How Municipalities Can and Cannot Regulate ADUs

GlobeSt.com (June 16, 2020) On January 1, 2020, California expanded a previous 2017 law to allow every single-family homeowner to add both an accessory dwelling unit/ADU and a junior ADU, significantly limiting the municipal regulation of ADUs. As municipalities may not be fully aware of all of these recent changes or updated codes and procedures, applicants should become familiar with the codes to fully take advantage of the benefits when obtaining approvals for ADUs. Matt Fogt and Angus Beverly, Allen Matkins attorneys, recently shared insights into how municipalities can and cannot regulate ADUs.

GlobeSt.com: How do recent changes to California state law affect local agencies’ ability to regulate ADUs?

Fogt: These laws significantly limit a municipality’s ability to regulate ADUs, to the advantage of investors and homeowners. The most significant changes are that municipalities must process ADUs ministerially (no discretion and no CEQA) and administratively (no public hearing) within 60 days, and are prohibited from requiring owner-occupancy until January 1, 2025, which enables investors and multifamily owners to build ADUs for the first time.

GlobeSt.com: What is the motivation behind these changes to ADU regulation?

Beverly: The housing crisis and the need to get units through the approval process is the primary motivation for this unusual exemption from normal processes. ADUs are small in size, allow density in otherwise built-out communities, take advantage of existing utility capacity and provide a market solution for attainable housing (i.e., cheaper housing affordable to many without subsidies). Read More (subscription required)