Hi everyone!

I am new to the forum so forgive me if there is a better place to find the answer. If you are from Massachusetts even better but I'd love input from anyone!

I just purchased a home with my husband and I looking to open a daycare out of my home in MA. We have a large/ high ceiling walk out basement with two windows..side entrance and large side yard. It is unfinished (just cement floors and unfinished walls)
I want to finish it to accommodate a home based daycare. I don't even know where to begin though...

Do I get a Family Care license first BEFORE renovating?

Has anyone renovated a walkout basement to accommodate a home daycare?

Thanks for your input!

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Welcome to the forum!
Start here: https://www.daycare.com/massachusetts/

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Hi! I'm from Massachusetts!

My friend is in the middle of finishing her basement, right now she can only have the finished sections on her license. I would give a call to your regional office and ask for specifics. Depending where you are and who you will have as a licensor can make a difference on "how finished" your space needs to be before you can license it.

Good luck, feel free to message me if you have any other questions, I am happy to help!

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I don't know if you have a local CCR in your city, but if you do try reaching out to them to see if they can provide any advice. In my area our CCR will even come out and do what they call a "pre-licensing visit" to ensure you get the info you need to sail through the licensing process. I would start there.

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I'm in MA and my husband renovated the walkout basement in our previous home. Like JackandJill said, they will only license the areas that are finished and meet licensing standards so unless you have an area that you feel is ready for inspection, I would hold off on licensing for now unless you want to start doing day care in another area of your home until the basement is ready. Keep the regulations in mind as you renovate. When we did it, I read through the regs and highlighted anything that pertained to space - make sure you have things like 2 exits, enough sq. footage based on how many kids you want to license for, proper heat and lighting, access to bathroom, sinks, etc. I agree that you might want to call EEC to get specific advice on what they'll be looking for during the inspection. It's better to know upfront rather than have to do the work over again.

At the time my husband renovated our basement, I was already licensed and was using the 1st and 2nd floor for day care. During one of my unannounced visits, my licensor said he'd be happy to take a look at the work being done and offer any suggestions so that once the work was done, we'd be good to go. Since we had gone over the regulations carefully, we were all set. Just needed to add the heating at that point so once I told him that was in, he just mailed my license to me. Good luck! I hope all goes smoothly for you!

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