Andover, Massachusetts ADUs
Coordinate the site plan and ADU before filing in Andover.
Property review, municipal-source research, design coordination, and construction planning for homeowners considering an ADU in Andover.
Andover’s 2026 Town Meeting page records approval of Article 37 on April 29 and submission for Attorney General review. Confirm the current effective bylaw with the town before filing. The town also publishes separate ADU site-plan and interior-plan requirements. Review the Andover planning page and Andover ADU site-plan procedures, then confirm the property-specific path with the municipality and qualified professionals.
Use the property—not a generic promise—to make the decision.
Each section links the statewide rules to the documents, site facts, and construction decisions required for a real project.
Start with the current Massachusetts baseline.
Massachusetts permits one qualifying protected-use accessory dwelling unit by right in covered single-family residential zoning districts. The unit must be a self-contained home on the same lot as a principal dwelling and may be no larger than 900 square feet or one-half of the principal dwelling's gross floor area, whichever is smaller. By-right status removes a discretionary zoning approval for the protected use itself; it does not eliminate building permits, dimensional review, Title 5, wetlands review, utility requirements, inspections, or other applicable codes. Boston follows a different zoning framework.
Protected-use limits
- One qualifying ADU by right in covered single-family residential zoning districts.
- Maximum 900 square feet or half the principal dwelling, whichever is smaller.
- No owner-occupancy requirement for the protected-use pathway.
- State limits on additional parking requirements, including transit protections.
Property approvals remain
- Objective dimensional, building, fire, energy, and trade-code review.
- Sewer or septic, water, wetlands, flood, historic, and utility review where applicable.
- Survey, site-plan, permit, inspection, address, and occupancy requirements.
- A separate local pathway may apply when a proposal falls outside the protected-use minimum.
Read the Andover process before commissioning plans.
Andover’s 2026 Town Meeting page records approval of Article 37 on April 29 and submission for Attorney General review. Confirm the current effective bylaw with the town before filing. The town also publishes separate ADU site-plan and interior-plan requirements.
Site plan packet
- Use the appropriate registered professional. The published procedure specifies 24 × 36-inch sheets and a minimum scale of 1 inch = 40 feet.
- Show boundaries, two-foot topographic contours, existing and proposed structures, and structures within 50 feet of the site boundaries.
- Include setbacks, easements, restrictions and wetlands.
- Map water, sewer or septic, drainage, parking, walkways, driveways and safe access.
Interior plans and filing
- Have a design professional document the principal dwelling’s gross floor area and the ADU layout and room areas.
- Coordinate mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire-safety, light and ventilation details.
- The procedure calls for at least five paper copies plus electronic plans and documents. Confirm current delivery requirements before preparing the package.
- Ask Building about interdepartmental and Zoning Board of Appeals advisory review and the submission sequence.
Planning note. This checklist summarizes the town’s published procedure; it does not replace the complete requirements. Read the 2026 Town Meeting record and ADU plan requirements with your design professional. The municipality and applicable authorities control the property-specific determination.
Four Andover property questions to resolve early.
A map pin and lot area are not a feasibility conclusion.
Site and access
- The current site-plan information required with the building-permit submission.
- Sewer or septic, wells, wetlands, drainage, grade, ledge, and mature landscape.
- Long driveways, private ways, utility runs, construction staging, and delivery access.
- A model and foundation strategy coordinated with the dimensional plan—not selected in isolation.
Project and household
- Internal, attached or detached configuration, plus the selected construction method and site strategy.
- Bedroom count, accessibility, privacy, daylight, storage, and outdoor-space priorities.
- Complete budget for the dwelling, professional services, permits, site work, utilities, and contingency.
- A decision sequence that resolves the expensive unknowns before full design.
A controlled path for an Andover ADU.
Each phase should make the next commitment more informed.
Recommended sequence
- Confirm the currently effective bylaw, amendment status and site-plan procedure with Andover.
- Screen property, wastewater, environmental, access, and utility facts.
- Prepare a coordinated property plan and construction-document package.
- File the site-plan material with the building permit and complete applicable reviews.
Lumara coordination
- Address and property review before confirming Lumara One as the right fit.
- Site visit focused on placement, access, utilities, drainage, and constructability.
- Survey and professional design scopes after the project direction is credible.
- Construction planning that coordinates the selected construction method with foundation, utilities, site access, and closeout.
Budget the complete Andover project.
A responsible budget separates the selected ADU from property-specific work and third-party professional or authority costs.
Cost stack
- ADU or construction scope and selected finishes.
- Survey, architecture, engineering, energy, and other professional services.
- Permits, site preparation, foundation, drainage, utilities, delivery, and installation.
- Wastewater, utility-company, environmental, extraordinary-access, restoration, and contingency items where applicable.
Current Lumara home
- Lumara One is the current one-bedroom backyard home.
- The standard Lumara One home is $209,000. Property-specific installation, foundation, utilities, site work, plans, engineering and permits are additional.
- Allowances and estimates are labeled; they are not represented as fixed contract totals.
- The property review identifies which unknowns should be priced before the project advances.
See what an ADU costs in Massachusetts, then apply the cost stack to the property.
Current sources behind this guide.
Rules and programs can change. Follow the controlling state or municipal source and confirm the property-specific result with the responsible authority.
Andover MA ADU Builder FAQ.
Can every Andover property have an ADU?
No. State law creates a protected-use pathway, but the proposed dwelling still must satisfy applicable size, dimensional, building, health, environmental, utility, and property-specific requirements.
Does an Andover ADU require a permit?
Yes. By-right status addresses the zoning use. Applicable building, trade, health, environmental, inspection, and occupancy approvals still apply.
Can I submit just a Lumara One floor plan in Andover?
No. Andover’s published procedure also calls for a professionally prepared site plan and interior/code information. Gather a survey and existing-house floor-area records before commissioning the permit package; confirm the current requirements with Building.
Can Lumara confirm approval from an address search?
No. An initial property review identifies likely fit, constraints, and next questions. The municipality and applicable authorities determine compliance and issue approvals.
Massachusetts ADU service areas.
Start with the address
Apply the guide to your property.
Lumara will review likely fit, placement, access, utilities, and which questions should be answered next.