Are ADUs in Denver Metro area worth it?

Question

Hey  Fellow Denver investors!

I'm thinking about putting an ADU on a future single family home as part of my wife & I's house hack strategy. Has anybody out there successfully pulled one off? I've heard that the permitting process was getting easier but we're probably going to avoid Denver & Boulder counties and target either Westminster, Broomfield, JeffCo or Adams. What does that permitting/build timeline & process look like? Can you finance an ADU? Is there a good forced equity bump on the property once completed? Looking for any advice or cautionary tales from people's experience.

Thanks!

-Jesse

Ben Einspahr · Answer

@Jesse Englund-Rohlf, I am sure there are many others out there that would disagree, but I personally do not think the juice is worth the squeeze. When it is all said and done you could be $200k+ out of pocket and looking at a 12-24 month process. But this all depends on city you choose and the lot zoning.

What I would consider is buying a home where someone already did all of the work for you. May not be a detached ADU but you can find properties with unit above attached garage or separate entrance to basement MIL guest suite.

We recently put together an ADU case study covering zoning, financing, and deal analysis. I'll DM you the details.