McGowan Custom Builders

McGowan Custom Builders is a one-owner shop staked almost entirely on Charlestown: Tim McGowan says he started the company in 2017 after seeing a need for a high-end residential contractor in the neighborhood, and it still runs on that same narrow bet — mid- to high-end remodels and additions in the $100k-$1M range, not small repair work. There's no customer review history to check that against yet. Searches turned up nothing on Google, Houzz, Thumbtack, Angi, or the BBB. What is public is Boston's permit record: the city shows 102 building permits filed under McGowan's name since 2013, with 65% of the 77 rated ones closed out — about 15 points above the citywide median — though 33 permits, roughly a third of the total, are still open. BuildZoom separately lists his Massachusetts construction supervisor license, CS-104409, as active as of its last check. Day to day, McGowan says he handles business development, sales, and accounting himself, with Kristina McKenna running preconstruction and Joe Giardina and Denny Diniz covering construction and site supervision — a small, named team rather than a rotating crew. Before signing anything, ask for references from a recent, comparable job — the permit closure rate and license are worth confirming yourself, since there isn't a published review trail to lean on. For a Charlestown homeowner planning a substantial remodel or addition, that's a reasonable place to start a conversation, just go in doing your own vetting rather than trusting a star rating that doesn't exist yet.