What does your lot allow?
Four questions. You get the ADU types worth pursuing on a property like yours, the agency that reviews the permit where you are, and the specific things that have to be confirmed before anyone should charge you for drawings.
This is orientation, not a determination. Only reading your parcel gives you numbers.
Answer the questions and the assessment appears here.
About this tool
- Does this tool tell me exactly how big an ADU I can build?
- No. Size is decided by your parcel’s zoning, its existing floor area, its setbacks and the standards your city has adopted, and that requires reading the parcel rather than a general rule. The tool tells you which ADU types are worth pursuing, who reviews the permit, and what has to be checked next.
- Is ADU approval discretionary in California?
- No. State law requires local agencies to review a compliant ADU application ministerially, which means as a compliance check rather than a discretionary decision, with no public hearing. A city can still deny an application that does not comply with the standards it has adopted.