Willis roofs and builds, north of Conroe on I-45
Willis began in 1870, when Peter J. and Richard S. Willis gave land for a railroad stop, and by 1891 it was rolling cigars from locally grown Cuban tobacco. Today it is a home-rule city of 6,431 people eight miles north of Conroe.
Working in Willis
What is now the Union Pacific Railroad built track through the area in 1870, and Willis grew up around the station stop the Willis brothers’ donated land made possible. Starting in 1891, the town became a center for producing cigars from locally grown Cuban tobacco. Thomas Chapel United Methodist Church, established in 1867, is the oldest church in town. Interstate 45 was built through the western portion of Willis in the 1960s, and U.S. Route 75, State Highway 75, FM 1097 and State Highway 150 also serve it. The 2020 census counted 6,431 residents, and the Willis Independent School District serves them.
Willis established a home rule charter in 2008 after its population passed 5,000. Work inside the city limits answers to the City of Willis. Panorama Village, right next door, is a separate city with its own review, and land beyond either city’s limits has no city review at all, though county and state rules on septic, floodplain and driveways can apply. We look up which of those covers your lot before anything is scheduled, and the answer goes at the top of the written scope.
The central portion of Lake Conroe lies a few miles west of Willis, and Sam Houston National Forest sits several miles to the west, north and east. For anyone planning to build on acreage outside town, the site comes first: access, drainage, the soil the slab will sit on and where the septic goes. We walk it with you before anyone draws a plan, and if the lot needs fill or a different footprint, you hear that first. A building placed right on its site is easier to keep dry for its whole life, and that decision costs nothing to get right on paper.
Montgomery County weather sets the test for every roof here: hail in spring, summer storms with straight-line wind, Gulf systems from June to November and a long humid summer. On a wooded lot, add falling limbs and debris in the valleys. On an open lot, add wind with little to break it. We look at your lot, the trees around it and the direction the roof faces when we pick materials and fastening, and we explain the choice in plain terms. A shingle roof under trees gets its valleys and gutters checked first; a metal roof in the open gets its fasteners and trim checked first.
The jobs that come up here
Roof replacement is the job for a worn shingle roof in town. Metal roof installation is the job for a new shop, barn or house on land outside it, where a roof is going on a structure that has never had one. For a new home on acreage, barndominium home construction takes the project from slab to move-in: steel or post-frame structure, insulation suited to a hot climate and interiors built like any other house. Barndominium site preparation comes before all of it, and on a wooded lot it starts with clearing the pad down to clean soil. For a house in town that only wants a heavier shingle, architectural shingle replacement puts a thicker dimensional profile over sound decking.
Inside existing houses, bathroom remodeling covers the layout changes: a walk-in shower, a moved vanity, a door widened for a walker or a chair. If you own a storefront or a small office in Willis, commercial remodeling handles a new floor plan, restrooms, lighting and finishes, scheduled so the business can keep its hours where possible. In every case you get a written scope before work starts, and if part of the job can wait, we mark it that way so you can plan the rest. Commercial work also means planning around inspections, so the city’s sign-offs are scheduled into the job instead of interrupting it.
- Architectural shingle replacement Plenty of older Houston subdivisions were built with three-tab shingles, and many of those roofs are at the end of their run.
- Barndominium home construction A metal building that people live in has to perform like a house, every day of a Houston August.
- Barndominium site preparation A barndo slab is only as good as the ground under it, and the ground around Houston is flat, wet half the year and full of clay that swells and shrinks.
Plenty of roofs we look at need a repair or nothing at all. If that is yours, you will hear it from us first.
When did Willis become a home rule city?
In 2008, after its population passed 5,000. In practice, it means Willis runs its own city government and reviews building work inside its limits. Outside those limits, the rules depend on the lot, and we check them before scheduling. Panorama Village, next door, is a separate city with its own review.
Can you build a barndominium on acreage near Willis?
Yes, and the site comes first. We look at access, drainage, the soil and the septic location before anyone draws a plan. Once the site is settled, the build moves from slab to structure to a finished house. Site prep, the slab and the frame are written as separate phases so you can see each one.
What metal roof do you put on a new shop?
For most shops, an exposed-fastener ribbed panel such as R-panel is the sensible choice: it goes on quickly and sheds water well. If the shop is attached to the house or needs to match it, standing seam is worth a look. We lay both out for you with the trade-offs written down. Panel color matters more than people expect, since a lighter roof keeps a shop noticeably cooler.
Did Willis really make cigars?
It did. Starting in 1891, Willis was a center for producing cigars from locally grown Cuban tobacco. The town itself grew up around a railroad stop on land the Willis brothers donated around 1870. The track that gave the town its start is now part of the Union Pacific.
Can you remodel a small office in Willis without closing it?
Usually. We phase the work, keep dust walls up and schedule the loud parts after hours when needed. Restrooms and entrances are planned so customers can still get in and use them while the work goes on. You get a calendar of the noisy days before we start.
Close by
We also work in Panorama Village, Conroe, Cut and Shoot, Montgomery, Deerwood. The whole list is on the Montgomery County page.
Two owners, both veterans, one phone number. We inspect, photograph and tell you what the job really needs, including when it needs nothing yet. Military families and first responders take 10% off.