Recent ADU News

Neighbor makes it clear: No front garage ADU in my neighborhood

Q: Regarding your article “Contact the title officer over this unsettling easement issue,” published November 11, 2022, in The Mercury News and East Bay Times: What we thought was our best neighbor is now plotting against us. We are living in a single-family neighborhood. We plan to turn our detached garage into an accessory dwelling unit (ADU). The detached garage is in the front of the property Source: Neighbor makes it clear: No front garage

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About Those Pro-Housing Reforms

Coast to coast, the pro-housing movement has picked up major steam over the past few years as advocates rack up legislative victories that reform zoning laws and streamline development processes. According to the Brookings Institution, more than a dozen US cities and states have passed “substantial changes” to housing and land use policies over the las five years. But are those policy reforms wor Source: About Those Pro-Housing Reforms

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Architecture students design a LEED Platinum home with an ADU in Kansas

Every year as part of Studio 804, University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design graduate students design and build an energy-efficient home for the community — and this year’s home not only achieved LEED Platinum certification but also comes with an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) to fight suburban sprawl. The 2020 project, known as 722 Ash Street House, consists of a 1,500-square-foot primary house with a contiguous

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ADU Marin Launches For People Exploring Accessory Dwelling Units

MARIN COUNTY, CA — Several new tools are available for homeowners interested in building an accessory dwelling unit in Marin County.

ADU Marin is a new partnership between 10 local cities and towns and the county. The group launched a step-by-step website and workbook along with a webinar series to guide people through the process of building an ADU, also known as a second unit,

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So You Want to Build a Granny Flat? Follow One Family’s Construction Journey

Given San Diego’s lack of affordable housing and inventory shortfall, hundreds of San Diegans have turned to constructing so-called Granny Flats on their existing property.

State and local jurisdictions have loosened rules and permitting requirements to make it cheaper and easier to build what is formally known as Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU).

Over the next year, NBC 7 will follow the Krone family as they build a Granny Flat in the backyard

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Streamlined state regulations spark a surge in local interest to build more ADUs.

Builder Ethan Hare has seen commercial projects go “nearly flat” during Covid-19 while residential renovations and new construction continue to increase. His namesake company’s biggest uptick is in construction of accessory dwelling units – attached or detached living spaces on existing properties.

The sudden surge in interest in ADUs is no coincidence. On Jan. 1, new state regulations took effect superseding city and county ADU rules, streamlining the ability to add ADUs

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Watsonville City Council Approves Changes for ADU Rules

The Watsonville City Council approved changes to the city’s rules on accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in hopes that those modifications will produce additional and safer housing options.

Spurred by more than a half-dozen state laws approved over the past three years, the changes limit parking requirements, reduce the application review time and remove impact fees for smaller ADUs.

An ADU is an additional living unit on a property that is detached

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San Diego Aims to Spur More Backyard Homes with Free Floor Plans

Caitlin Bigelow grew up in La Mesa, a San Diego suburb. “My parents were both journalists,” she said, until her mom quit her job to care for Bigelow and her brother. “Money was tight on one salary. They rented out the granny flat that was attached to the garage. It was teeny tiny, but they rented to a SDSU student and that was the difference that paid the mortgage.”

It’s

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