Brick Tudor Revival house on Buckminster Road in Brookline's Fisher Hill neighborhood, restored by Abrams Builders

Design-Build General Contractor in Brookline, MA

Renovations, additions, and restorations for Brookline's older houses, planned and built by one team.

Abrams Builders is a design-build general contractor for renovations, additions, and historic restorations in Brookline. We restored a Tudor Revival estate on Fisher Hill, finished a half-completed Federal-style renovation on Heath Hill Road, and renovated condominiums on Beals Street. Founder Matthew Abrams has worked on older homes around Boston for nearly 30 years.

Most of what we build in Brookline happens inside houses that are already a century old, often ones that earlier owners have remodeled more than once. The job usually starts with working out what’s original, what was added later, and what’s worth keeping.

Planning to update the rooms you have? Start with whole-home remodeling. If you need more space, here’s how we plan an addition so it fits the original house. For a new house on a Brookline lot, see custom home building. West of the town line, the Newton page covers attic and basement conversions and the city’s demolition review.

Building in Brookline

Brookline protects its older buildings more closely than most towns around Boston. A few local rules shape a project here long before anyone picks up a hammer.

Rear of the Buckminster Road house in Fisher Hill, with its restored slate roof and brick chimney
Buckminster Road, Fisher Hill

Historic districts and the Preservation Commission

Brookline has eight local historic districts, among them Pill Hill, Cottage Farm, and Chestnut Hill North. Inside those, exterior changes you can see from the street generally need the Preservation Commission's sign-off before a building permit is issued.

Fisher Hill works differently. It has been on the National Register since 1985 but isn't a local district, so there the review mostly comes up if something is being torn down. We find out which rules apply to your address before design starts.

White kitchen with an island and breakfast table in the Buckminster Road rear addition
Kitchen addition, Buckminster Road

Additions and floor-area limits

Brookline zoning caps how much floor area a house can have for its lot size, and an older house on a tight lot can already be close to the cap. For additions of up to 350 square feet, the Zoning Board of Appeals can grant a special permit allowing up to 150 percent of the permitted floor area, as long as the house hasn't received that relief before. Those projects also go through design review.

At Buckminster Road the new kitchen and family room went on the back of the house, which left the Tudor front untouched. The yard behind it ran into a steep slope, so we cut the hillside back nearly twenty feet and built a stone retaining wall.

More on home additions
Contemporary kitchen in the rear addition of the Heath Hill Road house in Brookline
Heath Hill Road

Houses someone else started

Sometimes you buy a house partway through another builder's renovation. At Heath Hill Road, a developer had finished the structural work and a contemporary rear addition before the house sold.

Before building anything, we went through what was there and sorted it into three piles: done right, needs fixing, not started. Then we finished the interior, replaced every window, and built out the patio, fire pit, and bocce court.

See the Heath Hill project
Renovated bathroom with subway tile and a round mirror in a Beals Street condominium
Beals Street

Condominium renovations

Plenty of Brookline lives in condominiums, and renovating one means working around shared walls, neighbors, and whatever the association allows. On Beals Street we redid bathrooms and tile and built a top-floor family room with built-in shelving.

Condominium work

Where We've Worked in Brookline

Brookline Renovation Questions

Only in some cases. If the house is in one of Brookline's eight local historic districts, most exterior changes visible from the street need the Commission's approval first. Interior work doesn't. Anywhere in town, tearing down a building starts with the Commission deciding whether it's historically significant.

No. Fisher Hill has been a National Register district since 1985, but it isn't one of Brookline's local historic districts, so a typical exterior renovation there doesn't need a certificate from the Commission. Demolishing a building the Commission finds significant can be delayed up to 18 months.

Up to 12 months for a building the Preservation Commission finds significant, and up to 18 months if it's on or eligible for the National or State Register. If a design depends on removing an old wing or outbuilding, check that first.

Sometimes. For additions of up to 350 square feet, the Zoning Board of Appeals can grant a special permit allowing up to 150 percent of the permitted floor area, if the house hasn't had that relief before. Larger additions are harder, and we'd look at reworking the existing space first.

Yes. That's what we did at Heath Hill Road. We start by checking the existing work so you know what's sound, what has to be redone, and what's left before we price the rest.

In Their Words

Matt Abrams was outstanding to work with from start to finish. He helped me through a home renovation that could have easily been stressful, but his professionalism, communication, and attention to detail made the entire process smooth and reassuring. Matt was clear and transparent about timelines, costs, and expectations, and he followed through on everything he promised. Renovations require a high level of trust, and Matt absolutely earned mine.

Jordan Nollman · Home Owner

Planning a Project in Brookline?

Book a Consultation