Shutter BoysPlantation shutters in Framingham
Homes in Framingham
Framingham's 27,918 homes are a mix: 52% detached houses, 43% apartments or units in buildings of two or more homes and 5% townhouses and other attached houses.
The biggest building period was 1950 to 1979, which accounts for 52% of homes standing today; 10% are from 2000 or later. The median home dates from 1966. 55% of homes are lived in by their owners.
In Waltham, 11 miles away, 54% of homes are apartments, more than here. Nationally, Framingham's homes are older than those in 81% of the 881 US cities we have census figures for.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. Estimates carry margins of error.
Out-of-square openings
With 73% of homes built before 1980, many openings have had decades to settle. Measure each one's width at the top, middle and bottom, and both diagonals. If the diagonals differ by more than about ¼ inch, add a mounting frame in the designer, or choose an outside mount so the shutter covers the uneven edges.
Replacement windows
52% of homes went up between 1950 and 1979, and most of them have had their original windows replaced since. A replacement window often sits further into or out of the wall than the old one, so the depth you have for an inside mount may differ from window to window in the same house. Measure every opening rather than copying one.
Apartments and condos
43% of homes are in buildings of two or more units. Balcony and patio doors suit bypass or bifold panels rather than hinged ones, which need floor space to swing. Check what your HOA or building allows to show from outside before you order: most rules are about the colour seen through the glass.
Plaster walls and deep casings
20% of homes date from before 1950, when walls were plaster on lath and windows sat in deep wood casings. Plaster cracks if you drive screws carelessly: drill a pilot hole, use fixings made for plaster, and fix into the casing or the framing behind it. A deep casing is good news for an inside mount; measure its depth before you choose a louver size.
A whole house in Framingham
The most common home in Framingham has three bedrooms: 32% of homes. 23% have four bedrooms or more, and 20% have one or none. The median home has 5.5 rooms.
Detached houses are the most common kind of home here. Across the US, the middle home among detached houses has 10 to 15 windows (EIA, 2020). Shuttering that many windows at a typical bedroom-window size comes to roughly $3,200 to $6,000. For scale, that's about 0.7% of the median home value here, $627,300 (owners’ estimates, 2020–2024).
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 (bedrooms B25041, rooms B25018, value B25077); U.S. Energy Information Administration, Residential Energy Consumption Survey 2020, Table HC2.1 (windows). EIA RECS 2020, Table HC2.1
A typical home10–15 windows
All of them shuttered$3,200 to $6,000
Every window priced as a 36 × 48 in opening in our basic build (flat moulding, paint stage 1, 3½ in louvers), before tax and shipping. Your windows will differ; the designer prices each one.
Price your own windowsOlder homes, high values
Owners here value their homes higher than in 80% of the 881 US cities we have figures for, and 73% of homes were built before 1980. If an older house still has good wood shutters, repair them before you replace them; if not, poplar painted to match the trim suits original casings.
Working from home
20% of workers here worked from home in the 2020–2024 survey years, more than in 74% of the 881 US cities we have figures for. Glare on a screen comes from direct sun and bright sky behind or beside it. Louvers tilted up throw daylight at the ceiling instead, so the room stays bright and the screen stays readable; wider louvers give the clearest view when you open them.
Young children at home
6.6% of people in Framingham are under five, more than in 79% of the 881 US cities we have figures for. Shutters have no cords or chains at all: the louvers tilt with a rod or by hand, so there's nothing to hang within a child's reach. US rules for cords on custom blinds and shades are still being rewritten; ours never had any.
Ages (B01001), working from home (B08301) and value (B25077): U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. Rankings compare the US cities we have figures for.
Framingham weather and your shutters
At Natick, MA (5 mi away), July averages a high of 81.8°F and January a low of 17.5°F. Average lows sit at or below freezing from November to March.
About 7 days a year reach 90°F, 143 nights fall to freezing and 47.3 inches of precipitation falls, spread fairly evenly through the year.
That's more freezing nights than in 90% of the 881 US cities we have climate normals for.
Daylight runs from 15 h 17 min on the longest day to 9 h 5 min on the shortest, and the midday sun stands 71° above the horizon in June and 24° in December.
Source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Natick, MA (temperature) and Natick, MA (precipitation, 5 mi away). Daylight and sun height: calculated from the city’s latitude.
Monthly figures
| Month | Average high | Average low | Precipitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 35.2°F | 17.5°F | 3.4 in |
| Feb | 38.2°F | 17.6°F | 3.1 in |
| Mar | 46.1°F | 25.4°F | 4 in |
| Apr | 58°F | 35.1°F | 4.1 in |
| May | 67.7°F | 45.6°F | 3.8 in |
| Jun | 76.5°F | 55.9°F | 4.1 in |
| Jul | 81.8°F | 61.7°F | 3.9 in |
| Aug | 80.4°F | 59.4°F | 3.8 in |
| Sep | 73°F | 51.8°F | 4.2 in |
| Oct | 61.7°F | 39.7°F | 4.8 in |
| Nov | 51.3°F | 31.1°F | 3.7 in |
| Dec | 40.7°F | 22.9°F | 4.4 in |
Cold winters
With 143 freezing nights a year, warm room air meets cold glass for months. Shutters closed tight overnight hold that air against the window, so condensation can collect on the sill: tilt the louvers open in the morning, and wipe the sill on windows that often run wet.
Wet months
47.3 inches of precipitation a year keeps the air damp for long stretches. Steam and condensation are hard on any joint, so in kitchens, bathrooms and laundry rooms keep the air moving and wipe water off the sill before it sits.
Fitting them in Framingham
Shutter Boys shutters are made for you to fit yourself: an inside or outside mount takes a drill, a level and our step-by-step guide. If you'd rather hire someone, a finish carpenter or blinds installer can fit them; ask on your quote and we'll tell you if we know one near you. You arrange and pay the installer directly.
More about shutters in Framingham
Each page takes one question further (fitting your windows, room by room, sizes and colours, louvers, or how shutters compare with other choices), using Framingham’s own figures.
For designers, contractors and stores in Framingham
Interior designers, contractors, window covering stores, realtors and property managers in Framingham can sell or refer Shutter Boys shutters: dealers buy at trade pricing with a protected area; referral partners earn a fee on each client they send. No fee to join.
Price your windows
Pick your look once, add every window, and see each one drawn and priced. Send it to us and we reply with your quote.