Licensed & insured · Free quotes
Shop House Builders in Colorado
A big shop with living quarters under one roof, or an ADU inside the building. Get a free quote.
Parker, Denver, the Front Range and every town within 100 miles
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- One builder, start to finish
- 100-mile service area
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Shop Houses & Living Quarters
Shop Houses & Living Quarters, built by one builder
Some people want the shop first and the house second: room for the trucks, the tools and the projects, with a place to live a few steps from the bench. A shop house puts both under one roof. In Colorado that takes more planning than a plain shop. The living quarters need a proper fire separation from the work bays, the county treats them as a dwelling with its own rules, and rural lots bring well and septic into the plan. Snow, wind and expansive clay still shape the building around both halves.
Colorado Barn Builders is run by Quality Garage Builders, a licensed and insured general contractor in Parker. With more than 25 years of construction behind us, we build shop houses in every town within 100 miles, from Castle Rock and Brighton to Longmont, Peyton and Cañon City. We design the shop and the living quarters together, engineer the building, handle the permit, prepare the site, pour the slab and raise the metal or post-frame building. Then we frame, insulate and finish the living space inside it, from a guest apartment to a full home.
What's included
What goes into our shop houses & living quarters
- 01
Shop with an apartment
A large shop with an apartment beside it or upstairs, under one roof and on one foundation.
- 02
Full home and shop
A complete house on one side and a working shop on the other, joined by a mudroom entry that keeps shop dirt out of the kitchen.
- 03
ADUs and guest quarters
Living space framed, insulated and drywalled inside a metal building, for family, guests or a caretaker.
- 04
Tall doors and open bays
Roll-up doors and eave heights sized for RVs, trailers or equipment, with a clear shop floor to work on.
- 05
Heated slab for shop and home
A slab with perimeter footings, a vapor barrier and reinforcement, with radiant tubing laid before the pour in the shop, the living space or both.
- 06
Separation, insulation and finish
The fire separation and sound control the living side needs, insulation and vapor control under the steel, and finished bedrooms, kitchen and bath.
Real work · not stock photos
Our shop house work
Photos from our own jobs.
Our crew's work
More photos from our shop house jobs
Smaller photos from the job site, shown at their actual size.
Ideas for your project
More shop house ideas
How it works
How a shop house job works
- 1
Free quote and site visit
Tell us how much shop and how much home you need. We walk the land, look at access, soil, well and septic, and give you a free quote.
- 2
One plan for shop and home
We design the shop bays and living quarters together, engineer the building for your site and handle the permit with the county or city.
- 3
Slab and building
We prepare the site, pour the slab with radiant tubing where you want heat, and put up the frame, roof, steel and doors.
- 4
Living quarters and walk-through
We frame, insulate and finish the living space with an update every week, then walk the shop and home with you at the end.
Customer reviews
What our customers say
“I am so appreciative of the quality, responsiveness, and value that Mike Fowler and his crew performed on completely remodeling and expanding our kitchen including moving walls. He did it in a timely manner, provided progress updates often and finished the job in record time. We get compliments all the time on the quality of the work and how our kitchen has been completely transformed. He coordinated or did himself all the carpentry, electrical, appliance installation, cabinets, and countertop installation after we approved the plan he drew out for us. I also used him to add a shower to my laundry room, cut down a huge tree in my yard, and put a new face around my fireplace. I would highly recommend Mike for ANY remodeling work you are considering for your house. His prices are competitive too”
Rich R.
Kitchen remodel and expansion · HomeAdvisor review
“Mike has done my entire unfinished basement and his work ethics and willingness to work with changing design needs is exceptional. Mike's patience and quality of work is exceptional. His only goal is to ensure that customer is happy and he doesn't hesitate to redo things if customer wanted differently. I was very happy with his work and did recommend to a friend who is doing his complete basement. he is very affordable versus some of the crazy quotes we got.”
Damodara M.
Basement finish · HomeAdvisor review
“Great communication! Fair Price and took care of everything as it came up.”
Travis S.
Garage building · HomeAdvisor review
“Mike is a true professional in every way. Versatile, reliable, well skilled, and extremely knowledgeable. Easy to work with and a hard worker. His pricing is reasonable and his estimates for his work were spot on. I trusted him completely, as I am an absentee owner and could not be on site to oversee progress. He gave me updates and photos. A great find. Would recommend without any reservation. Hire him if u want it done right and on time.”
Jim S.
Work for an absentee owner · HomeAdvisor review
“Mike and crew was simply amazing. He always made sure I was satisfied, had good communication, and did a great job. Good prices and services, I can’t recommend home enough. This was a big job and he came through, Thank you!”
Chad T.
A big job · HomeAdvisor review
“Mike was great at communicating with me and was incredibly competitive in his pricing. The work was done quickly and was high quality. I would absolutely recommend his company to anyone needing work done on their houses.”
Lora T.
Home project · HomeAdvisor review
Local pages
Shop Houses & Living Quarters by town
Find your town for local details and everything we build there.
- Parker, CO
- Franktown, CO
- Castle Rock, CO
- Centennial, CO
- Highlands Ranch, CO
- Elizabeth, CO
- Littleton, CO
- Aurora, CO
- Kiowa, CO
- Denver, CO
- Lakewood, CO
- Commerce City, CO
- Monument, CO
- Golden, CO
- Black Forest, CO
- Arvada, CO
- Westminster, CO
- Thornton, CO
- Evergreen, CO
- Brighton, CO
- Peyton, CO
- Broomfield, CO
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Boulder, CO
- Longmont, CO
- Greeley, CO
- Loveland, CO
- Windsor, CO
- Fort Morgan, CO
- Fort Collins, CO
- Pueblo West, CO
- Pueblo, CO
Also serving The Pinery, Stepping Stone, Sierra Ridge, Stonegate, Meridian Village, Grand View Estates, Castle Pines, Meridian, Lone Tree, Castle Pines Village, Dove Valley, Foxfield and more →
Questions
Shop Houses & Living Quarters FAQs
How much does a shop house cost?
It depends more on the split between shop and living space than on the building itself. A shop with a small studio apartment and a shop with a full home are very different jobs, because finished living space takes far more work than open shop floor. Doors, heat, site work, well and septic change the number too. We look at your land and plans and give you a free quote.
How do you build a shop house for Colorado weather and soil?
The building is engineered for the snow load and wind at your site, which change a lot between the plains and the foothills. Big shop doors get bracing for wind, and the slab is built for expansive clay with a compacted base and drainage away from the walls. On the living side, insulation and vapor control keep condensation from forming under the steel on cold nights.
Can I live in a shop in Colorado, and what permits does it take?
You can, as long as the living quarters are permitted as a dwelling. Counties and cities set different rules on whether a shop house, ADU or guest quarters is allowed on your parcel, and HOA or covenant rules can add their own. Rural lots also need well and septic approvals. We check the zoning and rules for your property first, design to them and handle the permit.
What is the difference between a shop house and a barndominium?
A barndominium is mainly a home in a barn-style building. A shop house is built around the shop, with living quarters beside it, above it or inside it. If the work space is the reason you are building, a shop house is usually the better fit, and we plan both sides together from the start.
Can you build living quarters inside a metal building?
Yes. We frame the rooms inside the steel building, insulate them, carry them through drywall and finish, and keep the rest of the floor open as shop. It is a common way to add an ADU, guest quarters or a caretaker apartment to a new shop.
Related
Other buildings we put up
Barndominiums
Turnkey barndominiums from design to move-in.
See barndominiums
Metal Shops & Workshops
Heated metal shops and workshops with insulation, power and in-floor heat.
See metal shops & workshops
RV Garages & RV Barns
Tall-door garages and barns for motorhomes, fifth wheels, campers, boats and trailers.
See rv garages & rv barns
Ready to start your shop house project?
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