Since the last part of this series a lot has happened! We completed the design process and were able to obtain our final building permits through the town's building department. This process should take about 30 days, but with a large home, expect lots of questions from the building commissioner. Structural details and engineering had to be submitted and reviewed with our engineer and this process takes time. We began work in September, clearing the site and moving out excess soil that would have otherwise been in our way for construction.

Most of this soil will have to be brought back into the site for back fill, due to the limited area to work and the constraints inherent to construction in a conservation area. With the fill removed, we were able get to work on the basement footings and walls.

After the footings are installed, the next step is to form and place concrete in the lower level walkout basement walls, which will remain below grade once complete - you can see the form work in the next photo

Once the concrete has been poured in the lower walls and it has cured, the forms are removed and rigid foam insulation is placed against the walls to protect from frost from migrating through the foundation walls and heaving the soils below the house.

Here are some pictures with the foam insulation installed:

With the foam in place - the lower walls can now be back filled and we are ready to grade and compact the soils under the areas inside the footings to prepare for the flood slab. This is an important step in the process, as it saves time because it would be impossible to use heavy equipment inside the foundation after the walls are poured.

Next steps? This week we will be setting up the rest of the form work for the basement, installing the remaining reinforcing bars and pouring concrete in the walls! We will also start working on the foundation waterproofing system, drainage work and the plumbing that will go under the slab for the basement bathrooms.

If you are considering designing and building a waterfront new home, please consider our team here at REEF!

Here are some more useful links!

Construction Cost Guide for Cape Cod

Waterfront Property Guide

Interested in Post and Beam construction - check out our Timberpeg Page

Over the last week we have made some good progress on what is probably the most important part of the work involved in building on this waterfront home site. Our design, engineering and environmental team was able to negotiate some sand replenishment and fencing down on the beach to protect the owner's investment in their new custom home. The first step was to demolish the old house at the site (always fun to watch)

 

A post shared by REEF Custom Builders (@thecapecodbuilder) on Apr 14, 2017 at 5:37am PDT

The sand replenishment plan has 2 phases, first, the construction of a very robust oak and green heart sand fence, set on large pilings dug several feet into the beach.

The 2nd phase involves using the excavated clean sand from the future foundation, and placing it behind the fence. As you can see from the photos, this operation involves some detailed coordination and several pieces of heavy equipment on both the home site and the beach below. As the excavator gathers the sand above from the foundation hole, it is cast down to the beach where smaller machines install it behind the fence. The theory here is that the fence will reduce wash out of the sand on the beach during winter storms, providing a stable building platform and high level of protection for the future home. Based on the sensitive nature of this site, permitting and planning for this phase alone has taken well over 6 months. Our team was able to get permission from the town board of selectmen to access the beach from a nearby landing. However, we are only allowed to access the beach for a very short time, so good coordination with the subcontractor team is critical.

The next steps will be to finalize the architectural details and begin home construction.

We are so excited to share the photos of the waterfront custom home that REEF designed and built in Brewster!  This project had several challenges, limited space, conservation restrictions, but the results speak for themselves.  Simple, clean, tasteful design by Jim Hagerty, REEF's princpal designer and great execution by our entire contract team.  Starting with the demolition and foundation, right through the finishing details, our team gave 100% on this project and the results speak for themselves!.  If you are considering designing or building a custom home on Cape Cod, let REEF provide the design expertise, teamwork and craftsmanship  to turn your idea into reality!  You've been coming to the Cape your whole life, isn't it time you stayed?

Click here to see the gallery on Facebook: Brewster Beach House

Has the stock market gotten your attention yet? The recent downward nature of global stock markets have many people wondering if their investments are in the right place.

Advisors often speak of having a "blanced portfolio". Where does real estate fit in? You may own a house, but what about a second home? Or an investment property?

Here's some good insight into why real estate may be a great addition to your portfolio:

Why real estate may be a better investment than stocks

Real Estate versus Stocks and Bonds