FAQ

No — and anyone who says yes is lying. We surface the rules, data, and steps so you can make a confident, informed decision. Final approvals come from LADBS and your council district.

City of Los Angeles is fully supported — the wizard works for any LA City address. For LA County independent cities (Calabasas, Beverly Hills, Burbank, Santa Monica, etc.) and unincorporated areas (Topanga, Altadena, etc.) we currently show a partial coverage page with jurisdiction info, FEMA flood data, and a link to the right planning authority. Full wizard support for those is coming.

Yes. Feasibility lookup, the permit wizard, the cost calculator, the standard plans browser, and the printable title sheet are all free to use. If we ever add paid services (like full plan-prep), they'll be clearly optional.

No. Everything works without signing in. The wizard saves your progress in your browser's local storage so you can come back to the same property without losing what you entered.

Almost. California state law (Gov Code §65852.2 / AB-2221) lets virtually every residential lot in LA add at least one ADU by-right. Exceptions are narrow: a few non-residential zones, parcels deep inside Alquist-Priolo earthquake fault zones, or properties with active deed restrictions that pre-date 2020. Run your specific address to see what's allowed.

Detached = a separate small structure on your lot, up to 1,200 sqft. Attached = added to your existing house, up to 50% of the primary home's living area (capped at 1,200 sqft). JADU = Junior ADU, up to 500 sqft inside the existing house footprint with its own entrance. You can have one ADU + one JADU on the same single-family lot under current LA rules.

LADBS targets 60-day plan check on ADU permits, and offers same-day issuance for ADUs built from a pre-approved standard plan (YOU-ADU or any LADBS-licensed designer plan). In practice, custom-designed ADUs run 4-7 months from submittal to building permit. Hillside lots add 2-4 weeks for geotech / soils review.

ADUs 750 sqft or smaller skip several fees that kick in at larger sizes: LAUSD's school impact fee (~$5/sqft), LA's residential development impact fee, and sewer capacity charges. The savings can be $5K-$15K vs. an 800-sqft ADU. If you don't strictly need the extra space, sizing down can be a meaningful cost reduction — the wizard's prep-submittal step flags this when you enter your proposed sqft.

No. California's AB 976 (2023) permanently removed the owner-occupancy requirement for ADUs. You can build an ADU and rent it out to a non-family tenant without living on the property yourself. (Short-term rentals under 30 days are restricted by LA's Home-Sharing Ordinance regardless.)

Wide range: a free YOU-ADU plan with budget finishes on a flat lot can come in around $130K–$200K all-in. Custom designed, mid-finish, on a typical flat LA lot: $200K–$350K. Hillside or VHFHSZ lots add 20-30%+. HCD-approved prefab (Connect Homes, Cover) runs $190K–$350K turnkey. Use the cost calculator at /calculator for a per-lot estimate.

Pre-approved plans are designs already vetted by LADBS — same-day permit issuance, fastest legal path from contract to building permit. The City of LA's free YOU-ADU plan (455 sqft) is the cheapest option. LADBS also licenses 80+ designer plans (ADU1–ADU96) from various firms for $2K–$8K. Browse them at /standard-plans.

Yes — common paths include HELOC (home equity line of credit), construction-to-permanent loans, and ADU-specific products from lenders like Renofi or Spring EQ. Each has different rate structures and approval criteria. We don't recommend specific lenders today, but the cost calculator can help you size the financing need.

Live from public sources: LA Planning's NavigateLA (zoning, overlays, parcel), LA County DPW (jurisdiction, FEMA flood), LADBS PermitLA (permit history), and California fire-hazard / liquefaction layers. Nothing is scraped from private sources. Lot stats on neighborhood pages are computed from these layers; aggregate market stats use US Census + LA County Assessor data.

We email you the requested checklist immediately, send occasional updates relevant to your permit journey, and may follow up with related resources. We don't sell your email. If you opt in (separate checkbox on the form) we may share your details with one of our vetted contractor or firm partners to help you with your project.

Only if you explicitly opt in via the call/text consent checkbox on the lead forms. By default we never call or text — that's a federal TCPA rule and we respect it.