Housing is a challenging issue in the United States as rent burdens those across the nation, interest rates and inflation challenge those saving for a home, and inventory doesn't match demand.

According to Habitat for Humanity, homeownership costs skyrocketed in 2022 and priced out 2.4 million renters as $3,000 per month is needed to purchase a median-priced home in the U.S. making $117,000 the estimated annual income needed to afford a home. To combat this, according to the National Association of Realtors, from 2017 through 2021, 68,000 units were built in California with half of all ADUs in just four states, California (30%), Florida (12%), Texas (10%), and Georgia (5%). States like California have moved towards re-zoning and eased permits to combat this housing crisis with the addition of Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADUs, for a more affordable housing influx.

 

Currently, ADUs are being built in single-family neighborhoods in a variety of forms including detached, attached, attached above a garage, interior basements, converted garages, and upper-floor configurations. According to the American Planning Association, many cities and counties permit ADUs in one or more single-family zoning districts with specific standards like an owner-occupancy requirement for one of the two dwellings, design standards for neighborhood compatibility, minimum lot sizes, limits on occupants, and off-street parking.

However, zoning laws dictate much of what can be built in the U.S. but as this environment evolves, resources like The National Zoning Atlas, a legal research project, that dives into the regulatory frameworks of land use, are useful in developing thought-based planning. This project relies on manual reviews of thousands of pages of zoning code texts and maps.

With that, many homeowners are concerned about the state of their neighborhoods as this housing style pops up leaving many confused and desperate for a solution and government regulation. For example, California Assembly Bill 1033 allows ADUs to be available for purchase like a condominium. Under the bill, which was signed in late 2023, homeowners are allowed to build an ADU and sell it separately from their property. The state, as of 2024, introduced numerous laws that affect the construction of ADUs. For example, AB 976 prohibits local agencies from imposing owner-occupancy conditions on ADUs permitted between Jan. 1, 2020, and Jan. 1, 2025, AB 434 requires all California cities and municipalities to have a pre-approved ADU plan in place by Jan. 1, 2025.

California, however, was not the first state to look to this trend as a solution. In 2019, Seattle removed regulation from ADU construction, the LA Times reports that the city issued nearly 1,000 permits, or more than four times the number permitted in 2018 leaving many concerned about repercussions.

Further, as ADUs become a greater topic within planning, zoning, and funding, Landscape Architect and Specifier News is following the story and will continue to update.