plus I had to sand the wood and everything. So all in all it took me a few months. It really doesn't take up too much room -- it's pretty much all height. Five feet!