Bringing Medfield's 1970s homes up to date

Medfield by the numbers

Census figures count about 12,800 people and around 4,600 homes in Medfield, on roughly 14 square miles. Only about one home in ten predates 1940, so the character of the housing comes mostly from postwar and later building rather than from old farmhouses and village homes. That makes the housing fairly even in age, and it means many houses arrive at the same set of upgrades at roughly the same time.

The middle of the stock sits in the late 1960s and 1970s, with about 16 percent of homes added since 2000. Some 84 percent are detached single-family houses, and close to nine in ten are owner-occupied. Those numbers mean nearly every project here is a family improving the house it plans to keep, and that changes how the work is paced. Rental housing is a small slice of the town by comparison.

That profile points to one kind of work above the others: updating owner-occupied single-family homes whose kitchens, baths and room layouts were designed around a very different way of living. Owners in that position care more about the work being right, and about hearing what is going on, than about raw speed. That is how Steve set up his company.

Changes are priced in writing before any work shifts, so the number you agreed to is always the number you know.

Split-levels, garrisons and the layouts they came with

Houses from the late sixties and seventies in eastern Massachusetts often came as split-levels, raised ranches and garrison colonials. They are generally solid, but the rooms were small and separate, ceilings run low in places, and kitchens were sized for one cook. Many also have a lower level half below grade that was finished decades ago with paneling and a drop ceiling.

A split-level is its own puzzle, because half-flights of stairs and offset floors limit where walls can move. We map the structure before talking design, so any plan you settle on is one the house can carry. If a beam is needed, the proposal says so in writing. Sometimes the best answer is smaller than first imagined, like widening an opening instead of removing a wall, and we will say so.

Much of Medfield's stock was built before 1978, the year lead paint left the residential market, so older coats may still sit under newer ones. On those houses, demolition is set up to EPA RRP lead-safe standards. That covers trim, window sashes and old exterior paint as well, if the work reaches outside.

Fifty-year systems and the work around them

A house nearing fifty often has original windows, thin attic insulation and baths with tile set on old backer board or none at all. A remodel is the right moment to deal with those while walls are open, and insulation and air sealing get inspected against the energy code the town has adopted. Bath fans venting into the attic and plumbing with original shutoff valves are two more items worth fixing while a room is open.

Decks on houses this age are often due for replacement. New footings go below frost depth, commonly about four feet in Massachusetts, and the ledger gets flashed properly so water stays out of the rim joist that holds the deck to the house. Railings, stairs and guards are built to current code, and the framing inspection happens before the decking covers it.

Medfield is about 22 miles northwest of Raynham. Each job comes with a written scope, one point of contact, and word from us as inspections are booked and passed. Changes are priced in writing before any work shifts, so the number you agreed to is always the number you know.