What you are actually buying
This is a three-bedroom ranch at 30 Lee Rd in Dracut. The main floor is 1,432 square feet. There is one full bath, a one-car garage, and a partially finished basement. The family who built it has owned it since day one.
"It's been in the family, so it's really been taken care of. It's been expanded on, worked on."
That shows in the condition. Hardwood floors throughout, built-in AC units that are clean and working, and a 200-amp panel that was upgraded by an electrician in the family. Professional work, not a patch job. The roof has an ice melt system with switches in the house, which matters in Dracut. Ice dams have come up roughly every couple of winters in this area.
The kitchen is larger than you would expect for a 1,400-square-foot ranch. The layout works. The appliances are original in style and showing their age, but there is no wear on them. Swap the flooring, drop in an island, and the room looks completely different without a full gut job.
The basement adds serious square footage
The lower level is roughly 600 square feet, split between a partially finished side and a storage side. The finished side already has sheetrock, heat, electricity, a closet, and plumbing roughed in for a bathroom. No fixtures yet, but the connections are there.
Finish it and the home goes from 1,432 square feet with one bath to around 1,800 square feet with two baths. At this price, that is a real number.
"If you think this is 120 to 200, you can have an additional bathroom, family room, little living space here and maybe a bedroom if you wanted to."
The unfinished side closes off behind its own door. It holds the utilities and has built-in shelves. The heating system is older at its base, but components have been replaced at different points, and the fireplace and supplemental basement heat take load off the main system.
The family mentioned water getting in about 40 years ago during a major storm. Work was done after that, and no water since. Worth knowing up front.
The second lot and what you can do with it
This is the part most people ask about. The sale includes a second registered lot at 12 Ridge Rd. It has 100 feet of frontage on Ridge Rd, which is a paper street, meaning it appears on a recorded plan with the town but has not been physically built or accepted as a public way.
The lot is already separated from the main parcel and already has its own address with the town. The paper street is already on record. That part is done.
"It's already separated. It's already got the street on the road. You really don't have to worry about that at all."
What you do with it from here has a few paths. You can put the driveway in along the paper street, run it back to the lot, and build a second home, whether for family or for yourself down the road. You can sell the lot to a builder. Or you can sell it yourself and have a say in who builds there. According to Merrimack Valley land guidance, a builder will typically pay roughly one quarter to one third of the finished home's value for a lot that is approved and permitted. Any costs still needed for engineering or road work come out of that.
One thing to know: in Massachusetts, accessing or building on a lot via a paper street usually still needs town approval, and a building permit from the local planning and zoning department is required. Confirm the buildability, frontage requirements, and utility connections with the Town of Dracut before you make any decisions on the lot.
Location on a dead-end street
Dracut sits in northeastern Middlesex County, about 28 to 30 miles north of Boston. The Merrimack River runs along its southern border with Lowell. Route 93 is close by. Lowell is south. Pelham, New Hampshire is to the north.
Lee Rd is a dead-end with four homes on it. That means almost no through traffic and easy parking. The Dracut baseball fields are up the road. Hannaford and UMass Lowell are close.
The shed out back deserves a mention. It has windows, a door, and real size to it. Enough room to use as a gym and still store yard equipment.
Your next step
Text or call me at 781-531-8988 to set up a private showing. I'll walk you through both lots in person and answer any questions about the paper street process and what the town requires.