Somerville single family renovation

[Nick Luongo]

Hi all,

I am purchasing my second buy and hold property in Somerville (this one I will occupy) and I am searching for a bit of insight on the best way to go about things. My renovation budget is limited. As soon as I close in 10 days I'll start getting quotes for work. It's a small single family 1000 sq ft. I'll be redoing the kitchen, bath, adding a bath, skylights, and cosmetics (3 bed 2 bath when finished). Eventually I'll also redo the exterior and add a porch. I know a couple contractors that do good work but work under someone else's license. They said I could pull the permits and they do the work. So does this mean they are doing the work under my name which saves permitting costs but be a bit risky if anyone got hurt on the job site? The other option would be to hire a GC to just do the whole thing by the book and pay more. The Somerville ISD said they charge $19 per $1000 of work which sounds cheap but I would think the cost of a GC is higher because they have to have insurance and workman's comp.

Any reputable and well priced contractor referrals are also appreciated.

Thanks