We have been asked several times to take over jobs started by homeowners or unlicensed contractors.  Most of the times, these jobs were started without plans, permits, engineering or any of the other prerequisites for a legal construction project.  After a town building inspector has been notified of an illegal project, they will issue a "stop work" order, bringing the New Home, Remodeling, or Renovation project to a halt.  The time and money a homeowner might save by skirting the permit process is far outweighed by the headache, embarrassment, and costs associated with correcting un-permitted work.  In general, the homeowner has to start from scratch, and usually ends up removing any of the work that was done so the critical items can be properly inspected.

   So if you are thinking of performing your own work, and not hiring a contractor, or even worse, if you are thinking of hiring an unlicensed contractor to do your work without a permit you are setting yourself up for failure.

Don't make this mistake, because you will regret it in the long run.  Sometimes people are unable to sell their homes because of poor workmanship, or discovery of un-permitted work. 

If you are thinking of a New Home, Renovation, or Remodeling Project on Cape Cod, click below to download our guide to hiring a contractor! Here is an article from MSN.com that talks about the risks: Work Without Permits

   As of October, new home construction has hit a 4 year high!  And the consistent month over month growth to this level indicates that the housing industry is strengthening and has re-bounded off of it's 2008 lows. One of the primary factors that contributed to this increase is low mortgage rates, which will continue to stay low for the forseeable future, especially with the recent Federal Reserve decision to purchase $40 billion in mortgages every month.

So what does this mean if you are planning on building, remodeling or renovating a home on Cape Cod? Well first of all, you should strongly consider building or starting your project to take advantage of the low mortgage rates, available labor, and still-low material costs.  Second, we forsee a continued, steady increase in material and labor costs over the next 12-18 months, in response to the natural supply and demand cycles, so building now could save you thousands of dollars on your project.  As building demand increases, new regulations will come into play, and there is already talk of upgrading the energy and other mechanical codes over the next 2 years that may add as much as 5-10% to the cost of your project. Finally, land prices will begin to stabilize and then increase based on demand as well, and with limited raw land available on Cape Cod, who knows what a lot might cost in a few years!  If you are thinking of building your Cape Cod home, you really should CONTACT US today to see how you can take advantage of the current market.

Here is the complete article from CNN Money: Home Building at 4 Year High

  The Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards is working on changing the building code yet again!  This pending change involves adoption of the IECC 2012 Energy Code.  Massachusetts has been operating under the 2009 version of the IECC Code for approximately the last two years.  When the 2009 version was implemented, there was a 3-5% increase in building costs.  Based on the available information, custom builders will see at least another 2-4% increase.   The Home Builder's Association of Massachusetts has prepared an article outlining the provisions of the new code. There are dramatic increases in energy efficiency, insulation required to make new homes and major renovations compliant.  As a custom builder on Cape Cod, REEF has prided itself in training its staff on the requirements of these ever-changing regulations. It looks like this new code will be adopted in July 2012.  Here is the full article from the Home Builders Association of Masssachusetts: MA to adopt IECC 2012 Energy Code

If you have questions regarding how this change may impact your new custom home, renovation, or remodeling project, click below to contact one of our experts!

 On February 14th the Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards voted against requiring mandatory fire sprinkler systems in homes.   Many of the professional building organizations had opposed this change based on the expens, risk and other problems associated with this change. 

  See the attached article from FireEngineering.com to see the reaction from the fire safety community.

Reaction to Fire Sprinklers