All Forum Posts by: Whitney Hill

Hi! Just hopping in to add that you are allowed one tiny home OR a detached ADU, plus a Junior ADU. Not permissible to have a tiny home + ADU... the tiny home counts as the ADU:

"Only one companion unit [=ADU] or movable tiny house, and one junior unit are permitted on premises. Guest quarters and non-habitable structures shall be permitted in addition to the companion unit or movable tiny house, and junior unit."

Guest quarters = Living quarters attached to a primary dwelling unit without interior access or within a detached accessory building, which are for the sole use of persons employed on the premises or for temporary use by guests of the occupants of premises.

Full regulation... page 14 has the part I mentioned on only one ADU or tiny home: https://www.tinyhomeindustryassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/San-Diego-Draft-.pdf

Chiming in with my two cents on what process & cost would look like for permitting a previously unpermitted ADU in San Diego.

Similar to bringing an illegal addition into compliance, it would require drawing a plan for the existing ADU (typically $2-3K), sending it to plan check at the city (planning, building, and fire), potentially conducting an exploratory phase where walls are opened up for inspection with the city (typically no more than $1-2K for opening walls and repairing them), addressing anything in the structure that is not within compliance (cost will of course depend on what's going on with your structure), and paying for any permits (typically $1K). Best-case timeline might be 3-4 weeks, typical more like 8-10 weeks, and of course upwards from there if the city is backed up and/or you find issues. Hope this helps!

Just wanted to chime in with  what we would quote on a garage conversion in North County San Diego. To other points made, costs will vary, but this is a turn-key price with standard finishes...$125K.
-Vertical building: $112K ($160/sqft for conversion * 700sqft...this could be a small 2BR/2BA)
-Design & construction drawing: ~$10K (incl managing all permitting process with city)
-Permits & fees: ~$3K (paid directly to city)

Hey there, I wanted to share some ballpark ADU construction costs in case helpful. A 400sqft garage conversion has been running $75K all-in... that's $160/sqft + $13K for design+fees. 700sqft would be around $125K all-in... this is for a typical conversion, the footings + structural work could change game in your case.

Numbers on standalone ADUs split out as well in case helpful...

Pre-construction costs: 

-Design: if using a stock plan, the design work costs about $5K. If going with a full custom plan (e.g. you have a unique lot layout that will require a customized layout)… closer to $10K. Even if you use the county/city standards... if one spec changes, you'll need to have new plans drawn up plus go through the "regular" approval line for permits
-Permits: though some fees are waived, there are still fees like those to schools (typically ~$4/sqft). $2-4K is typically what the total costs to the city will run for an ADU

Construction costs
-Building costs: typically $250/sf to start, for vertical building only. This is higher than for single family homes, since the cost is spread out over a much smaller footprint (e.g. still a kitchen+bath, but only 1-2 BRs).
-Site work: typically $10K is a good number to start with, which includes preparing the building pad, connecting utilities, plus a small amount of landscape and concrete work.

Hope this helps!

Small note on the JADU requirements... the interior access requirement was recently dropped. Page 2 summary mentions this change, full info here:  https://hcd.ca.gov/community-development/housing-element/docs/ADU_TA_Memo_Final_01-10-20.pdf

@Jake Spockets Are you concerned about the property no longer being assessed as a single family home by a lender? Even with an ADU, I believe you would be fine until you hit 4+ units and get into a commercial vs residential classification on the loan. The appraisal going forward may be a bit trickier since it will still be on comps... so until there are many homes around with ADUs, may be more difficult to comp out at "full" value for the single family home + ADU. Regardless... separate utility meter is likely not the item that triggers issues for you.

@Anthony Perpepaj I did not dig further than what I mentioned in that post unfortunately! One thought is looking into any town planning docs that mention addressing housing shortages etc, you'd be in line with that at least... but I would imagine this could be a tough sell if zoning is single fam... hope you can find a good contact!

@Nicholle Henley I'm of course not an attorney and I'm sure you'll consult one, but my two cents: makes sense for parent to be in CA since you live there and will have to report anyway. I think creating the additional child LLCs in the home states as you buy property is smart to keep the assets isolated from each other... it's my understanding that someone suing the child LLC may be able to go up to the parent, but can't go back "down" to the assets in the other child LLCs

Hi Rob, good to hear from you! I am the owner, happy to send more info - sending the proforma and further property details to your email...

Crews to handle work: happy to share the name of the contractor who has bid out the work, closing timeline would affect their availability

Improvements since acquisition: 
-All tenants (both paying and non-paying) are now gone. This was a lengthy and expensive process.
-Architectural plans + interior design is complete and ready for submission for permits - plans can be transferred to new owner. Renovation does not include anything structural, but we had planned to move kitchens to larger space. This requires architect's drawing for submission for approval
-Trash out on property and units
-Secured contract to purchase adjacent property, to be included in sale
These changes have put the property in a better position for financing options as well...

480 S Princeton, Franklinton, OH (Columbus metro)

6 unit two-story brick building on .23 acres in West Franklinton, surrounded by green space on all sides. All units have separate entrances, 850sqft 2BR/1BA with two floors of living space plus basement.

Property is vacant and ready for immediate full renovation after securing required permits. Completed architectural plans available, could be useful if you intend to buy with a construction loan.

Adjacent empty .09 acre lot 472 S Princeton can also be purchased. Property is an area that is eligible for 12 yrs of tax abatement on the improvements to the property, current taxes are $2468.