Two-Story ADUs: Multi-Leveled Residence for You

To live a decent life means having enough money to fulfill your basic human needs. However, housing, a key necessity, becomes more and more scarce and Americans barely make ends meet in order to afford a proper house. At the same time, certain homeowners decide to make their lots profitable by installing a new housing unit in the form of one ADU.

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are an astonishing trend in the construction world, which exist in the form of a small house next to the primary residence of the owners. State law and local regulations allow such buildings, so California dwellers have already started enriching the land with these cute and compact units.

However, a new trend is carefully approaching us, as one-story ADUs are not enough already. Local jurisdiction allows two-story options for those who can afford them, increasing the profitability of the ADU even further. Here, we will take a closer look at this novelty and discuss crucial elements and the complexity of such a building.

Two-Story ADU Types

A 2-story ADU may seem like an easy subject: you stack two floors and get the required building. But in reality, it is more complicated. Let’s talk about two stories and underline their benefits and drawbacks.

Traditional Two-Story ADU

This option represents the one you think of when pronouncing its name. Here, we offer a regular building with two floors interconnected with a staircase. As usual in similar houses, the space is divided into two parts, with the first floor including a kitchen, bathroom, and living room and the second having bedrooms and personal offices. While such property will be amazing for a family living under one roof, if you need to create a multifamily unit, you should go for other options instead, as different families will not find the required privacy here, even in a bedroom.

Over Garage ADU

If the pricing for building detached ADUs with a second floor makes you shiver, an ingenious solution of stacking a second floor to your garage may allow you to use the backyard to the fullest while saving some money. Here, you can typically find a ladder outdoors that allows dwellers to enter the living space on the second floor. The first one can still function as a garage or transform into another kind of living space to meet your liking. The best thing about this option is that the choice is yours, and if sacrificing the garage is an unacceptable idea, you can still have it and vice versa.

Stacked ADUs

The distinction at its finest: that’s how we can describe this option. Here we create two different residences, taking the first and second floors. However, in comparison to the first option, the space is not interconnected, resolving the privacy concerns of all dwellers. Being perfect for renting it out, stacked ADU owners can easily maximize their profit from the lot.

All in all, before deciding on which project you would like to start, it is important to understand their features and details, so you could make a proper decision.

Obvious Advantages of Two-Story ADUs

To make a weighted decision, we would like you to understand all the benefits that a well-designed two-story ADU can have. In comparison to their regular counterparts, the building with two floors can brag about the following advantages:

• Functionality

Double the floors: double the rooms! Even an amateur will understand how much free space another floor can grant you. Moreover, it is always better to have an extra floor in your possession as an additional bathroom or bedroom has done no harm to anyone. Being a perfect solution for growing families, at the same time they allow multiple generations under one roof.

• Privacy

In case you will not grant access to another floor, this can also be quite cool in terms of privacy. For example, if you need to turn the living space into a dedicated workspace and don’t disrupt the creative process of the dwellers, a clear separation between two floors is a must. In some cases, you can even charge more money for noiseless quarters.

• Rental

A two-story ADU is obviously a larger rental unit than a usual one. Hence, it provides you with a number of ways to use this matter. Instead of renting it out to a single family, you can provide compliance with the local regulations and instead welcome two families or several individuals, significantly boosting your rental income and increasing your property value.

• Aesthetics

Some of you will not agree with us, but we mean it: two-story ADUs are visually more appealing than their other counterparts. Here, we get more free space and room for mind-blowing design decisions that will grant you an outstanding look for numerous decades. It can be a nice addition to the design language of your main house or support it in terms of similar color schemes; the final decision is up to you. But we are sure that in the end, your ADU design will attract more locals than any other ADU.

To conclude, an accessory dwelling unit in the form of a duplex is a wonderful opportunity to make your dreams a reality.

Intricacies of the Permit Process

The permit process here, just like with any other eligible dwelling unit, can be quite tricky and it is handy to know the intricacies of it beforehand.

Normally, the process consists of the following steps:

1. You should contact your local building department to find out the key requirements of constructing your ADU. You should do it in accordance with a wide range of building codes and California state law that include height limits, required setbacks, and necessary parking space.
2. After that, a certified specialist has to start creating the detailed plans of your unit bearing in mind the required setbacks, design choices, and compact footprint. This is necessary for the permit approval and needs attention.
3. Next, you have to provide the necessary papers. For example, they will definitely ask for your square footage, floor plan, and any other buildings in your yard like attached or detached ADUs.
4. The department will carry out the inspections to check the compliance of initial planning with the reality and issue a permit approval. They will pay closer attention to parking requirements and rules for detached or attached ADUs as well.
5. After that, you can start building, but remember that it is necessary to get permits for plumbing, electrical work, or foundation construction. Thankfully, property rules in California are flexible, so you will have your ADU approved more easily.

As you can see, the process is short and tiring but requires some crucial steps. If the rules are not respected, the building will not happen.

Frequently Asked Questions — FAQ

What can I include in a two-story ADU?

As long as the pricing allows, you can have as many rooms as you want. Such ADUs can boast a larger amount of space and, therefore, a wider range of rooms. Here, you can have a bedroom or two, a bathroom, and additional parking space. Remember the square footage that cannot exceed your primary residence, which restricts your possibilities in this matter.

What should floor plans include to get permitted?

To have them approved, the plans of single or multifamily units require details of the rooms like the placement of your bedroom, bathroom, and living rooms, permitted square footage, and sometimes even design choices. We have to note, that by the time you complete the construction, the cost of the project may change, so you don’t include it in your planning.

How can a primary residence influence the choice of an ADU?

The property that you already have can become a platform for your future ADU, in case you think of attached ADUs. As for detached ADUs, here your living space can influence the ADU design and the final project. As for the two stories, the second can be attached to your garage and such a duplex will be perfect for a single family. You can do whatever you want with your property if you handle the cost of the discussed subject.