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Million-dollar island home up for grabs for free — but there’s a 180-day catch 47%
By Sophia Compton0%
5/14/2026, 10:00:21 AM
BS Summary: This article contains 15 faulty reasoning types, including Framing Effect, Hasty Generalization, and Anchoring Bias, with Appeal to Authority as the most egregious example at 26.4% saturation with 120 hits. Analysis detected 723 faulty-reasoning hits from 454 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 48.5% and a BS Rank of 47% (8,994 of 16,813 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 53.50% of the article peer group.
A million-dollar Nantucket home is being offered for free, but the new owner must be prepared to move it off the property within 180 days.
The 1,736-square-foot colonial at 140 Surfside Road on Nantucket, an upscale island off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, is available through the island’s Demolition Delay Bylaw program.
The initiative encourages homeowners to relocate older houses rather than send them to the landfill, according to Realtor.com.
The three-bedroom, two-bath home sits on just over an acre and last sold for $3 million in December 2025 through an LLC linked to Dean Lampe, who has bought and sold multiple properties on the island, the outlet reported.
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It’s not entirely clear why the house is being removed, but local real estate agent Shelly Lockwood noted that on Nantucket, the land can often be more valuable than the home itself.
“Because the value of the land is so high — because there's none left on the island, really — people will buy a house they don't want just to get the land,” Lockwood, of Pepper Frazier Real Estate, said.
Unlike some Nantucket homes threatened by erosion, this property is located far enough away from shore and is not in danger of falling into the ocean, according to Realtor.com.
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Anyone interested in claiming the home must submit a letter of intent to both the town's building commissioner and the owner.
Whoever claims it then has 180 days to move the house and must be prepared to cover the cost of moving it — which can range anywhere from roughly $150,000 to $500,000, Realtor.com reported.
With Nantucket’s median home price around $4.4 million and vacant land starting near $1.65 million, relocating a free house can still be a good deal, according to Lockwood.
“When they come up, they are very hot commodities,” Lockwood said.
“Who wouldn’t want a house for $150,000 or so moving costs?
You grab them if you can; it's a hell of a value.”
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She added that buyers priced out of the island’s high-end market often purchase land and wait for an opportunity like this.
“They know one will come up,” she said.
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Last year, former New England Patriots coach turned University of North Carolina head football coach Bill Belichick saw his $4 million Nantucket beach cottage sell within days of hitting the market.
FOX Business' Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.
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