Where West Boylston's newer homes meet its older ones

Newer homes that need finishing, not fixing

Census figures count roughly 2,900 homes in West Boylston for a population near 7,700, and about 20 percent of those homes were built in 2000 or later. Houses that new usually have sound framing, modern wiring and insulation built to a recent code. What they often lack is finished space and the details a builder skipped to get the house sold. The systems are usually close to current, so more of the work goes into the rooms themselves instead of catching up on wiring and plumbing.

The common jobs are an unfinished basement turned into a family room or office, a builder-grade kitchen rebuilt with better cabinetry and a layout that suits the people living in it, and a primary bath with real tile in place of a fiberglass surround. Custom tile is work we take slowly. The waterproofing behind it matters as much as how the grout lines meet in the corners. We also look at where new finishes meet what the builder left in place, so trim, flooring transitions and door heights line up across the house instead of stopping abruptly at the edge of the remodel.

Basement finishes follow the stretch energy code in towns that have adopted it, so insulation, air sealing, egress and smoke and carbon monoxide detection are settled on paper before a stud goes up.

When walls in those houses come open, we photograph what we find and walk you through it before the plan changes.

The 1960s ranches and Capes in the middle

The median West Boylston home was built around 1964, and about 70 percent of homes are single-family detached. For the most part that means ranches and Capes: houses with honest structure and closed-in plans, a separate kitchen, one small bath and a low basement ceiling. Those houses were built carefully for their time, and what owners usually want now is light, space and a kitchen connected to where the family spends its evenings.

Opening a kitchen to the living room in a house that age usually raises a bearing wall question, an electrical update and a look at whatever heating runs sit inside the wall. We find those answers at the walkthrough instead of after demo, and they go into the written scope so the number you agree to reflects the real job.

About 17 percent of homes in town predate 1940. In those we expect plaster, possibly knob-and-tube wiring and a fieldstone foundation, and lead-safe practices apply from the first day of work. When walls in those houses come open, we photograph what we find and walk you through it before the plan changes.

Owners who stay and remodel in phases

Close to 79 percent of West Boylston homes are owner-occupied. People who plan to stay tend to remodel over several years: the kitchen now, a bath later, an addition when the family grows. We plan the first phase with the later ones in mind, so a drain line or a header goes where the next project will need it.

If an addition brings a new bedroom and the property is on a septic system, Massachusetts requires a Title 5 design-flow review, and that comes before the design is final. Footings go below frost depth, commonly about four feet. We lay those steps out early, along with the inspections the building department will schedule.

From Raynham the drive is about 48 miles northwest. You get one point of contact, plain updates through the job and a site that is swept and organized at the end of every day. If a change comes up mid-job, you see it in writing with its price before anyone acts on it.