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General Contractor Forest Hills Queens NY

Your Co-Op Renovation Starts and Ends Right

Forest Hills has some of the most beautiful and most complicated homes in Queens. We know how to renovate them without the chaos.
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Call: 718-237-4900

MWBE Certified Contractor

New York State MWBE Certified (# MWCERT2018-1752) a verifiable credential, not just a claim on a website.

DCA Licensed Superintendent

We hold NYC DCA Construction Superintendent License # 1302135, required for legal permit oversight on your project.

OSHA Certified, Fully Insured

Our superintendent is OSHA certified and we carry full liability and workers' compensation coverage on every job.

Over a Decade in NYC Construction

Ten-plus years renovating Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan pre-war walk-ups, co-ops, brownstones, and commercial spaces.

Home Renovation Forest Hills Queens

Forest Hills Homes Require a Contractor Who Understands the Neighborhood

Forest Hills is not a generic Queens neighborhood, and renovating here is not a generic job. The housing stock along Queens Boulevard is dense with pre-war co-op buildings some of them a century old where the walls hide original plaster, aging plumbing, and electrical systems that haven’t been touched since the Eisenhower administration. The Tudor mansions in Forest Hills Gardens are landmarked. The walk-up buildings on side streets require hauling everything up four flights by hand. Most contractors figure this out after they’ve already started your project. We figured it out years ago. New Era Development Group has been doing construction and renovation work across Brooklyn and Queens long enough to know what’s behind the walls before we open them and to have the licensed trades in place to handle whatever we find. Whether you’re planning a kitchen remodel, a bathroom renovation, a gut renovation of a co-op apartment, or a commercial buildout on Austin Street, we know the specific process this neighborhood requires.
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Call: 718-237-4900

Construction Company Forest Hills Queens

What You Get When You Hire New Era Development Group

Real outcomes that Forest Hills homeowners and business owners have seen firsthand on completed projects.
  • Your co-op board gets everything they need alteration agreements, insurance certificates, permit documentation handled by us, not you.
  • You deal with one person, one point of contact, from the first walkthrough to the final permit sign-off.
  • Every trade framing, electrical, plumbing, tile, finishes is coordinated under one roof so nothing waits on someone else's schedule.
  • Your renovation stays on timeline because we manage the building's requirements, work-hour restrictions, and material logistics from day one.
  • You get the DOB permits closed and the documentation your co-op needs to release your escrow no loose ends left behind.
  • You end up with a finished space that reflects what you actually wanted, not a compromise that happened because the process fell apart.

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Co-Op Renovation Forest Hills Queens

The Co-Op Process Is Its Own Animal

If you own a co-op in Forest Hills, you already know that renovating it involves more than picking out cabinets and calling a contractor. Before a single wall comes down, your building’s managing agent needs proof of insurance and the co-op corporation typically needs to be named as an additional insured on the contractor’s general liability policy. Then there’s the alteration agreement, the board approval package, the work-hour restrictions, and the requirement that your contractor be able to pull permits and deliver final DOB sign-off before the building releases your renovation escrow. This is where a lot of renovations go sideways not because the contractor did bad work, but because they didn’t understand the process. We’ve renovated co-op apartments in pre-war walk-up buildings throughout Brooklyn and Queens, including in the middle of summer, in buildings with no elevator, on upper floors. We’ve managed the board approval process, the permit filings, and the final documentation every time. When your co-op board asks for something, we know what they’re asking for and we already have it ready.
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Kitchen Remodeling Bathroom Remodeling Forest Hills

Kitchens, Bathrooms, and Everything Between

Kitchen and bathroom remodeling are the most common renovation projects in Forest Hills and for good reason. In a pre-war co-op, the kitchen and bathroom are often the only rooms that haven’t been updated in decades. New cabinetry, updated plumbing fixtures, new tile, modern electrical these aren’t cosmetic upgrades. In a building where the pipes are original and the wiring hasn’t been touched since the 1950s, a kitchen or bathroom remodel is often the moment you find out what the building is actually working with. We handle all of it: demo, framing, electrical, plumbing, tile, cabinetry, countertops, finishes. We don’t hand you off to a subcontractor you’ve never met and disappear. The same team that starts your project finishes it. We’ve done gut renovations, luxury finish buildouts, and everything in between for co-op owners, condo residents, and homeowners across Forest Hills and the broader Queens market.
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1

Free On-Site Estimate

We walk the space with you, understand your scope, and give you a clear, written estimate at no cost.

2

Permits, Plans, and Board Approval

We handle the DOB filings, co-op board documentation, and alteration agreements before work begins not after.

3

Build, Finish, and Close Out

Our crew executes the full scope, delivers final permit sign-off, and leaves you with a finished space and zero loose ends.

Forest Hills FAQs

Common Questions About Our Service

A lot more than most people expect going in. For a co-op renovation in Forest Hills, we’re not just managing the construction we’re also responsible for pulling the right permits with the NYC Department of Buildings, coordinating with your building’s managing agent, making sure the insurance certificates name the co-op corporation correctly, and preparing the documentation your board needs before they’ll approve the alteration agreement. Once work is underway, we’re managing every trade on site framing, electrical, plumbing, tile, finishes and keeping the project on schedule within your building’s approved work hours. At the end, we’re responsible for closing out the DOB permits so your co-op can release the renovation escrow. If your contractor doesn’t understand that last step, you can end up in a very frustrating situation even after the work is done. We’ve managed this process from start to finish on co-op renovations throughout Brooklyn and Queens, including in pre-war walk-up buildings in Forest Hills.
Yes for most renovation work that goes beyond cosmetic changes, you’ll need permits from the NYC Department of Buildings. This includes work that involves electrical, plumbing, structural changes, or anything that alters the layout of the apartment. In a co-op building, permits are also typically required by the alteration agreement your building’s managing agent will have you sign before construction begins. The permit process involves filing plans with the DOB, having them approved, and then closing out the permits with a final sign-off once the work is complete. That final step matters more than most people realize your co-op board will typically hold a renovation escrow until the permits are properly closed. We handle the full permit process as part of every renovation we take on in Forest Hills and throughout Queens, so you’re not left chasing paperwork after the crew is gone.
Kitchen remodeling costs in Forest Hills vary based on the scope of work, the condition of the existing space, and the finishes you select. Nationally, the median kitchen renovation spend reached $22,000 in 2024, with upscale kitchen remodels starting at $150,000. In New York City, renovation costs run significantly higher than national averages high-end remodels in NYC typically range from $350 to $600 per square foot. In a pre-war co-op building, costs can also increase if the project uncovers aging plumbing or outdated electrical that needs to be brought up to code as part of the renovation. The best way to get an accurate number for your specific apartment is to have someone walk the space with you. We offer free estimates and will give you a clear, written scope before any work begins.
This is one of the most important questions you can ask and not enough people ask it before signing a contract. In New York City, a legitimate residential general contractor needs two separate licenses to operate legally: a Home Improvement Contractor (HIC) license from the NYC Department of Consumer Affairs and Workers Compensation, and a General Contractor registration with the NYC Department of Buildings for permit-pulling purposes. Trade work like electrical and plumbing requires additional licenses a Master Electrician or Master Plumber license, respectively. You can verify a contractor’s license status directly through the NYC DCWP website using the license number. New Era Development Group holds NYC DCA Construction Superintendent License # 1302135 and is MWBE Certified under # MWCERT2018-1752. Both are verifiable. If a contractor can’t give you a license number you can look up, that’s a problem worth taking seriously.
A few things come up consistently in this market. First, vague proposals a contract that describes work in broad strokes rather than itemized line items is an open door for budget overruns and disputes about what was included. Get everything in writing and in detail. Second, permit responsibility make sure your contractor is explicitly responsible for pulling permits and delivering final DOB sign-off, not just the construction itself. In a Forest Hills co-op, incomplete permits can hold up your escrow release indefinitely. Third, subcontractor transparency ask who is actually going to be on site. A contractor who functions primarily as a broker, farming everything out to subcontractors you’ve never met, creates accountability gaps. Fourth, communication how fast did they respond to your initial inquiry? That usually tells you a lot about how they’ll communicate once your deposit is in and the walls are open.
Yes, we serve Forest Hills regularly from our Brooklyn base. Forest Hills is well within our active service area, and the commute is straightforward the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) connects directly from Brooklyn into Queens, and the Jackie Robinson Parkway runs right through Forest Park, which borders Forest Hills to the south. Depending on time of day, it’s a reasonable drive between our Brooklyn location and most addresses in Forest Hills. We’ve completed projects throughout Queens, including co-op renovations in pre-war walk-up buildings, and we’re familiar with the building types, managing agents, and co-op board requirements you’ll encounter in this neighborhood. Distance has never been a limiting factor for the work we do in Forest Hills or anywhere else in Queens.