Polhemus Savery DaSilva

Polhemus Savery DaSilva is a design-build firm in East Harwich built around high-end custom homes on Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard — the kind of project that runs from architectural drawings through construction under one roof. The company says it was founded in 1996 as one of the region's first fully integrated architecture-and-construction firms, and its Massachusetts home improvement contractor registration is active. The firm's reputation runs mostly through its design work: Houzz shows a 4.9-star rating from 12 reviews and 87 project photo sets, and lists a long run of industry recognition, including induction into the New England Design Hall of Fame and being named National Custom Home Builder of the Year. BuildZoom's permit records show 60 projects and at least 11 permits in the past three years worth roughly $193,100 apiece on average, several over $1 million, consistent with the large custom builds the firm is known for. Written customer accounts are thin, though. Only one full review is on file — a 2022 Google review praising the crew's professionalism — and two 2025 Reddit posts in a Cape Cod forum described the firm as expensive, one saying customers "pay a premium for the name" rather than getting the best builder for the money. Neither raised a specific complaint about the work itself. There's also a wrinkle worth knowing about before assuming who you'd be dealing with: the company's BBB profile names Peter Polhemus as president with a 2003 start date, while the firm's own website credits Aaron Polhemus and John R. DaSilva as its current leaders and says the firm dates to 1996. For a large, architect-led custom build on the Cape, the design pedigree and permit history are real; it's worth asking directly about current leadership and getting a clear sense of pricing relative to the scope of the project before committing.