General Contractor in Arlington, MA
Carpentry comes before coating on Arlington exteriors. Arlington Center holds housing dating back well before 1800, including the Jason Russell House. Old-growth wood behaves nothing like modern stock. We repair or replace it first, because paint over soft wood buys a season.
General Contractor Services in Arlington
Carpentry Repair in Arlington
Trim, doors, porches and structural wood — We repair the wood before we paint it. Painting over a rotted board is a one-season fix.. If you want the detail, here's how we handle carpentry repair in Arlington.
Wood Rot Repair in Arlington
Fascia, sills, casings and corner boards — Cut out the rot, treat with epoxy consolidant where the piece is salvageable, replace it where it isn't.. If you want the detail, here's how we handle wood rot repair in Arlington.
Siding Repair in Arlington
Clapboard, shingle and fiber cement — Damaged courses replaced and profile-matched, then primed on all sides before they go up.. If you want the detail, here's how we handle siding repair in Arlington.
Trim Installation in Arlington
Baseboard, casing, crown and millwork — Installed, caulked and painted as one job so the finish lines up with the walls.. If you want the detail, here's how we handle trim installation in Arlington.
Looking at other work in the area? Start from the Arlington overview.
More on this trade generally: General Contracting across our service area.
What General Contracting Work Here Actually Involves
Two-families and three-deckers in East Arlington, Colonial Revivals and Victorians through the middle, and larger 1920s–1950s homes in the Heights.
Most of our general contracting work here is for owner-occupants throughout, with two-family owners concentrated at the east end.
Genuine grade
Arlington climbs steeply from East Arlington to the Heights. Sloped lots change ladder footing and staging on nearly every job.
Historic core
Arlington Center holds housing dating back well before 1800, including the Jason Russell House. Old-growth wood behaves nothing like modern stock.
Dense at one end, suburban at the other
East Arlington is packed two-families; the Heights is detached houses with driveways. Two different jobs in one town.
What a Contracting Quote Has to Account For
What drives the price
Carpentry pricing is mostly about what is behind the surface, which nobody knows until it is open. We price the known scope firmly and carry the unknowns as a written allowance rather than a vague contingency, so a rot repair that turns out to run further than the visible damage does not become an argument halfway through. In Arlington specifically, the work is mostly two-families down low and single-families up the hill, and real elevation change across the town shapes how we schedule and stage it.
How the work is sequenced
Repairs come before finishes, always. There is no point painting trim that is going to be replaced, and no point replacing trim while the flashing above it is still letting water in. We work from the water source down: flashing and drainage first, then the substrate, then the carpentry, then the coating.
Where it usually goes wrong
The common failure is cosmetic work done over an unresolved cause. Filler over rot that still has a moisture path behind it will fail again in a season, and the second repair costs more than the first because the damage has spread. If we find a source we cannot fix, we tell you before we coat over it rather than after.
How long it takes
Carpentry runs on material availability as much as labour. Stock trim and standard dimensional lumber are immediate. Matched profiles for older houses can take weeks to source or mill, and we flag that at the estimate rather than discovering it mid-job.
Recent Work
Before & After
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Raised ranch, colour changeCrew working the transition from the original yellow. Full prep before any finish went on, garage doors and trim picked out separately.
Licensed, Insured, and Based in Allston
Family-owned contractor working out of Allston. Massachusetts Home Improvement Contractor licence #193121, general liability and workers' compensation carried on every job.
Estimates in Arlington
Free written estimate, normally inside 24 hours.
(617) 777-7700 Call Now Request OnlineQuestions We Get Asked
Do you fix the wood before painting it in Arlington?
Can you match old trim profiles?
Is carpentry quoted separately?
Ready for Your General Contractor Estimate in Arlington?
We walk the property, measure it, and send a written itemised quote — normally inside 24 hours. No pressure, no obligation.
Licensed #193121 · Fully insured · 2-year workmanship warranty