Cape Cod Home selected a REEF Home for the front cover of their Summer issue! Inside you’ll find a 10-page feature article on a home we designed, built, and delivered last summer. Needless to say, it’s a beautiful home, with amazing views of Cape Cod Bay.

The Owners wanted to build a “cottage by the sea”, and what a fabulous cottage it is! One of the goals was to make it feel like you were on the beach, even inside the house. An open floor plan, wide pine floors, pebble fireplace surround…lots of details work together to create a very relaxed, casually elegant environment.

The whole team at REEF is very proud that Cape Cod Home chose to feature our work on their cover and in their Summer issue. Cape Cod Home is a very high quality periodical, well written and full of interesting information. The Summer issue is on newsstands today – grab a copy and read about REEF!

Read Cape Cod Home magazine, & Cape Cod Life too!

Read Cape Cod Home magazine, & Cape Cod Life too!

The fallout and confusion catalyzed by FEMA’s promulgation of new Flood Insurance Rate Maps continues. 

Here is a case of a Chatham landowner who applied for a permit to make some changes to their home…in 2007! It is STILL under review!

Certainly this is an extreme case. It highlights the quandary in which town boards find themselves: Building height restrictions are there for a reason. But if a federal agency (FEMA) requires the house to be lifted out of a flood zone, should the height restriction take that flood zone requirement into consideration?

At REEF Cape Cod’s Home Builder we help people consider their options every day. The new flood zones have made some projects more challenging, but there is always a way.

If you own a home on the Cape, or are considering buying one, or counsel home Buyers and Sellers, this information is important.

Recent zoning ruling has Cape Cod officials baffled

Recent zoning ruling has Cape Cod officials baffled

You've made the decision: "Let's build our dream home!" or perhaps a simple cottage by the sea. Now what?   Simple.    Hire a builder and get on with the project!

Caveat emptor --> Not all builders are equal!

Once you've made the decision to build, you owe it to yourself to find a builder who is perfect for you and your project.

How do you know which builder is the best fit?

What questions will lead you to the right answer?

Here's a link to our site with a form to get a great list of questions that will help you make sure you have the best possible builder for your project:

Important Questions to Ask BEFORE You Build on Cape Cod

Important Questions to Ask BEFORE You Build on Cape Cod

Yes! It’s time again for fabulous fireworks all over Cape Cod! Every year is another adventure when it comes to watching fireworks on Cape Cod. Some of my favorite summer memories include magnificent fireworks displays. Boats, beaches, village squares – it seems you can see them from everywhere. Even multiple displays happening at the same time!

It’s a trick to keep up with the fireworks schedule. Towns do it on different nights…and you don’t want to miss the fireworks! So here’s a good list of displays all around the Cape. God Bless America!

Cape Cod Fireworks Schedule by Town

Cape Cod Fireworks Schedule by Town

Every day we talk with people about improving their Cape Cod home, or building on a vacant parcel of land. Generally these conversations are very productive, and we are asked to build a new home, or renovate or expand an existing home.

Sometimes people are very surprised to learn that the land they have owned for years, or just purchased, is considered “Environmentally Sensitive” by the Board of Health in their town. This discovery can be unwelcome news. Land which is located in an “Environmentally Sensitive Area” (ESA) generally requires a Variance from the Board of Health before an addition or change in floor plan is allowed.

And an ESA is not just waterfront property:
• Land with a high water table
• Land with existing or known future water supplies
• Land with terrestrial and/or aquatic plant/animal habitats
• Land with endangered species habitats
• Land within a DCPC (District of Critical Planning Concern)

Here's a 4-page Homeowners Guide and Notice from the Dennis Board of Health. It's very interesting reading for anybody considering renovating a property, or building a new home on Cape Cod.

Is your Cape Cod land considered Environmentally Sensitive?

 Is your Cape Cod land considered Environmentally Sensitive?

It was a loooong winter, and we all waited (sometimes not so patiently!) for summer to arrive. Now our bones are thawing, and we are planning some summer fun!

We all have our favorite things to do on the Cape in the summer: the Stripers are here and the fishing is great on the north side. Cape Cod Baseball League games, whale watching, dune tours, concerts, festivals, fine dining, golfing, sailing, swimming…the list is long!

While you’re planning your summer fun, make sure to try some different activities. Here’s a great list of to get you started!

Things to do on Cape Cod in the Summer

Things to do on Cape Cod in the Summer

Do you love your Cape Cod garden? How do you achieve a low-maintenance landscape that’s full of color? When should you transplant perennials? How do you get rid of unwanted grass without adding chemicals to the soil?

Gardening is a passion for many of our Customers. Some are retiring to the Cape and just getting to the point where they have time to spend in their garden. So how does one get started? And how do you get timely answers to the myriad questions that pop up?

The Garden Doctor always has great tips and info: How to keep grass out of your garden? Use newspaper under the mulch. It improves the soil's structure as it decomposes…Brilliant!

Here are more tips from the Garden Doctor:

Gardening Tips from The Garden Doctor

Gardening Tips from The Garden Doctor

June 15, 2014

The Hyannis Area Chamber of Commerce is organizing it's 20th Annual Main Street Father's Day Car Show, on Sunday, June 15th. The show is always very popular with approximately 350 cars lining both sides of Main Street. Police have estimated crowds of 60,000, making this show one of the best-attended family auto events in New England!

Father's Day Car Show Special Guest: Wayne Carini of TVs Chasing Classic Cars. He will be available for autographs starting at 11am.

Hyannis Chamber of Commerce car show info

Video of Cape Cod Father's Day Car Parade

I don’t think we’ve ever had a Customer to whom the kitchen wasn’t very important. Regardless of age, budget, gender or lifestyle, the kitchen is always a major part of our design mission.

But how do you make it fun? Isn’t every kitchen pretty much the same? How do you keep it fresh? Here’s some teasers: 

Quartz is the new Granite.
Drawers rather than drawers.
Induction ovens.
LED lights.

This is a great guide with A Dozen Ways to make your Kitchen Sizzle!

Make your Cape Cod Kitchen Sizzle !

Make your Cape Cod Kitchen Sizzle !

Many of the new homes we build, and renovations we undertake, are located in or near flood plains. The new FEMA Flood Insurance rate maps have focused attention on these areas. Property Owners have many questions about how to protect their property.

Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection ( DEP) works to help protect coastal areas. They are very concerned with permitting new structures near the coastal bank. Erosion or destruction of the coastal bank compromises the very resource which naturally protects us from the devastating effects of major storms. So the DEP regulates shore side activity very closely.

Here is some good information from the DEP on how to protect coastal property from major storm damage. The site also offers links to lots of other information and resources. Of course you can always call us here at REEF Cape Cod’s Home Builder. We’re happy to help.

Protecting Coastal Property... by Mass DEP

Protecting Coastal Property... by Mass DEP