We all love outdoor spaces during a Cape Cod summer. Often when we replace dilapidated cottages with new homes on small lots, outdoor entertaining space can shrink a bit. Making the most of limited space for casual dining and relaxing is very important to many of our Customers. We have developed special treatments and creative ways to maximize a back or side yard, providing a quiet space with shade and “elbow room”.

Here’s a great article on creating really livable spaces in tight quarters. Some inventive ideas for creating an age old desire: space to relax.

Optimize your small outdoor space on Cape Cod

Optimize your small outdoor space on Cape Cod

 “and I’d like to have two living rooms”. Increasingly our Customers are trying to accommodate an extended family, or frequent visitors, at their new Cape Cod home. Multiple living spaces are important. Of course, cost is usually a factor.

Including an additional living room with all the necessary components for comfortable, year-round living can tip the budget. Here on the Cape most families experience the influx of visitors during the summer months. So “sun rooms” for seasonal use make a lot of sense. Because they’re not year-round living spaces, they cost less to build. And sun rooms offer the experience of being outside in warm summer breezes, while offering easy access to the rest of the house.

Here’s some great ideas for the sun room in your Cape Cod home.

Sunroom Ideas for your Cape Cod Home

Sunroom Ideas for your Cape Cod Home

Jim & Joyce contacted us a few weeks ago. Their Cape Cod home is about a half mile from the beach. They love the location, but knew that if they were going to spend more time on the Cape, the house needed to be updated. Actually, they realized, replacing the house with new construction would be a much more cost-effective strategy.

We sat with Jim & Joyce and learned about their lifestyle, their likes and dislikes, and who they wanted to accommodate in their new home. On their list was a sunroom, a private master suite, vaulted living room, and of course maximizing the living space on a small lot: 7,800square foot lot (less than ¼ acre).

Jim Hagerty, REEF VP and lead designer, sketched some ideas and shared some thoughts on plans they may want to consider. Then he got busy.

Today, a beautiful Cape Cod Friday, Jim and Joyce will return to meet with REEF, and make some design decisions. I'm sure they'll be pleased with progresson their home design:

Whether you have an older Cape Cod home, or you're looking for your piece of Cape Cod,give us a call, come for a visit. You won't be dissapointed.

Thousands of homes, and a BBB A+ rating for almost 30 years.

One of the great benefits of building homes for people is the people. When you spend as much time as the REEF team does with each one of our Customers, you get to know folks very well. Generally we spend about a year with each of our Customers, and then there’s always follow-up. And of course we often ask to show recently finished homes to prospective Customers.

Recently we built a home for John & Joanne Sinerate. It’s a very comfortable home that REEF designed to accommodate a small lot. As with all our Customers, there was a lot of thought put into every aspect of the home. Here’s a short video sharing John & Joanne’s experience with REEF Builders. 

Joanne and John share their REEF built home

Joanne and John share their REEF built home

Some say there is no Spring on Cape Cod. “You wake up one day, and it’s summer.” That said, Spring is happening on the Cape, and the real estate market is happening too. Bob Sheldon is a local Realtor who does a great job reporting on the current market trends in his neck of the Cape Cod woods: Eastham.  Here’s his report for March, and YTD 2013.

Realtors across the board have reported good activity throughout Cape Cod. The low interest rates are one reason for the increase in Buyers. And there’s more inventory now than just a few months ago.

So if you’ve been dreaming of your own Cape Cod Cottage, there’s no time like the present.

Eastham Cape Cod Real Estate Report

Eastham Cape Cod Real Estate Report

Building homes on Cape Cod is really rewarding, in part because we get to create spaces that will be a special part of our customers’ lives. Many of our customers are interested in optimizing their existing homes for the enjoyment of their family and friends.  Here's a quick look at a deck that we built overlooking the water on Cape Cod. What a great place to enjoy your morning coffee, or afternoon siesta...

Waterfront Deck on new Cape Cod Home

Waterfront Deck on new Cape Cod Home

Kitchens are the hub of the home, but everyone uses them differently and has a style all their own. Every day we work with Customers to design their kitchens around their lifestyle. We developed some surprisingly simple solutions to storage and access challenges.

Many of our kitchen solutions are born of constantly reviewing fresh designs, and incorporating ideas in our own creations. Here are some great ideas for kitchen storage, budget-friendly designs, kitchens with professional amenities, and comfortable cottage kitchens. It always a good idea to keep a file of ideas and looks while you’re getting ready to build your Cape Cod home. That way you’ll have plenty of inspiration when the design fun starts!

Great Kitchen Design Ideas for Cape Cod Homes

Great Kitchen Design Ideas for Cape Cod Homes

Now that your Cape Cod Cottage is complete, and you're looking forward to settling in for the summer (and beyond!), it’s time for the really fun stuff. Creating and planting the landscape around your home is truly enjoyable for many, and it brings value to your home for years to come.

Here is a great illustrated list of fragrant, easy-care flowers perfect for Cape Cod. Plant these perennials once, and enjoy them forever.

Fragrant flowers for your Cape Cod garden

Fragrant flowers for your Cape Cod garden

A picture tells a thousand words. So a video must tell…a million! One of the prides of the team here at REEF Builders, is the relationships we have with our Customers. When we build a house for someone, we live the project together. For about a year we are in constant communication. Our Customers rely on us, and we take that trust very seriously.  

Recently I sat with Jill, for whom we built a house in 2011. We designed the floor plan around her lifestyle and space requirements. Then we built the home to her specifications. Like all our Customers, her experience with our team has made her a REEF supporter. Hear Jill describe her experience, and then let us make your Cape Cod “dream house” come true.

Jill describes her experience with REEF Builders

Jill describes her experience with REEF Builders

The Design-Build process: we’ve been doing it so long, it’s like getting up in the morning. After almost 2,000 homes, this is a tried and true method that has withstood the test of time.

Cape Cod is a collection of 15 Towns, each with its own Boards, Commissions, Assessors, Zoning Ordinances and Bylaws. Navigating the various entities that control or influence what can be built and where is expertise that REEF has developed over decades.

It’s also a small peninsula. The amount of real estate is finite. “They’re not making any more of it,” so frequently we are asked to design a home to fit on a specific lot. In fact, that’s one of our real points of expertise.

Because we design the home to fit on the specific lot, and our interface with the individual Town begins during the research phase, we are fully aware of the special restrictions and conditions that impact the construction. So as the site is prepared, and building begins, the REEF team knows what to expect at every turn.  One thing you don’t want during a construction project is surprises. Which is one reason REEF has so many happy Customers: no surprises.

Here’s an InfoGraphic we created to help explain how the Design-Build process works. It’s a good road map to follow as your home is being built. Let us know what you think: 508-394-3090, any time, every day, or drop me a line: CTuttle@CapeCodBuilder.com

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