At Wildfire Design and Build, we are based in the city of Pleasanton. We design and build new homes, home remodels, and ADUs for clients throughout California to meet the lifestyle of our clients.
With open property spaces and land costs in most cities becoming a premium commodity, ADUs have become a great answer to the need for additional inhabitable residential space within an established city or county community.
What is an ADU?
ADU stands for Auxiliary Dwelling Unit. They can be built and developed in various forms. An ADU is an additional inhabitable living space that is an addition in some form to the existing main property residences.
As we do for any building project that we build, if construction plans have not been developed by the client, we then will have our design department create a site study for our clients to review.
This suite study will base upon the local city or county zoning and planning department’s allowable requirements for an ADU. The clients will see what options, that they may have for their specific property. Upon evaluating the ADU placement options, a decision will be made for the final ADU location.
You can think of a detached ADU as a small or tiny house in the backyard.
One of the strongest reasons to have an ADU is the additional income as a rental option. It could be an Airbnb suite or any kind of flex space that the owner may want to have. Additionally, it can also increase the value of your initial property investment and it can be an affordable housing option as well.
Where can an ADU be placed on a residential property?
Generally, for most ADU projects, there are three possible ADU locations for a city or county property.
- Internal converted private space by design within a residence, such as an in-law or apartment suite.
- The attached structure and size of ADU are based upon municipal zoning, planning department, and building code requirements.
- Detached small residential structure on the same property as the primary property residence. In most cases, a maximum inhabitable space can be 800 to 1000 sf in size. The structure is set apart from the main property residence a min. of 10 feet and a min. of 4 feet from the property lines.
What does an ADU contain?
Most residential ADUs can have a variation of a kitchenette, consisting of a small refrigerator, either a free-standing or an under-counter unit. Possible small cooktop, such as a two-burner unit. A microwave and of course, a small version of a kitchen sink. An optional dishwasher is sometimes, also a possible option depending on space allotment.
An ADU usually has an open living space and possibly either one or two bedrooms, depending again on available space.
ADUs can and often have a full-size bathroom with either a free-standing sink, sink placed in a cabinet, a commode, a shower, or a shower-tub combo unit.
So, when you feel that it’s time to add ADU to your property, contact us at Wildfire Design and Build. We would enjoy discussing with you, how we can design and build an ADU for your property.
Contact us today by phone or text at (925) 726-1942 or by email; mail@wildfiredesignbuild.com