Is an ADU right for me?
BUILDING AN ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT IS AS MUCH ABOUT FAMILY AS A LONG-TERM INVESTMENT
ACTON ADU IN SAN JOSE, CA
Why Do People Build ADUs?
Building an accessory dwelling unit has many benefits for homeowners in California faced with common challenges like affordability of housing, safety, comfort, privacy, and independent living.
Affordable Housing
ADU costs vary widely by project scope, quality, permits, and fees. However, in many cases, the total cost of a designed, permitted, and completed ADU costs a quarter of a single family home in California’s Silicon Valley.
Family Safety and Accessibility
Health and safety are a major consideration for homeowners with family members that require home care. Building an accessory dwelling unit helps homeowners comfortably manage aging parents or family members with disabilities or other health requirements.
Having an accessory home gives both parties access to each other, while providing a tremendous amount of autonomy, which can greatly improve the quality of life for entire families and eliminate the enormous costs of care facilities or home care assistance.
Privacy and Comfort
Cramped households are common in growing or multigenerational families, especially in California. ADUs help homeowners create much more comfortable and private living space.
Providing additional independent living space gives homeowners a solution for reducing social tension, minimizing clutter, and taking away the inconvenience of shared bathrooms, crowded kitchens, and communal sleeping arrangements, all without disrupting the connectivity of a family.
Starter Homes for Young Families
California is expensive. That’s no secret. Young couples and families looking to purchase a home have few options. Families with ADUs offer their kids and their families a way to establish independence and save for a future home purchase, while enjoying the connectivity of being close to home.
Long-Term Investment
Every homeowner wants to maximize the value of their home for future sale or for future generations. ADUs make use of underutilized property to create not only a secondary dwelling, but also a potential passive income property.
Many ADU owners find themselves downsizing into the ADU and either sharing the main home with their own family or renting it out when they’ve decided to retire.
The benefits and use cases for building an accessory dwelling unit are extensive. But there’s one theme that links it all together—housing plans, or family integrity planning. This is the process of creating a long-term investment for homeowners who are looking to create the most value, both financially and in lifestyle enjoyment.
