Accessory Dwelling Units (also known as ADUs) are becoming extremely popular in Los Angeles. This includes clients of ours and doing it on my personal residence. So, I thought it would be a good idea to lay out, in a three-part series, about the process, so that you know what to expect if you want to do the garage conversion for your own property.
ADUs are essentially rentable guest houses with separate addresses and if you want, separate utilities. Homeowners can do it to offset their monthly expenses or doing strictly to rent out the ADU and the main house (like a duplex).
In this article, we are going to set expectations to make sure that you understand what you are getting into before you get started:
- Can you even do it? Not all garages are created equal. A couple of things to keep in mind:
- Are you within a ½ mile of public transportation? If so, then you do not need covered parking.
- Need to have 2 off street parking, regardless if it covered or not. So, for example, properties where the garages are at the back of the property with a long driveway, then it shouldn’t be an issue. But if it is off an alley with no driveway, you need to work with an architect to create parking spaces.
- No matter what, talk to an architect. There are more guidelines that you must be aware of and each property is unique.
- Real Costs: Assuming a standard, 400 square foot detached garage on a flat lot, the cost is straight forward. I would budget anywhere from $70,000-$90,000, depending on finishes. It may sound high, but here are things to consider:
- Upfront costs before you even get started: This includes architectural fees, permits, surveys, and possibly engineering.
- Behind the wall systems are what they are. In other words, you will need to add and upgrade electrical panels, run plumbing and the sewer line down the property line. Because these materials must be installed no matter what, these are fixed costs. Also make sure to look at the condition of the roof, as that can be an unforeseen cost.
- Think of how to increase value at little to no costs. Here are three tips to consider that can increase value:
- Since you are already running plumbing, so go ahead and add washer/dryer hook ups.
- Is there a way to add a private yard for the ADU? You will spend some money on installing a fence, but adding privacy is important for both the tenants of the ADU, as well as the occupants of the main home.
- Create privacy by being deliberate of where you put the windows. For example, on my personal residence, the only windows are in the front and back of the ADU, so there is still plenty of natural light, but it is difficult to see into the main house and vice versa.
By having these basics in place, you can see what works for you. In the next two articles, we will dive deeper into floor plans, timing, and what else to expect.
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[…] house and converted our garage into an Accessory Dwelling Unit (see my first article on the subject ADU: The Journey of the Legal Garage Conversion – Part 1). The plan? Because it is just me and my wife, we are going to live in the ADU and rent […]