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By Katherine Roth

The Associated Press

Amid a persistent housing crunch in many parts of the U.S., some people are finding a solution in accessory dwelling units, or ADUs. They’re also known as granny flats, in-law units or backyard bungalows.

These small homes 鈥� separate from the main house 鈥� tend to be low-impact and energy-efficient. Where legal, they can add housing to a neighborhood while causing less disruption than construction of new apartment buildings, proponents say.

ADUs are getting a new look in聽today’s tight housing market; the last couple of years have seen a shortage of homes for sale, and many are selling for above listing price, according to economists and real estate brokers.

Sheri Koones, whose new book 鈥淏igger than Tiny, Smaller than Average鈥� (Gibbs-Smith, March 2022) features several examples of ADUs, says they are part of聽a shift toward smaller, more affordable and energy-efficient homes.

High ceilings, abundant natural light,聽built-in furniture聽and open floor plans can make ADUs feel more livable than their modest footprints might indicate, said Koones, who has written extensively about small homes and sustainable building.

鈥淚n our experience, a small space can truly be a generous living experience,鈥� said Scott Mooney, an architect in the Portland area who designed an ADU with his wife, Lauren Shumaker, a construction engineer.

They’ve been living in it for over four years, sharing the 624-square-foot space with their toddler and dog. They rent out the larger 1950s bungalow that had already existed on the 5,000-square-foot property.

鈥淭he key is maximizing outdoor access, with lots of light, lots of views, pocket doors instead of swing doors and plenty of built-ins,鈥� Mooney said. 鈥淚t’s a lot like what you see in RVs or custom vans.鈥�

An ADU could be created by converting a detached garage or building an apartment above an attached garage. It could be part of a basement, with a separate entrance. Or it could be a new structure if the property is large enough; there are prefab ADUs or blueprints available to buy.

While, for the most part, these units cannot be sold separately from a home, they can be places for elderly parents or adult children to live, or they can be used as home offices or guest homes. In some areas, they can be rented out or, as with Mooney and his wife, provide housing for the homeowners, who then rent out the main house.

鈥淭housands of jurisdictions across the country, primarily on the West Coast, permit ADUs,鈥� said Kol Peterson, editor of AccessoryDwellings.org, a clearinghouse for information. 鈥淚n much of the country, though, rules vary widely from one jurisdiction to another.鈥�

The online resource keeps a list of where ADUs are allowed nationwide as well as which architects or builders specialize in them.

Homeowners should check with their local municipality for rules, since ADUs are sometimes restricted to a certain height, for example, or their footprint must be limited to a certain percentage of the property.

According to Peterson, who built his own ADU and has been living in it for more than a decade, the units help mitigate housing shortages. They provide homeowners with a way to make a little rent money in neighborhoods that have grown expensive, he said, and offer renters spaces that rent for less than larger, traditional houses.

鈥淭hey add density without adding large new housing structures,鈥� Koones said.

ADUs are more feasible where laws have been mandated at the state level, such as in California and Oregon, as opposed to places where it’s up to local authorities and proposed legislation can end up being onerous, Peterson said.

In localities, an ADU is sometimes required to have its own parking space, for example. Yet oftentimes that isn’t possible.

But the rules are changing quickly.

鈥淧retty much every day now we’re seeing more municipalities that are deciding to start allowing ADUs,鈥� Peterson said. 鈥淔rom 2018 to 2020, Californian jurisdictions permitted 33,881 ADUs and 22,695 ADUs were added to the state’s housing supply.鈥�

In Portland, around 2 percent of all single-family homes now have an ADU, he said. That’s more than any other area in the country.

Vancouver, British Columbia, is another city in which ADUs are popular.

鈥淭he cost of housing is skyrocketing here,鈥� said Tanya Dang, who lives in Vancouver with her partner in a 650-square-foot remodeled garage. 鈥淢y parents had built a new house and weren’t allowed to build a lane house (ADU). Then the rules changed, and my parents are aging, and we thought, 鈥楲et’s go for it.’

鈥淲e moved in July 2020, and before that we were living with my parents, so when we moved in, we thought, 鈥極h my goodness; we have all this space now!’鈥�

High ceilings and an ample patio help make the space feel larger, Dang said. The home, designed by Lanefab Design/Build, has enough storage space for the couple’s outdoor gear plus things her parents had kept in the garage.

鈥淲e have a pullout couch and a half bathroom downstairs, so we can even have guests,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here’s a fold-out leaf at the kitchen island that allows us to seat six people for dinner. People are always surprised at how big it feels.鈥�