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Bathroom, Kitchen and Home Remodeling in North Andover, MA
In North Andover, a house 100 years old or more can be held from demolition for a year, and additions in Machine Shop Village go before a neighborhood commission. Call (978) 951-4644 or use the form. A person reads every request and replies with what happens next.
- Free for homeowners
- Town and state remodeling rules on this page
- Old Center to Machine Shop Village
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Remodeling in North Andover
What are you changing?
Kitchen Remodeling
New layouts, cabinets and counters, with licensed trades for any plumbing, gas and electrical work.
Bathroom Remodeling
Tub-to-shower conversions, full gut renovations and added bathrooms, permitted the way your town requires.
Additions & Whole-Home
Additions, dormers, second stories and whole-house renovations, with the structural permits and zoning they bring.
Attic & Basement Finishing
Turning an attic or a dry basement into living space, with the building department involved from the start.
Adding on to an older house?
(978) 951-4644Tell us the age of the house, where it is and what you want to add, and we'll connect you with a contractor who knows North Andover's review steps.
Permits
Remodeling permits in North Andover
Building Department. North Andover's Building Department, part of Community Development at 120 Main Street, issues building permits for additions and alterations to all structures, and the plumbing office handles sewer installations and repairs (Building Department). Applications go through OpenGov. The town's fee schedule was not posted in a readable form in November 2026, so get current amounts from the department.
What needs a permit. Under the state code, cutting away a wall, cutting or removing a beam or load-bearing support, or changing a required exit needs a permit; painting, cabinets, counters, tile and similar finish work do not (780 CMR 51.00, chapter 1). Plumbing and gas permits issue only to licensed individuals, before work starts (248 CMR 3.05), and electrical work needs a licensed electrician (c.141 §1A).
- Building Department
- 120 Main Street (Community Development)
- Online filing
- OpenGov
- Nonconforming single-family
- Building Commissioner permit if not more nonconforming; otherwise ZBA special permit
- Demolition delay
- 12 months for preferably preserved buildings 100+ years old
- Wetlands
- 25-ft No-Disturbance, 50-ft No-Build
- Energy code
- Stretch Code since January 1, 2017
Energy code. North Andover has used the Stretch Code since January 1, 2017, with no Specialized Code date (energy code adoption by municipality). An addition over 1,000 square feet or over 100% of the existing conditioned floor area needs a HERS rating, while converting an attic or basement within the existing footprint and roofline does not (225 CMR 22).
State contractor rules. A contractor remodeling your owner-occupied one- to four-unit home must be a registered Home Improvement Contractor (Contractor Hub lookup). For jobs over $1,000 the contract must be written, with the registration number, start and completion dates, price and payment schedule, a deposit of no more than one-third unless special-order materials cost more, and notice of your three-day right to cancel a contract signed at home (c.142A §2). Structural work on a one- or two-family house needs a licensed construction supervisor or a registered design professional overseeing it (construction supervisor rules). If you pull the permit as the homeowner, the Guaranty Fund, up to $25,000 for actual losses, is off the table (HIC homeowner resources). Massachusetts requires photoelectric smoke alarms and a CO alarm on every story including the basement (780 CMR 51.00, chapter 3).
Last verified November 2026. Fees, restrictions and deadlines on this page are due for re-checking by May 2027. New England Remodeling Pros is a referral service. We don't do the work; the contractor pulls the permits.
Zoning
Adding on in North Andover
Nonconforming houses. North Andover spells out by-right paths. For single-family homes in Residence 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6, section 195-9.3 lets the Building Commissioner issue a permit when a change won't make the house more nonconforming, and lists examples: altering a house that meets everything but lot area or frontage; an addition to a house that encroaches on a setback, where the new part meets the setback or doesn't move closer to the line and coverage and height comply; and work that doesn't enlarge the footprint or exceed the existing height. Anything else needs a Zoning Board of Appeals special permit on a finding that it won't be substantially more detrimental to the neighborhood (section 195-9.3).
Accessory dwelling units. Until recently, North Andover allowed only family suites, capped at 1,200 square feet or 25% of the main unit's floor area and limited to relatives (town ADU page). The town's master plan implementation site reports that on May 13, 2025 the Annual Town Meeting voted to approve the proposed ADU bylaw (Master Plan Implementation: Housing). State law allows one ADU by right in single-family districts, no larger than half the principal dwelling or 900 square feet, with a separate entrance, no owner-occupancy requirement and a building permit (state ADU rules).
Lake Cochichewick and septic. In the Lake Cochichewick Watershed Protection District, amended June 17, 2021, a structure under 2,500 square feet in the Non-Disturbance Buffer Zone may expand by less than 50% of its gross floor area by special permit only if it will be connected to municipal sewer on completion (section 195-4.19). The Board of Health's septic regulations of February 25, 2010 are stricter than Title 5 by design: plans show streams, drains, wetlands and wells within 150 feet, or 400 feet in the watershed, and all foundations are assumed to have a foundation drain unless stated otherwise (Septic Regulations). The Health FAQ says a replacement system needs a floor plan among other items and that no permanent structures are allowed on septic fields (Health FAQ), which rules out building an addition over the leach field.
Wetlands. The local wetlands bylaw and regulations add a 50-foot No-Build Zone and a 25-foot No-Disturbance Zone inside the 100-foot buffer, and a 200-foot riverfront area along named brooks and the Merrimack and Shawsheen rivers; owners need a Professional Wetland Scientist to flag wetlands (Conservation FAQ).
Historic review
Old houses and historic review in North Andover
Demolition delay. Chapter 70 of the General Bylaws treats any building 100 years or more old, in whole or in part, as significant if it also meets one of four criteria, such as National Register listing or historic or architectural importance, and a building of unknown age is presumed to be over 100. Demolition means pulling down, destroying, removing, dismantling or razing a building. The Historical Commission decides within 30 days, holds a hearing within 30 days if the building is significant, and if it finds it preferably preserved, no demolition permit issues for 12 months. Demolishing without a permit can bring fines of up to $300 a day and a two-year bar on building permits for the lot except for restoration (Chapter 70).
Old Center and Machine Shop Village. Exterior changes in the Old Center Historic District go to the Historic District Commission (Old Center bylaw). The Machine Shop Village Neighborhood Conservation District reviews additions that add stories, height or floor area, as well as demolition and new construction; the commission's certificate is binding for most alterations, while its design review recommendations are not (Chapter 125).
Lead and asbestos. In a home built before 1978, Massachusetts requires a licensed lead-safe renovation contractor for renovation, repair or painting (MA lead-safe renovation); window replacement and demolition of painted surfaces are always covered under the federal rule (EPA RRP). An asbestos survey is required before renovation or demolition on a structure of any age (MassDEP asbestos survey guide).
North Andover's homes
Georgian houses, mill villages and a planned neighborhood
The town's 2018–2022 Housing Production Plan puts about 18% of homes before 1940 and about 60% before 1979, with roughly 56% detached single-family and 8% in three- and four-family buildings (Housing Production Plan 2018–2022).
The state's 2005 reconnaissance report describes the Old Centre, with residences from 1715 and many Georgian and Federal houses on Academy Road and Andover Street; Machine Shop Village, with everything from row houses to mansions and mill duplexes on Water Street; Tavern Acres, a 1920s subdivision for mill managers around Memorial Park; and the Acre, with modest early to mid 19th century housing by the Merrimack (North Andover Reconnaissance Report). Depending on where the house sits, an addition may go to the Old Center commission, the Machine Shop Village commission or neither, and on a house 100 years old, taking down part of it can bring the demolition rule into play.
FAQ
North Andover remodeling questions
Can I add on to a house that sits too close to the lot line?
Often without a special permit. Under section 195-9.3, the Building Commissioner may issue a permit for a nonconforming single-family home in Residence 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 if the change won't make it more nonconforming, for example an addition where the new part meets the setbacks or doesn't move closer to the line, with coverage and height complying. Otherwise the Zoning Board of Appeals decides by special permit.
Does demolition delay affect a partial teardown?
It can. Chapter 70 defines demolition as pulling down, destroying, removing, dismantling or razing a building, and covers buildings 100 years or more old, in whole or in part, that meet one of its criteria. A building found preferably preserved gets no demolition permit for 12 months, and demolishing without a permit can bring fines of up to $300 a day and no building permit on the lot for two years except for restoration.
Can I build an ADU in North Andover?
State law allows one ADU by right in single-family districts, up to half the principal dwelling or 900 square feet. The town voted to approve its own ADU bylaw at the May 13, 2025 Annual Town Meeting, replacing the old relatives-only family suite rule. Ask the Building Department how the bylaw applies to your lot.
I live near Lake Cochichewick. Can I expand?
In the watershed's Non-Disturbance Buffer Zone, a structure under 2,500 square feet may expand by less than 50% of its gross floor area by special permit, but only if it will be connected to municipal sewer when the project is completed. Septic plans in the watershed must show streams, drains, wetlands and wells within 400 feet.
What does it cost me to use New England Remodeling Pros?
Nothing. Asking is free for homeowners; the contractor prices the job, and the price and contract are between you and them.
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