Accessory dwelling units, commonly known as ADUs, continue to be popular building projects in Long Beach—and really throughout the State of California. Although state subsidies for these types of projects have run out, they still make financial sense for many homeowners when they consider the rental income an ADU can generate, or the cost savings associated with housing an elderly family member on their own property, rather than in an expensive retirement facility.
Although California officials have made it easier for homeowners to get approvals to have ADUs built on their properties, the process to have the design plans approved has not gotten any easier (or shorter for that matter). If you are assuming that if you draw up plans for a simple structure that they will be quickly approved, you would be wrong!
The City of Long Beach does have a few pre-approved ADU plans, ranging in size from 415 square feet to 935 square feet. The plans can be obtained (for a fee) from the Long Beach residential architects who designed them. But if you want an ADU designed to your specifications, you will need to hire your own Long Beach residential architect to draw up custom plans for you.
A Long Beach architect can make sure all of your requirements for a living space are included in your plans. They may even bring up some ideas you hadn’t considered.
A residential architect will likely start the design process by asking you how you plan to use your ADU—as a rental unit, as a home for elderly parents or a young adult child, as a place to house out-of-town guests, etc. This will help them determine things like how much privacy the ADU’s occupants will need (more privacy if you will be renting it to strangers, but probably not as much if it will be occupied by a family member), how much storage space to include (it won’t need as much if it will be used strictly for short-term guests), if it should be designed with accessibility in mind, or if it should be designed with a certain demographic in mind (such as college students who you hope to rent to).
Some people mistakenly assume that because the square footage of an ADU is relatively small, the space is easier to design than a larger home. This isn’t necessarily the case. With a small space, it is vital that every square foot be used as efficiently as possible, and it still needs to comply with all the same building codes as a main residence. Working with a Long Beach residential architect can help you get an ADU that has everything you need and nothing you don’t!
