ADU Prefab options in Bay area

ADU Prefab options in Bay area

Investor · San Carlos, CA · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 17 votes

Hello,

I am considering putting an ADU behind my rental property in East Palo Also. Keeping the setbacks aside, I can build around 40*20 = 800 sf ADU. Keeping rentability in mind, I am trying to do a 2bed/1bath

I have been looking at options and looks like the cheapest construction cost is going to be around $250/sf + many other additional cost. I have been talking to various other Prefab companies and below is my analysis until now -

a) Abodu - really nice adu, have a model that you can view in Redwood city. will cost around 230k all inclusive for under 500sf. 1b/1ba

b) Veev - pretty nice adu, have a model that you can view in East palo alto. will cost around 200k all inclusive for under 570sf, but 70sf is for covered deck, so essentially living space is around 500sf. 1b/1ba. good thing is they seem to be an established company and doing bunch of other construction projects in bay area

c) Sonderpods - have not seen these yet, but i have been talking to them. their cost will be around 190k (doesnt include appliances cost) for 750sf, 2b/1ba. This seems most attractive from a cost perspective, but they also seem to be very new in this game. from some quick research their CEO is not even doing this full-time

Others that I have across that I still need to research are -

https://www.shedshop.com/models-prices/studio/https://connect-homes.com/models
http://tallerescape.com/vmd/

http://kithaus.com/

https://www.cuttingedgehomes.net

The factors that are important for me in making the decision are -

i) Price

ii) Confidence whether the ADU seller will be around when issues start showing up in 5+ yrs

iii) Ability to deliver / references

Would love to know if any of you have done a similar analysis already or have used any of these companies?


Thanks

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Investor · Bay Area, CA · Member since 2019 · 44 posts · 17 votes
6y

@Namit Raisurana

I have heard other investors talk about a company called Boxabl based in Las Vegas doing exactly this. From what I have heard, they have a 300 sq ft model for around $50k. Pricing could be area specific ,but I hope that helps.

See this reply in the discussion

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  • Investor · Bay Area, CA · Member since 2019 · 44 posts · 17 votes
    6y

    @Namit Raisurana

    I have heard other investors talk about a company called Boxabl based in Las Vegas doing exactly this. From what I have heard, they have a 300 sq ft model for around $50k. Pricing could be area specific ,but I hope that helps.

  • Lender · Milpitas, CA · Member since 2016 · 376 posts · 248 votes
    6y

    @Namit Raisurana I've seen some advertisements from some Tiny Homes companies that can do it for 45-50K. I'm not sure how legit they are though and if they comply with city ordinances. Even if the cost of the structure is cheap, you still have to pay for transportation, craning it over your home, building a foundation, and digging/connecting sewer lines to the ADU. If you figure out a cost-effective way to put ADUs in your backyard, let me know! I have tons of friends who are looking into it :)

  • Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2018 · 313 posts · 230 votes
    6y

    @Namit Raisurana - Have you looked at these companies?  They are essentially endorsed at the bottom of the city of San Jose website - https://www.sanjoseca.gov/business/development-services-permit-center/accessory-dwelling-units-adus/adu-permit-plan-review-process/adu-single-family-master-plan-program

    www.abodu.com

    www.prefabadu.com

    www.actonadu.com

    From a cost prospective, the prefab ADUs may be the way to go but I share your concerns about issues with the structures in 5-10 years.  Personally, I have opted for a stick built plan and it is way, way more money.

  • Investor · San Carlos, CA · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 17 votes
    6y
    Thanks @David for sharing the reference, I have reached out to them.
    @Sean - yes, i have researched them and dont come close to the prefab options i listed above. At this point, I am leaning towards Veev

    @Brian - Yes, i have read that article and reached out to all of them.
    Do you mind sharing what was the final $/sf that you ended up with the construction project you went through? Feel free to Dm me in case you are not comfortable sharing openly. Thanks
  • Developer · Sacramento, CA · Member since 2016 · 464 posts · 143 votes
    6y

    lots of great options out there. jsut need to find teh perfect one to fit you. if your goal is just to have another source of rental income you can keep it on wheels and avoid a lot. Of course that wouldn't could towards the overal value of your home but income box check. 

  • Rental Property Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2015 · 401 posts · 221 votes
    6y
    Originally posted by @Brian Larson:

    @Namit Raisurana - Have you looked at these companies?  They are essentially endorsed at the bottom of the city of San Jose website - https://www.sanjoseca.gov/business/development-services-permit-center/accessory-dwelling-units-adus/adu-permit-plan-review-process/adu-single-family-master-plan-program

    www.abodu.com

    www.prefabadu.com

    www.actonadu.com

    From a cost prospective, the prefab ADUs may be the way to go but I share your concerns about issues with the structures in 5-10 years.  Personally, I have opted for a stick built plan and it is way, way more money.

    Given the price from these companies, I believe it's cheaper to just get a contractor. 

  • Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2018 · 313 posts · 230 votes
    6y

    @Albert Ng - actually the most cost effective option is to owner-build.  :-)

    In all seriousness though, most Contractors I spoke with gave $350 per sqft or higher price.  That is not very cost effective.

  • Investor · San Carlos, CA · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 17 votes
    6y
    Agree with Brian. Once you start adding all the costs (permits, foundation, internal furnishings, appliances) it easily adds up to 350-400+ per sqft, and thus if you are able to get 500-600 sqft prefab under 200k, it makes more sense. also cant underestimate the time and effort you have to put with a stick built
  • Rental Property Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2015 · 401 posts · 221 votes
    6y

    @Brian Larson

    Yes, that’s what I mean. “Owner build”, but contractors do all the work :)

  • Real Estate Consultant · Member since 2020 · 16 posts · 4 votes
    6y

    Hey @Brian Larson - great to see you on another ADU thread!

    Seconded @Albert Ng! There are design-builders (similar to the company I'm at) that will help manage the design, permitting, and construction process for custom, stick-built units which will make the process lighter-weight on the homeowner. We've heard the stories of ADUs coming in at $400+/sq ft from general contractors before, but we're working on a few in the 500-700 sq ft range under $200K. Cost does depend heavily on site conditions, site access, complexity of the unit, level of finish, etc., but feel free to reach out - happy to chat.

  • Newark, CA · Member since 2018 · 26 posts · 3 votes
    6y

    This is super helpful! Hey @Kevin Chen, can you please share some of the ADU contractor resources?

  • Member since 2020 · 1 post · 0 votes
    6y

    Very good discussion - we have been looking to build a small ADU. Veev is very modern design, would not fit into our neighborhood. Abodu looks great but we are trying to get 1bed 1ba for a little less. Acton wanted about $300K, PrefabADU does not answer email or calls. Those are the three pre-approved by San Jose. Has anyone found a good GC or been able to proceed with an ADU build ? Our preference is for prefab to cut down on the time and mess.

  • Member since 2020 · 12 posts · 0 votes
    6y

    Good Morning. Thank you for all your Sage advice from this thread/forum. We are also in the process of building Detached ADU in our backyard, city of San Mateo (San Mateo County). We have toured the ADU model of Abodu in Redwood City which has spacious cathedral ceilings. We are exploring stick build ADU. Please share your experience. We reached out to Acton ADU and waiting to hear back.

    @Namit Raisurana- have you started your build?

  • Investor · San Carlos, CA · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 17 votes
    6y

    not yet. since this is an investment property, i am leaning more towards manufactured homes

  • Redwood City, CA · Member since 2017 · 13 posts · 10 votes
    6y

    I am wondering which ADU had the most bang for the buck and has anyone tried putting an ADU on undeveloped land as a home? Maybe even a couple of them?

  • Investor · Hawaiian Gardens, CA · Member since 2015 · 308 posts · 386 votes
    6y

    ^ best bang for your buck I'm going to go with Boxabl - Casita. Most of these other options saying 200k-300k. This is 50k, not including utilities. Will take > 1 year for delivery FYI. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6Zf_AaiyC8

  • Paul DashevskyPro Member
    Investor · Los Angeles · Member since 2020 · 152 posts · 60 votes
    6y

    Boxable looks amazing, but unfortunately they haven't even delivered a single unit yet.  They are still raising money on WeFunder and they have to build out a factory first. Don't forget with any pre-fab unit, you have to add cost of installing a foundation, hooking up utilities, craning in the unit, and potentially the cost of delivery (not included in Boxable's price). All these costs will likely add $30-50k so you should budget closer to $100k.

    A stick-built ADU of the same size will cost $120-140k.

  • Investor · San Carlos, CA · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 17 votes
    6y

    also boxable is only 400 sqft

  • Member since 2020 · 11 posts · 1 vote
    6y

    Interesting discussion. Can anyone comment on the value add of ADU to the main house in San Francisco Bay Area? Specifically:

    1. If I were to refinance the main house then will they add value and let me borrow more?

    2. If (1) is yes, how much value does it add? Let's say we spent $200k for the ADU for 500sqft while the main house is priced at $600/sqft then how much could the appraiser value the ADU?

    3. If this is a rental property then is the valuation also based on the rent it generates?

  • Rental Property Investor · San Francisco, CA · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    6y

    @Chetan Patil that's a good question, as Ive been hearing about how several people who added ADUs have been getting effed on the new appraisals! Basically appraisers are totally subservient to the banks, and have not been receptive to the value of an ADU. Partly because ADUs are relatively new, and appraisers are very conservative (read: chicken sh!t) to allow much value for them- either as added sq footage, OR as added income property. 2 years ago I thought this was going to happen, but I would have hoped that by now it's gotten more standardized to add some tangible value to an SFH+ADU.

    So if anyone has had direct experience where they have gotten anything more than a token $ value for adding an ADU to an SFH, please chime in!

  • Member since 2020 · 3 posts · 0 votes
    6y

    Has anyone looked into the prefab ADU company called Modal? https://livemodal.com/

  • Member since 2020 · 42 posts · 10 votes
    6y

    I have heard good things about Sonderpods if that helps. I also stumbled upon BayModular recently - units look very nice and are more affordable than some of the others mentioned in the thread. Good luck with your project!

  • Member since 2020 · 8 posts · 3 votes
    6y

    Check out TechPrefab www.techprefab.com  I am talking to them because I'm looking for steel prefab vs wood framing and their pricing etc.. is competitive. 

  • Real Estate Agent · SF Bay Area - Greater East Bay · Member since 2019 · 3 posts · 0 votes
    5y
    Hey guys. Idid a quick scroll through to avoid duplicate info. Check our S2A. They are a custom build outfit doing ADUs and larger home builds. Environmentally conscious approach and offers end to end solution. Min commitment is a $3k site survey plus feasibility study and its applied toward your build when you proceed. They have a factory in Hemet and are building one in Patterson also. Legit outfit, worth exploring. End to end 6-12 months depending on permittibg timelines and whi is in the qeue before you..My colleague has them doing his ADU right now and im talking to them also for ours. Veev is our other option. So far looks good and price at $200k is pretty decent compared to stick build options in the bay area.
  • Member since 2020 · 3 posts · 0 votes
    5y

    If you’re going to spend 200k why not go with abodu? 

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