How ADUs Can Alleviate Pressure in the Housing Crisis

Accessory Dwelling Units

ADUs are a simple idea that is more common than you think: having a second small dwelling as part of a single-family home.

They can be called many things: in-law unit, cottage, tiny house, granny flat, etc. They may be an apartment built over a garage, a converted garage or basement, a separate smaller house in a backyard, a converted carriage house or pool house, the bottom floor of a common triple-decker.

How can the ADU alleviate some of the pressure of the urban housing crisis? Simply put - by increasing density. By increasing the housing supply in single family neighborhoods, ADUs can provide a means for supplementary income for a homeowner, while - ideally - also providing an affordable place to rent. Although it is not allowed “by right” in many cities (meaning that a homeowner would have to ask the Zoning Board to approve the construction of an ADU) many cities push heavily for it- Los Angeles, Oakland, Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, Washington DC, and Austin to name a few. These can help people who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford housing in certain places, live there for prices they can afford. 

What comes to mind when you think of a residential neighborhood? 

If you are from the U.S., you may think of individual nuclear families living one family per house, lined up next to each other with cars parked in the driveway and bikes or gardens behind the fence. Neighbors see each other occasionally when mowing the lawn or waving on their way out the door to work.  The low-density “American Dream” single family home neighborhoods is a product of systemic racial segregation -In the 1920s, U.S. cities developed ordinances that prohibited apartment buildings from being built in suburbs that had single-family homes - all as an attempt to make the suburb racially exclusive and affordable only to white families.

But what if we could have more connection between our neighbors? What if we could add to a neighborhood, build more homes in the form of ADUs, which would allow two families per property, without drastically changing the character of a neighborhood? What if there was a way a homeowner could make money off land they already own? What if a renter was able to afford lower rents because the homeowner doesn’t have to pass on the cost of land to the tenant? What if a home in a community otherwise unattainable was suddenly a possibility for someone who otherwise couldn't afford to live there? 

The end of an era.

More neighbors, please! Let’s make single family homes a thing of the past…

“Nearly a century into the story of single-family zoning, the plot is finally starting to twist. The City of Minneapolis and the State of Oregon both recently passed laws that loosen single-family regulations. California has proposed similar measures: some have failed (such as one encouraging denser development near transit), others have succeeded (such as ones encouraging backyard cottages). New bills in Maryland and Virginia also take aim.”  -- Eric Jaffey, “Is it time to end single-family zoning?”

What we are proposing isn't inviting strangers into your home to live with you, but the concept of an accessory dwelling unit - a balance between privacy and community. Detached Accessory Dwelling Units (DADUs) like our OBY design, are compact and efficient floor plans designed to fit in a single-family backyard.  For homeowners who want to help combat displacement and help those who are impacted most by the housing crisis, deciding to build and host an ADU could alleviate the pressure. An accessory dwelling unit is full of possibilities and potential - it can be the solution for homeowners who are seniors, aging in place, who now need an accessible unit to meet their needs. They may decide to move into the ADU and rent out the main house instead. 

Yes to ADUs!

Accessory dwelling units are one of many solutions to help alleviate the housing crisis - we acknowledge it is not the only solution.

In California, new state-wide legislation passed in 2016 mandating all cities and counties to adopt ADUs as of right, with revisions to also allow Junior ADUS on all single family lots that went into effect on January 1st, 2020. This progressive legislation encourages the development of ADUs - essentially tripling the amount of legal units per single family lot (main house, secondary ADU, and junior ADU).  With these laws in place, the creation of ADUs is increasing exponentially. For example, in the city of Oakland, the number of permits submitted to construct ADUs increased five fold since restrictions were relaxed. LA Mas, a non-profit architecture firm, spearheaded a movement in LA called the Backyard Homes Project. This program included financing, design, permitting, and construction of ADUs in peoples backyard throughout the city of LA. In an effort to end homelessness, Los Angeles County ran the Accessory Dwelling Unit Loan Pilot Program:

“The Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA) provided homeowners in unincorporated LA County with a forgivable loan of $75,000 to construct new ADUs, and $50,000 for rehabbing existing unpermitted ADUs that will house people transitioning out of homelessness for a minimum of ten years.” - https://www.laadu.org/ 

Portland, OR is leading the way for ADUs - the city jumped from permitting only 2 ADUs per month in 2009 to about 2 ADUs per day in 2016 thanks to a combination of zoning reforms, fee waivers, and outreach. Currently, 10% of the housing stock in Portland is ADUs.  The staggering increase in cost of housing in Vancouver coupled with decades long ordinance reform has allowed this city to become the North American leader in secondary units and ADUs with 26,650 permitted as of 2017. Many were existing secondary units, basement or ground floor apartments within a main house that were a popular affordable housing option encouraged after WWII. With technical assistance from the City, design guidelines, streamlined permitting, increased floor rea, and the availability of Vancity ADU loan funds, local Vancounver residents have been able to permit more than 3000 “laneway” homes (ADUs) per year as of 2016 to allow family members to return to neighborhoods they grew up in.

So What’s the Hold Up? 

Zoning laws in certain cities can make it tough for homeowners to create an entirely new dwelling on their property. They may face backlash from their neighbors during the zoning approval process or other NIMBYs can slow the advancement of ADU-friendly ordinances, like in Montgomery County, MD near Baltimore and DC.  NIMBY stands for “not in my back yard” and is a term used for neighbors who generally oppose new development. Another common concern is that homeowners may want privacy, and the idea of a non-family member living in the backyard feels intrusive. Children might not want to share their backyards with strangers or the building a stranger may live in. While this is a legitimate concern for families, the homeowners are ultimately the ones leasing out the ADU, therefore they are able to fully contract a lease that fits their needs, and they reserve the right to remove a tenant if issues/lease violations arise. Lastly - homeowners may discover that even if the ordinances are in place and they want an ADU on their property, the incoming rents may not justify the costs of construction, or that the homeowner may not have access to capital or a loan to build the unit. The ADU financing industry is in the startup phase and is uncommon compared to standard mortgages or construction loans.

Our take on the ADU

“Fight the housing crisis, resist climate catastrophe… make some extra money.” - OBYHouse.com

CoEverything is launching OBY - a startup to design, build, develop and rent back yard ADUs in the Bay Area - in partnership with the Arizmendi Construction Cooperative. Our first pilot project is complete and ready to rent in East Oakland. Our development team will pay up to $500/month land lease to the homeowner to rent a portion of their backyard for a 650 square feet, 2 Bedroom/1 Bath ADU, that we will finance, design, and build, all at no cost to the homeowner. We will maintain affordability and rent the unit at below market rents. Together, we are developing, designing, and building net zero energy ADUs in the Bay Area. Click on the icons below to read more about OBY.

Feel free to get in touch if you live in the Bay Area and want to work with us - hello@coeverything.co.