The trending accessory isn’t handbags and briefcases with today’s Baby Boomers. It’s Accessory Dwelling Units or ADUs that increase living options for an ever-changing homeowner. Equipped with a full kitchen and bathroom, ADUs [many considered guest houses or casitas] can quickly and affordably accommodate the many facets of dynamic lifestyles. Whether welcoming an elderly parent, choosing to age in place, transitioning a college graduate to independent living, or seeking a reliable source of rental income, ADUs are as versatile as the needs they fulfill. Such attached or detached options can also satisfy lifelong dreams of owning an artist’s studio, a cardio room or that high-tech space for the next life-changing enterprise.

Affordability is an added benefit to ADUs, as they do not require paying extra for the land on which they’re constructed. They can provide private living space for couples, guests, students and seniors, as a full-time living option or weekend stay-and-play choice in Southern California and elsewhere. In fact, California’s recent legislative changes allow ADUs in both single-family and multi-family zones to address myriad affordable and housing inventory needs throughout the state.

In 2016, California passed statewide ADU reform in SB 1069, later modified in 2017 by SB 229 and AB 494. These laws require cities to:

• Permit one ADU per single-family home
• Streamline ADU permitting by using a ministerial rather than discretionary process
• Set utility fees in proportion to the burden of the ADU and reduce them for ADUs built inside the main house
• Waive parking requirements for ADUs located within a half-mile radius of a transit stop or within a block of a car-share; for ADUs built inside the existing primary house that don’t involve additions; and for ADUs in historic districts.
• Otherwise require no more than one parking space per ADU, and allow that space to be tandem
• Waive requirements for “passageways”—a commonly required ten-foot-wide, open walkway from sidewalk to ADU
• Allow zero setbacks for existing garages converted ADUs, and five-foot side and rear setbacks for ADUs above garages
• Cap ADU floor space to 1,200 square feet for detached ADUs (backyard cottages); 1,200 square feet or 50 percent of house size, whichever is less, for an attached ADU that involves an addition to the main house; and no size limit for ADUs built entirely inside existing houses.

Evidence of their practical and creative uses is the fact that California led the nation in ADUs built in the first half of 2018, a result of forward-thinking legislators that have streamlined the construction process. Local leaders in Indio, Palm Desert and La Quinta have amended their respective ADU policies to reflect the state’s, paving the way for further construction by local ADU experts in the Coachella Valley.

This has strong appeal among the nation-leading nine million Baby Boomers in California with the last of this generation turning 65 just 10 short years from now.  ADUs will become increasingly popular and necessary to offer support to the adult children of Boomers, known for their statistically-top position for doing so.

RBC Construction is a third-generation, California home builder and innovative remodeler, providing a complete range of construction services from kitchen/bath remodels to room additions and total home remodels. The company’s commitment to be straightforward and transparent, ensuring that a project is on time and within budget, is what drives its passion for perfection in turning a client’s dreams into reality.