What Is An ADU? All You Need To Know About Accessory Dwelling Units
With the increased level of urbanisation, there might be a need for more living spaces. As a family grows, there needs to be more room for the old and the young to stay in the same housing unit.
However, ADU can be a significant solution to a housing unit with an extended land area or a garage. They can quickly transform the garage into an Accessory Dwelling Unit. Yes, we are talking about ADU, which you have probably heard much about lately.
ADUs are small housing units connected to the central housing unit. Most of the time, they are garages or attics converted into small living spaces with entrances, doors, windows, kitchens, and bathrooms. They are beneficial to homeowners who are trying to extend their living areas. ADUs are also great for generating passive income through rents.
Read this article to learn more about ADUs.
What Is An ADU?
An ADU or Accessory Dwelling Unit is what you consider an additional or secondary housing unit attached to a single-family housing unit. They are a separate property from the main home, and the housing unit differs from the main house.
You may have heard of the ADUs as Granny, guest houses, flats, casitas, or in-law suites. These houses can be established as single or multiple-family housing units.
ADUs are parts of the main housing unit, but they are not completely attached. Instead, an ADU might have an entrance, living space, kitchen, and bathrooms. There is no need to access the primary house to access the ADU. They are a different unit and act as a secondary housing unit for a house owner.
Owners can use ADUs as rental units and earn passive income through a rental agreement with their tenants. Undoubtedly, it adds significant value to the central housing unit. An ADU can be a garage conversion, basement conversion, stand-alone units, or can be attached to the main housing units sometimes.
ADUs are common in the US because the owners usually build them for a relative or to house their parent or their adult children. Sometimes, ADUs serve as renting units, allowing the owners to earn passive income.
Different Types Of ADU
Based on how an ADU is built or structured, there can be different types of ADUs. They can be garage conversion, new construction, bump-out, basement conversion, and more. Here is a list of different common types of ADUs.
Detached New Construction ADUs
These ADUs are granny flats, backyard cottages, laneway houses, or DADUs. The names vary from one jurisdiction to the other. This type of ADU is construction. Most house owners build an ADU of this type in the backyard or beside the house.
Garage Conversion ADU
Sometimes, homeowners modify their garages and build small ADUs. These ADUs are comparatively smaller than the main housing units, and they usually serve as family units or small houses for one or two people. Homeowners usually modify their existing houses with new entrances, doors, windows, and more. They also work on the floors, walls, electricity, heating, and plumbing and give the existing garage unit a complete makeover of a house.
Attachable ADUs
The attachable ADUs are directly connected to the central housing unit. But they are nothing like what you see in garage conversion ADUs. These ADUs appear like a huge addition to the house. It ties into your utilities and shares the same walls with your home.
What Are The Common Features Of ADUs?
All the ADUs may not have the same type of housing structure, but they do share some features that are identical across all structures. Most types of ADUs have the same challenges when it comes to their development and their designs.
The key feature of the ADUs is that they are secondary units to central housing units located in residential areas. They have some unique features that distinguish them from other types of housing foundations.
Here are some common features of an ADU –
- ADUs are not the main housing units. They are the adjacent or the accessory to a main housing structure.
- Most of the ADUs are usually smaller than the main housing structure they are a part of.
- An owner with a single-family residential owner can own two different housing units, and one of them is an ADU.
- Home developers can develop the ADUs asynchronously from the central housing unit.
- There are some land use & zoning regulations from the municipality to differentiate the types and structures of different kinds of ADUs. These usually determine the types and styles of the ADUs.
- ADUs exist in vast numbers in the US, although the number of permitted ADUs is relatively lesser.
Although many people still misunderstand what ADUs are, the characteristics described above define the type and structure of an ADU.
What Are The Benefits Of ADUs?
- ADUs are affordable homes because there is no need to pay for additional land, significant infrastructures, or for building a parking area. An ADU can be established in the existing residential lot where a main house stands.
- Homeowners with extended land or an oversized garage can convert their garage into an ADU and earn passive income by renting it.
- Also, homeowners can keep their family members, parents, or relatives in their ADU when needed. It is an extension of the house that allows homeowners to provide a home to their keens without disturbing their privacy.
- ADUs are enough to provide necessary living spaces to extended families, senior family members, couples, friends, and young children.
- Homeowners have more flexibility when it comes to sharing their place with others, thanks to ADUs.
Final Words
The US homeowners usually have an informal ADU attached to their main housing unit. Many people tell stories about a house in the attic or an informal ADU in their basement. According to different studies backed up by data found through surveys, 1.4 million properties in the US have an ADU.
Do you have a house with an Accessory Dwelling Unit? Has it been helpful owning an ADU? Are they good for rental incomes? Share your insight through the comment section.
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