What's one drawback of an ADU?

Cost of construction An ADU can cost anywhere from $30,000 to $400,000, and most people aren't able to save that kind of money or borrow it from a family member.

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ADU stands for “Accessory Dwelling Unit,” which is a secondary residence or structure on your property. This structure must function on its own as a dwelling, but it wouldn’t have a separate address. Grandma can have her own independent space, your college graduate that moved back in can get some alone time, or you can use it as a space for AirBnB or rentals.

1. Approval Process & Permitting Fees

Overall, 50% of homeowners found it difficult to build their ADUs to their city/county’s development standards. Many people struggle with the length and complexity of the permitting process, and feel like their jurisdictions impose unnecessary red tape in the permitting process.

Even architects struggle to navigate through the different departments’ requirements.

Not only that, because they’ve only been allowed as of recently in California through the SB-9, some municipalities continue to be hesitant with the approval process and might drag their feet. So, knowing that most people find this difficult, these are the steps you must take to have a smooth approval process:

1. Don’t get flip with the permitting department

At the end of the day, your local jurisdiction requires permits for ADUs to keep people safe. It would be scary to build something with a high risk of it falling apart and hurting someone. Their goal is not to make your life harder, even if it might seem like that. So try to make the department your best friend while advocating for yourself at the same time.

2. Don’t file for permits at the last minute

While not every process takes this long, it can take more than six months to get ADU permits approved by your local authority. We don’t mean to scare you, we just want you to be realistic. Your county website should lay out instructions for you and your builder to read before submitting a permit. Usually, they’ll have a checklist of all the documents you’ll need, as all the rules your ADU plans need to follow if you want them to be approved. Bonus tip: Certain items on the checklist may require some extra work. For example, if your property is in a landslide zone, you’ll need to obtain a Geohazard clearance from public works to submit with your application.

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4. Review your building plans with your contractor to make sure they fit the requirements Although we’d hope your contractor is deeply familiar with the ADU permit process in your county, ADUs are a new trend and have only just become possible in many areas. They may also be in the dark about some requirements. So, sit down with your contractor’s plans and your county’s requirements, and make sure the plans include everything. Bonus tip: Even better, review the plan requirements BEFORE your contractor creates the plans to make sure your vision aligns with what’s possible and you don’t have to change anything later.

5. Submit your application/meet with your local jurisdiction to review the application

If you’ve done the work in advance, your application should be approved and/or this meeting should go well. If you missed some details, your application will get denied and you’ll have to start over. Unfortunately, in counties with more vague guidelines, you may not even be aware of a problem with your build until submitting your application. Bonus tip: Call or meet with the permitting department to ask questions before you submit your application if you’re unsure. Even better, see if there are any local FB groups or forums where you can ask to see if others have been through this before and have advice. So to summarize, it’s important that you and your contractor are deeply familiar with all the local guidelines and follow them to a T, have all the necessary paperwork and submit it correctly.

2. Design Constraints

Another challenge that homeowners face with ADUs is design constraints. Hidden design regulations or standards can halt progress immediately. Unlike a kitchen renovation or addition project, ADUs are fully new builds that require a lot more architectural and engineering expertise. While a kitchen reno is fully inside of your home and within your purview, things that are outside on your property could affect other people. To make sure that your design won’t get flagged, here’s what you need to look out for:

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Pre-Approved Plans

Under the Standard Plan Program, plans are designed by private licensed architects, and engineers to accommodate various site conditions. Plans are then reviewed and pre-approved for compliance with the Building, Residential, and Green Codes. When an applicant selects an approved Standard Plan, staff will review site-specific factors for your property, including compliance with the Zoning Code and foundation requirements. In certain counties and states, you can find a listing of several ready-to-go blueprints that have already been through the approval process. (If you want to make changes to these, make sure you still consult with your architect.) But even if you use a pre-approved plan, you’ll still need to watch out for these potential problems:

Lot, setback, or height limits

Utility connections

Water and sewer connections are accessed through the basement of the primary residence.

Parking Requirements

These spaces may be provided as tandem parking on a driveway. Guest parking spaces aren’t required for ADUs under any circumstances.

3. Obtaining Financing & Cost of Construction

According to a survey from the UC Berkeley Center for Community Innovation,

and

(5%) struggled to obtain financing for their projects.

This is quite astounding, considering the fact that the homeowners in this survey are more affluent than the typical Californian homeowner.

Cost of construction

Obtaining Financing

There are several different ways to finance an ADU. You can read about them more in detail through that link, but generally, we’d recommend a RenoFi Loan. Sometimes homeowners struggle to use traditional loan options like HELOCs, personal loans, or other renovation loans because it’s difficult to borrow the full amount you’ll need. If you’re curious about how much you can borrow with a RenoFi Loan, click the big red button below to get an estimate in 90 seconds or less.

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