Borrelli

The Mountains Have Always Been Home

Long before "home watch" became an industry, it was simply what the Borrelli family did.

In the early 1970s, Robert "Bob" Borrelli founded Mountain Top Home Watchers, caring for vacation homes throughout the Great Northern Catskills. Having relocated permanently in 1966 to the family's vacation home in Hunter—originally purchased in 1964 after leaving Harrison and Mamaroneck in southern Westchester County—Bob recognized a growing need among second-home owners for someone they could trust while they were away.

His route eventually stretched nearly forty miles, winding through Haines Falls, Hunter, Jewett, Windham, and Ashland. At first, his responsibilities focused on checking homes, keeping an eye on properties, and giving owners peace of mind. Before long, those relationships evolved into something much more.

Homeowners began asking Bob to make repairs, remodel kitchens and bathrooms, build additions and decks, replace windows and doors, and oversee improvements to their mountain homes. His reputation for craftsmanship, honesty, and reliability spread from one homeowner to the next. Those long-term relationships became the foundation of a thriving family business.

Over the following decades, Bob's knowledge and master carpentry skills provided a steady stream of work for his three sons—Bobby, Roger, and Joel—who learned the value of hard work, integrity, and treating every customer's home as if it were their own before eventually pursuing careers of their own.

For Joel, the mountains were never just a destination—they were home. Born in Hunter, he grew up surrounded by the people, places, and traditions that make the Great Northern Catskills unique.

In 2003, Joel and his wife, Trish, returned to Hunter to raise their own family. Trish, who had grown up in Hunter after her family relocated from Long Island, shared Joel's love for the mountain community they both considered home.

Professionally, Joel had built a career as a Wall Street commodities broker, while Trish worked for JPMorgan Chase. Long before remote work became commonplace, they were fortunate to have careers that allowed them to work from the mountains while remaining closely connected to Manhattan and Westchester. It gave them the best of both worlds—the opportunity to pursue rewarding careers while raising their sons in the place they loved most.

Matt and Luke grew up on the side of Hunter Mountain, where winter weekends meant snowboarding, summers meant exploring the mountains, and the values of hard work, community, and craftsmanship were part of everyday life.

Today, the next generation is carrying that tradition forward.

Matt and Luke represent generations of craftsmanship from both sides of their family. On the Borrelli side, they inherited the example set by their grandfather, Bob Borrelli, whose master carpentry skills and reputation for quality became well known throughout the mountaintop communities. They also benefited from the experience and guidance of their uncle, Bob Borrelli, a master carpenter whose dedication to the trade further reinforced those values.

On their mother's side, they grew up surrounded by another proud tradition of craftsmanship. Trish's brothers, John, Chuck & James, built their careers as union carpenters, passing along the professionalism, precision, and work ethic that have long defined the building trades. Together, both sides of the family helped shape Matt and Luke into the skilled tradesmen they are today.

Matt has built his career as a union ironworker and owner of Borrelli Welding, specializing in structural steel, mobile welding, and custom metal fabrication. Luke has earned a growing reputation as a carpenter and craftsman through Borrelli LLC, providing remodeling, custom carpentry, and home improvement services throughout the Great Northern Catskills.

Today, the Borrelli family has come full circle.

Drawing on more than half a century of experience caring for mountain homes, BORRELLI combines construction, property care, maintenance, and craftsmanship under one trusted family name. Whether we're remodeling a kitchen, building a custom deck, watching over a second home, responding to an emergency repair, or fabricating custom steel, our mission remains the same as it was when Bob first began checking homes over fifty years ago:

Treat every property as if it were our own.

BORRELLI

Building • Managing • Maintaining Properties Throughout the Great Northern Catskills