Grafton's townhouses, colonials and everything between

A town with more attached housing than most

Close to four in ten Grafton homes are something other than a detached single-family house. That covers condominiums, townhouses, duplexes and older multi-family buildings, and it changes what a remodel involves before any design work starts. About 73 percent of homes are owner-occupied, so many of those attached units belong to the people living in them. The rest are rentals, and landlords get the same written scope and the same updates.

In a condo or townhouse, the association usually has a say. Bylaws commonly set work hours, require proof of insurance from contractors, limit exterior changes and restrict moving plumbing or structure in shared walls and floors. We read those rules with you up front and write the scope inside them. Modern Remodeling is licensed and insured, and that paperwork reaches the association before our first day on site. If the association wants drawings or a written description of the work for approval, we prepare it.

Inside the unit, the work itself is familiar: kitchens, baths, flooring and built-ins. What differs is the care around everything shared. We protect common hallways and stairs, keep debris out of shared spaces and time deliveries so they do not block anyone else's parking or access.

We say so in writing, list the conditions that could change the price and get your approval before moving past any of them.

Detached houses from the 1970s onward

The detached homes lean newer. More than a fifth of Grafton's housing went up after 2000, and much of the rest dates from the 1960s through the 1990s. That means a lot of colonials and raised ranches with drywall interiors, platform framing and a kitchen tucked behind a wall. Most are well built and simply dated.

Raised ranches follow their own logic. The lower level sits half in the ground, and finishing it means dealing with moisture, ceiling height and egress for any room you want to call a bedroom. Colonials usually raise a different question: whether the wall between kitchen and dining room carries the second floor. Both get answered at the walkthrough, and any structural change is permitted under 780 CMR with inspections along the way.

Kitchens in these houses were often built with a peninsula, soffits above the upper cabinets and a single window over the sink. Taking the soffits out gains height but can expose ductwork or plumbing that has to be rerouted. Bathrooms from the same decades commonly have a fiberglass tub surround, and replacing it with tile means building a properly waterproofed wall behind it, which is where much of the real work sits.

The older 15 percent

About 15 percent of Grafton's homes predate 1940. In those we plan for plaster, balloon framing and wiring of mixed age, and the job follows lead-safe practices because the house is well older than 1978. Steve's unrestricted Construction Supervisor License covers the structural side, while licensed electricians and plumbers handle their own trades.

Those older homes are a minority in Grafton, but they are the ones most likely to change scope once work begins. We say so in writing, list the conditions that could change the price and get your approval before moving past any of them.

Grafton is about 38 miles northwest of Raynham, close enough that Steve can be on site regularly during the busy stages of a job. You deal with him directly from the first visit through the last inspection, and the updates arrive without you having to chase them. The work area is cleaned and secured at the end of each day, which matters even more where neighbors share a hallway.