That Time We Lifted a House

...and set it back down again

Real estate values are high enough in certain neighborhoods in Cambridge, MA, where we do a lot of work, that developers and homeowners alike will go to great lengths to find extra square footage they can claim, rehab, and/or add to their homes. Cambridge zoning is notoriously difficult, but a few years ago, a game-changing amendment to the zoning ordinance allowed basement square footage to be finished *by right.* This meant you could finish your basement and add significantly to your overall square footage without needing to go through the variance process.

Think about it - as a homeowner, your small Cambridge house on a tight city lot that was previously 1500 square feet with a 700 square foot basement could now be 2200 finished square footage - so much added value, and no more onerous zoning process to go through! And of course, developers were all over this.

So, that’s when the house lifting began.

Would you work underneath this house?! We did…definitely a hard had job!