The placement guide
Park Model Cabins Built in Colorado
Cabins Plus builds park model cabins in Gardner, Colorado, and we deliver them ourselves across southern Colorado and the Front Range. Most park models sold in this state roll in on a freight carrier from Pennsylvania or the Midwest, built by someone who has never driven a Colorado county road in February. Ours are built at about 7,000 feet in the Huerfano County foothills, by the same crew that brings your cabin to your site and sets it. Every model we offer, from the Moose Creek to the Stargazer, can be built as a park model.
What a park model cabin actually is
A park model is a recreational vehicle in the eyes of the law, even though it looks and lives like a small cabin. It is built on a single steel chassis with wheels, to the ANSI A119.5 park model RV standard, with a floor area of 400 square feet or less in setup mode. Because it is an RV, it gets a title rather than a building permit, and it is designed around long stays in one spot: full kitchen, real bathroom, residential doors and windows, a porch if you want one. The wheels mean it can move again later, which matters if you lease your lot or think you might relocate.
Where you can put a park model in Colorado
The honest answer is that every Colorado county handles park models differently, so we will not pretend there is one rule. In general, park models are welcome in RV parks, campgrounds, and resort communities built for them, and many rural landowners place them on acreage for seasonal use subject to county land use rules. Some counties are relaxed about it, others cap how many days a year you can occupy an RV on private land, and a few treat park models as their own category. Before you order, call your county land use office and ask directly, and if you would rather not make that call alone, we will help you figure out what to ask. We would rather lose a sale than deliver a cabin you cannot use.
Built in Colorado, not shipped across the country
Every other park model builder selling into Colorado ships from out of state. That means freight brokers, escort cars, and a driver who drops the unit at the end of your driveway and leaves. We build in Gardner, off Highway 69 northwest of Walsenburg, and we handle delivery with our own equipment. We know what a spring mud season does to a two-track, what wind does to a tall load on La Veta Pass, and what it takes to back a 39-foot cabin into a treed lot. When the cabin arrives, the people setting and leveling it are the people who built it, and if something needs attention afterward, we are a drive away, not a warranty call to another time zone.
How certification and titling work
Park models are certified by the builder to the ANSI A119.5 standard and titled through the county like other RVs, so there is paperwork, but it is manageable and we walk through it with every buyer. One thing worth knowing: in 2022 Colorado passed House Bill 22-1242, which set up state regulation of tiny homes built for full-time residency under the Division of Housing. That is a separate category from a park model RV. If your real goal is a legal full-time residence, tell us up front, because our modular cabins are usually the better fit for that, and we would rather point you there than sell you the wrong paperwork.
Park model, modular, or skid: picking the right build
Every Cabins Plus model can be built three ways, and the right one depends on where the cabin is going and how you will use it. Park model is the pick for RV parks, campgrounds, seasonal spots, and anyone who wants the option to move later. Our modular cabins are built to the residential building code, can serve as a primary residence, and become real property once permanently set, which also matters for financing and appraisal. Our skid cabins are the simplest of the three, a movable outbuilding that many counties treat like a shed, ideal for a hunting camp or backyard guest space. Same crew, same lumber, same standards on all three: spray foam insulation, lifetime decking on the porch, solid surface countertops.
When we'd talk you out of this
- If you want a legal full-time primary residence you can finance and insure like a house, a park model is the wrong tool. That is what our modular cabins are for, and we will tell you so before you put money down.
- If your county caps RV occupancy on private land and you plan to be there year round, do not gamble on nobody noticing. Check with the county first, and if the answer is no, modular is the honest path.
- If you just need a dry, warm base for hunting season or a guest space behind the house, a park model is more cabin and more paperwork than you need. A skid cabin does that job with less of both.
Park Model Cabins questions
Can I live in a park model full time in Colorado?
It depends on your county, and anyone who gives you a blanket yes is selling something. Park models are titled as RVs and built for seasonal and long-stay recreational use, and many Colorado counties limit full-time RV occupancy outside of designated parks. If full-time living is the goal, ask your county land use office first, or look at our modular cabins, which are built to the residential code for exactly that purpose.
Do I need a permit to put a park model on my land?
Usually you do not pull a building permit for the cabin itself, since a park model is titled as an RV rather than built under a site permit. But most counties still regulate where and how long an RV can sit on private land, and utility hookups often need their own permits. Call your county land use office before you order, and we will help you sort out what applies to your parcel.
What does delivery involve?
Your cabin arrives complete on its own chassis, towed by our crew from Gardner. You need a reasonably level pad, a route wide enough for the load, and utilities roughed in where you want them. We place, level, and block the cabin, hook up to your connections, and stay until it is right. Before we build, we talk through your site access so there are no surprises on delivery day.
Can a park model handle Colorado snow?
Ours are built in it. Gardner sits at about 7,000 feet and gets real winters, and the ANSI A119.5 standard the park model category is built to includes structural and roof load requirements. Snow load needs vary a lot between a Pueblo lot and a mountain parcel, so tell us where the cabin is going and we will talk through the roof design for your site rather than quote you a one-size answer.
What is the difference between a park model and a tiny home?
In Colorado the difference is legal, not cosmetic. A park model is built to the ANSI A119.5 RV standard and titled as an RV. A tiny home, under Colorado's 2022 law, is built for long-term residency under Division of Housing oversight. They can look nearly identical from the driveway. If you want a movable seasonal cabin, park model. If you want a small permanent residence, talk to us about a modular build instead.
Every model, this build
All five of our floor plans can be built this way. Pick the plan; we'll handle what the build type means for your county and your site.
Moose Creek
12'6" x 28' · 22'
A 12'6" by 28' family cabin with a bunk room for the kids, a kitchenette, and a covered porch, wrapped in hand-hewn Adirondack siding.
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13' x 25' · 12' x 13' clerestory
A 13' by 25' cabin with a clerestory sleeping loft, an open main floor, and a covered end porch. A natural fit for campgrounds and guest duty.
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Buffalo River
13' x 39' · Modern low-slope
A 13' by 39' cabin with a modern low-slope roof, a full bath with a tub and shower, and a multipurpose room you order as laundry, desk space, or bunks.
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Stargazer
13' x 39' · 8' x 13'
Our flagship: a rooftop stargazing deck, a spiral staircase to a clerestory loft, and the largest kitchen of any model, in a 13' by 39' cabin.
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Teton Valley
Two-piece, joined on site · 2, each with a closet
A two-piece cabin joined on site, with two bedrooms with closets, a full bath with a tub and shower, and a roomy shared living space.
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Tell us about the land and the cabin you're picturing. A quick call with the builder is the best first step, and it costs nothing.