Texas Big Little Cabins

General Shelters: because YOUR building matters!

Tag: Bryan College Station

  • The Panoramic Windows in the Bluewater are Next Level

    I have talked about our custom Bluewater in a previous post, but thought that mentioning it again would be good.

    What makes the Bluewater unique are the four 36×66″ windows that wrap around the living room area. Double paned with vinyl casements, they swing open from the bottom toward the inside for easy cleaning.

    I thought this was a good thing to emphasize because in the Youtube video that we posted there was not a good, lingering view that did it justice. And here is that video; titled “Could You Live in this 800 sqft Cabin?,” the answer is YES!

    Another reason for this post is to emphasize how close we are to Brazos County. If you are in the College Station/Bryan area, we are right down the road. Because Brazos County is within fifty miles of our location, the sale price of any cabin will include standard delivery, blocking, and levelling.

    This would be perfect for your college student, or even for renting out on game days and for Round Top visitors. Built at a fraction of the cost of built-on-site, with a far shorter turnaround time, General Shelters is the go-to company.

    This is the detailed floor plan for the cabin. It is available for viewing and sale as of this writing, but we will always have a cabin or two to see in person. Make plans to visit us at Trees of Central Texas over here outside of Brenham in beautiful Washington County.

  • This Changes Everything: Bedrock Structures Intoduces Metal-framed Greenhouses!

    Continuing our conversation about Bedrock Structures, we are excited to announce their newest product: steel-framed greenhouses!  Whether you are a hobbyist or Master Gardener, you know the importance of keeping some plants at temperature and to get your summer garden going early.

    To date, our only source for greenhouses were from Bedrock Structure’s parent company, General Shelters (scroll to bottom).  Like all their buildings, the General Shelters greenhouses were designed to portable, but constructed with pressure-treated lumber and fixed on skids for easy relocation.

    The Bedrock Structure greenhouses are made with their customary 4 inch galvanized steel posts, clad with steel wainscoting and smokey polycarbonate panels, and roofed with polycarbonate panels.

    As you can see, they can install fans, and can add windows and doors, or provide cut-outs for you to install after construction.  A purlin runs along the ground level to tie the wainscoting down.

    We will have one installed by this fall at our showroom for viewing!

    They have not added the greenhouse option to their configurator, so please reach out to 979-836-7225 or email and we can give a quote for installation and estimate how soon we can have it installed!

  • A Word about Financing

    When we drive by mobile home or trailer home dealers, it is a strong tell that what they are selling is the financing of their buildings and not necessarily the quality of the buildings. When the main message from their signs is 0% down and low payments, we suspect they are selling cost and not value.

    Having said that, few want to or are able to pay outright for their building. So what are the options?

    Bank Financing

    Depending on the bank, they may need to be educated on what they are financing. Their immediate reaction will probably assume the General Shelters building is a trailer or mobile home. We have collaborated with local banks to ensure they understand when our customers approach them for loan service, they are talking about pier-and-beam structures, rather than trailers or mobile homes.

    Even though they are designed to be successfully moved numerous times over the years, once installed on your property they are considered permanent structures.

    The amount of the loan may vary based on whether one is moving the building to an unimproved location without services or not.  Electricity, septic, and well/water service are all costs that can rolled into one convenient payment mortgage payment.

    Standard credit requirements will then determine down payment and interest rates, as with any other mortgage. Obviously, we are able to provide any information a loan officer would need to evaluate.

    General Shelters Financing

    We do not receive any compensation or incentive if a customer finances directly with General Shelters. The chief difference between General Shelters financing and bank financing is that General Shelters will finance the cost of the building and delivery only, so this would work if one is able to pay separately for utility costs,

    General Shelters financing typically asks for 15% down payment, and shortens the loan to ten years. There is a $150 credit application fee.  At the annual dealer seminar, this was another topic of discussion.  If a customer is having problems having the bank understand the product or hesitant to loan, the customer can pursue the loan with General Shelters and then refinance for a longer period with the bank; once the building is set on the land, some banks find it easier to understand what  they are being asked to loan for.  This approach has been successful for several buyers.

    The main point of this post is to offer a general review regarding financing.  Key to this process is thoroughly educating the loan company on the differences between a General Shelters building and trailer and mobile homes.  For more information call us at Trees of Central Texas. email. or visit our contact page.