Verified record
Harper Elm is a general contractor in Acton, MA. Its website claims 20 years in business and says it takes on projects from new homes to renovations of antique homes and barns. Its Massachusetts home improvement contractor licence 181357 is active on the state registry. A 2024 nhhomemagazine.com article describes Harper Elm as specializing in restoring historic homes and barns, and says the contractor dismantled the existing building and sourced additional materials. A 2021 bostonmagazine.com piece says a team worked alongside contractor Ian Harper, of Acton-based Harper Elm, to install scissor trusses made of fir. In a 2019 Houzz review, a customer wrote that Harper Elm did a full renovation of their house in Wayland, building a new garage bay, a screened porch and a laundry room, extending the kitchen and family room, refinishing the basement and renovating all the bathrooms, with a lead carpenter always on site. Another 2019 review praised great work on a 100-plus-year-old barn. In a 2017 review, a customer wrote about a full house gut renovation in Somerville that ran for over a year, with a carpenter on site every day and regular meetings with the project manager. A separate 2017 review described restoring a barn and other major projects in a house that was originally a large barn. In a 2020 review, a customer wrote that Ian, Ben and the team turned an old cape into a modern home.
Typical Greater Boston range for this kind of work, from regional averages — not a quote from Harper Elm. Use it to sanity-check bids, then get the real number in writing.
Estimated range
$23,000 – $35,000
Typical remodeling project around $29,000
“the team brought in Harper Elm, which specializes in restoring historic homes and barns. The contractor dismantled the existing building and sourced additional materials.”
“Rather than a backyard with a garage in it, it feels more like one space with lots of different features, including an entire building to house cars and bikes. — Rob Gilmore, Gilmore Landscape Architecture, gilmorela.com, in collaboration with Harper Elm, harperelm.com”
“Rather than a backyard with a garage in it, it feels more like one space with lots of different features, including an entire building to house cars and bikes. — Rob Gilmore, Gilmore Landscape Architecture, gilmorela.com, in collaboration with Harper Elm, harperelm.com”
“Rather than a backyard with a garage in it, it feels more like one space with lots of different features, including an entire building to house cars and bikes. — Rob Gilmore, Gilmore Landscape Architecture, gilmorela.com, in collaboration with Harper Elm, harperelm.com”
“Working alongside contractor Ian Harper (of Acton-based Harper Elm), the team then installed scissor trusses made of fir”
Top class guys who do things the right way all the time. We worked with Ian, Ben and the team on turning an old cape into a a modern home and they delivered a home that we're extremely happy with built with a level of craftsmanship and cared that matched our expectations. We're already thinking about the next home to build with the team. Thanks!
They are the best! They know barns and deliver knowledgeable, respectful service that you know you can trust. They've done great work on my 100 plus yr old barn. Highly recommend!
Harper Elm did a full renovation of our house in Wayland. They built a new additional garage bay, extended kitchen and family room, built a new big screened porch, laundry room, refinished the basement, renovated all bathrooms, kitchen among many other things. They converted traditional colonial house into transitional or mostly contemporary house. Their work is very high quality; they are attentive to details and always open to new ideas and unconventional solutions. They are highly responsive to any urgent request. The lead carpenter was always on site working on projects and supervising the work. He worked in sync with our designer's requests. All workers and subcontractors were very professional, friendly and accommodating. We are very happy with the result and love our new home. We are thankful to Harper Elm for their dedicated work.
As a real estate agent, Ian is my go-to recommendation for General Contractor/Home Builder. Ian provides me, my clients, family and friends with professionalism, fairness, logic and clarity. When I refer Ian, I know he will give our clients the time and attention to their unique situation required to produce the highest quality home environment. He hires excellent subcontractors who are friendly, experiences, and who do not cut corners. From initial conversations to the completion of projects, I have seen Ian deliver detailed answers to questions, lend ideas for cost savings, ensure safe construction zones, and exhibit a conscientiousness and courteousness to the home owners in addition to the property itself throughout the duration of his building projects. My trust in his technical competence and comfort with his clear, thorough communication style is the reason why I trust Ian with my own home in addition to those in my network. Please feel free to contact me via Ian for more details on the work his company does with me and my clients.
I worked with Harper Elm for over a year doing a full house gut renovation in Somerville. The quality of the work was extremely high - they employ true craftsmen who know how things are meant to be done. There was a carpenter on sight every day managing the work on site and I had easy access and regular meetings with the project manager to assess project progress, costs and the inevitable issues that arise when you are working on a 100 year old house. Highly recommended!
Specializes in
Also offers
Service area
Languages
2 changes recorded — last scanned Sep 26, 2026.
Painting & carpentry5.0
Permits pulled and subcontractors supervised4.8
Finished a job another contractor abandoned4.7
State-verified Home Improvement Contractor license since 2025Not yet rated
Large custom master-bedroom closet4.2
Clean job sites4.3
30 years in businessNot yet rated