Advanced Basement Finishing

Advanced Basement Finishing is a Swampscott basement remodeling shop — the company says it handles basement refinishing, family rooms, entertainment rooms, wet bars, bathrooms, storage rooms, kitchenettes and home offices. The Better Business Bureau lists it as a sole proprietorship run by owner Ted Grab, started in January 2003, with three employees (a separate web mention puts the founding at 2000). The one written review on file is a serious one. Posted in February 2022, a customer says they paid the full balance before the basement project was finished, and the owner then stopped work — 'he took the money and ran,' they wrote, warning others to steer clear. BuildZoom lists a Massachusetts general contractor license (#140838) for the business that it says expired in November 2015 and re-confirmed as expired again in July 2026, with no active license on its own file — that's BuildZoom's own directory listing, not an independently verified registration. The BBB grades the business A+ but notes it is not BBB accredited. BuildZoom also shows eight permitted projects, including six 2025 basement-finishing jobs in Medway and Westborough, so the business appears to still be doing work. Given the payment complaint and the lack of an active license on file, anyone considering this contractor should get a written contract with a payment schedule tied to completed work, and confirm current licensing before paying anything upfront.