We see this as the new standard for home construction and will be coming to Massachusetts soon.  The requirement for solar ready roof areas on new homes has already been debated at length in Massachusetts and now that California has mandated solar installations, we are certain the rest of the country will quickly follow with similar regulations
To find out more about the regulation recently passed in California click here:

California Requires Solar Panels on New Homes

We here at REEF have had solar panels on our office since 2009 and we have been able to realize substantial savings on energy consumption year over year.

If you are considering designing and building your new custom home on Cape Cod, you can download our construction cost guide here: 2018 Construction Cost Guide

This past Monday, Brewster residents approved a new Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) bylaw in an effort to meet the current housing needs in the town. An accessory unit is a great way to tackle the long standing housing shortage here on Cape Cod. The bylaw does have specific restrictions, such as size limitations, year round rental mandate, and requirements that the owner of the property occupy one of the units. Many towns here on Cape Cod currently have accessory dwelling unit bylaws, but they are generally limited to direct family members, or they are income restricted.

This new bylaw may be a great opportunity for homeowners to make a significant investment in their current Cape Cod home, and obtain strong returns on that investment while creating housing for a younger generation who want to live and work on Cape Cod, but have had a hard time finding a place to live. The ADU concept has been strongly supported by the Cape Cod Commission and also the Smarter Cape Partnership as a viable method to address the 20,000 unit housing shortage needed in Barnstable County

If you are interested in creating an accessory dwelling unit on your property, here's some information that might be helpful:

Brewster Adopts Accessory Dwelling unit Bylaw

If you are considering a project for your Cape Cod Home, click here to download our Construction Cost Guide

REEF is proud to sponsor this year's Chatham Turkey Trot!

This 5K run / walk is held annually in Chatham on Thanksgiving morning and follows a quaint and scenic route through Downtown Chatham and the surrounding waterfront areas. This exceptional event has grown dramatically since it's start in 2005, and donates the proceeds and food items to the Lower Cape Outreach Council. Over the last 5 years, the Chatham Turkey Trot has raised $150,000 and thousands of pounds of food items for those in need here on Cape Cod.

Please join us this Thursday, November 22nd at 8:00am in downtown Chatham and bring a non-perishable food item to support this great cause!

 If you are considering building a new Custom Home here on Cape Cod, or if you are planning a major renovation, please download our Construction Cost Guide Here!

Dreaming of a waterfront home here on Cape Cod? Click here to download our Waterfront Property Guide

REEF Builders' Barnstable Harbor Project was recently featured by Inside Climate News in their series Finding Middle Ground which focuses on how Americans across the country a dealing with climate change impacts in their area. As builders, we are constantly looking for ways to better adapt to the sensitive environment here on Cape Cod. We are firm believers in a common sense approach to regulatory requirements and despite concerns voiced by some, we know that building, better, safer, more environmentally conscious homes makes sense here on Cape Cod. If you are considering building or remodeling a new home here on Cape Cod, please contact us today to see what REEF can do for you.

Here's a Link to the Article: They Know Seas Are Rising, but They’re Not Abandoning Their Beloved Cape Cod

We would like to thank Meera Subramanian for choosing to work with us on this project - you can find more about Meera's work here: http://meerasub.org/

We would also like to thank Robert Scott Button for his exceptional photography on this project. You can see more of Robert's work here: @robertscottbutton

  Investing in the stock market can be risky!  Especially when you consider what is going on globally. If you are waking up today and seeing the impacts of an overvalued stock  market, you might want to find another way to diversify your portfolio. A great investment to consider is Real Estate, especially on Cape Cod.  Market demand is high, for both existing homes and new construction, and with the Baby Boomers swiftly moving into retirement, we are seeing a steady stream of home buyers in the Cape Cod area.  We have also seen high demand for waterfront and water view custom homes in almost every town on Cape Cod.

When compared to the stock market, Real Estate provides a much more consistent and predictable return on investment.  If you are considering investing in Real Estate, or Building, Renovating, or Buying a home on Cape Cod, give us a call to find out how REEF can help!

Tune in for Part 4 of our Follow the build series as we discuss building our Barnstable Harbor Project in a FEMA flood zone

CWNF_FTB_101518_millway from Cape Wide News LLC on Vimeo.

Episode III of our Follow the Build series where we discuss the framing process of a new custom home on Cape Cod. In this episode we discuss the value of our planning process and why we chose to panelize the framing of many of our projects. Given the challenging labor market on Cape Cod, along with the stringent code requirements for wind and flood zone design, panelized framing provides the ability to build an extremely high quality and dimensionally accurate structural frame while saving time and days on the site.

If you are considering designing and building your new custom home here on Cape Cod, click here to find current costs per square foot

Looking for waterfront property on Cape Cod? Clock here to download our waterfront property guide

We wanted to share some photos of our latest project, the Hyannis Harbor Carriage house. This carriage house was designed to compliment the existing cottage on the site, with matching siding, trim and window details. This project also involved extensive landscaping to provide a unique retreat for the homeowner to enjoy their Cape Cod Summer! As we always say, you've been visiting the Cape your whole life, isn't it time you stayed?

If you are considering a new custom home project on Cape Cod, consider designing and building your project with the team at REEF.

If you want to know what your custom home project might cost, click here to download our Construction Cost Guide

Part two of our follow the build series where we discuss the planning, permitting and some of the decisions that are made as part of the custom home design and building process. Since this project is in a flood zone, there were some special considerations given to site design, and overall home design to meet both the FEMA flood zone requirements, and the aesthetic requirements of the Old King's Highway Historic District.

This is a great example of how a well planned project can be executed quickly with exceptionally high quality using a panelized framing method that works well in almost every custom home project. 

 If you are looking for a custom builder on Cape Cod, or considering designing and building a custom home click here to download our Construction Cost Guide

If you have a home in a waterfront area, or if you are looking to build on the water click here to download our  Waterfront Property Guide