Five Stages of the ADU Journey
Author: Co-authored by Scott Johnson, ADU Expert at Napa Sonoma ADU Center & Founder, Pocket Housing LLC and Renée J. Schomp, Director of the Napa Sonoma ADU Center
When homeowners first embark on their accessory dwelling unit journey they often ask us for an overview of the process and rightly explain, “I simply don’t know what I don’t know!”
We have a number of tools and educational resources to help Napa and Sonoma homeowners understand both the big picture and the minute details of the ADU process. As a starting place, check out this synopsis of the five stages of the ADU journey to understand the full universe of the process!
In short, the process of going from simply thinking about an ADU to actually having it ready for move-in can be broken down into 5 phases: Pre-development, design development, permitting, construction, and move-in.
The Pre-Development Stage
This stage is what many of you are doing right now. It’s about research and figuring out what would work best for you. This is where the Napa Sonoma ADU Center does most of its current work to support homeowners on their ADU journey. This stage is about figuring out your budget and finances, finding a designer, and talking with your local planning department. You’ll be filtering the possibilities by making a series of go/no-go decisions about your ADU project until you’ve determined what will fit your goals, budget and site. At the end of this phase, you should have your designer and perhaps other members of your professional team picked out, and know whether to move forward with building an ADU. Sign up for an ADU Feasibility Consult with us and then use our Pre-Development Activities, also available in our ADU Workbook, to walk you through this initial stage.
The Design Development Stage
This stage is a lot of fun. This is where you work with your designer and really hone in on exactly what you will build. Other members of your team will be involved too, and it’s a good idea to have a contractor lined up to help work together with your designer to make a project that truly matches your budget and goals. This is often called “Constructability” -- when the design and build side of the project work together to ensure that what you see on paper can actually be built and stay within your budget.
As you get close to the end of this phase, it’s a good idea to schedule a ‘pre-application’ meeting with your local jurisdiction to ensure you have everything you need, and there are no red-flags or big surprises once you officially submit your project.
At the end of this phase, you should have a submittal package of your plans, reports, engineering calculations, etc. to submit to the local jurisdiction for a building permit. Check out our ADU Workbook starting on page 43 for more!
Refer to our Local ADU Rules resource for an easy synopsis of your jurisdiction’s ADU rules during this stage.
The Permitting Stage
Permitting is when your local jurisdiction reviews your ADU plans and files for your project. Typically multiple departments will review it, such as Planning, Building, Fire, and Engineering. Often, they will have comments on the plans to share with you. Often they want to see more detail on something, or to change something so it matches local codes. They will send the plans back with comments and your professional team will respond to those comments. One of the state law changes as of January 2020 is that your local jurisdiction needs to approve or deny your project within 60 days, provided you’ve given them a complete submittal package.
This is the benefit of doing a pre-application meeting with them -- you should have caught all the big surprises early and you’ll be able to get though the permitting stage more efficiently and cost-effectively as a result.
At the end of this phase you’ll be granted an ADU building permit! Check out our ADU Workbook starting on page 61 for more!
The Construction Stage
Which leads into construction! This is the most exciting part. Now all the hard work that you and your team have done will start to pay off. Your ADU site will be buzzing with activity, and a good General Contractor will be project managing the whole thing including any inspections the local jurisdiction will be making.
There will still be questions for you to handle as your builder progresses through the build, but it should be mostly details. If you value your budget, this is not the time to make big changes. Don’t decide to move the bathroom, or change all the window sizes at this stage. All of those things should be decided during the design phase.
At the end of this phase, you’ll have a shiny new ADU! Check out our ADU Workbook starting on page 77 for more.
The Move-in Stage!
Move-in day! This is the culmination of months of research, hardwork and dedication on your ADU project. And because of that, most people focus on constructing the ADU and not so much on what happens after. The simple truth is that you are now a landlord, and you need to be aware of the rules and regulations you should operate under if you plan to rent out your ADU -- whether it’s to a friend, family member, or community member. Some owners of ADUs hire a property management company to oversee the day to day operations and ensure that the unit stays rented. The benefits of hiring a good company, and the resources it can provide, often outweigh the costs. Check out our resources for ADU landlords in our ADU Workbook starting at page 93 and right here.
The Napa Sonoma ADU Center is here to help you through all stages of the ADU process -- with a ton of resources, information, and our ADU Feasibility Consults in the Pre-Development Stage followed by assistance with your ADU questions along the way! Reach out to us with any questions that come up right here.
Co-authored by Scott Johnson, ADU Expert @ Napa Sonoma ADU Center & Founder, Pocket Housing LLC and Renée J. Schomp, Director of the Napa Sonoma ADU Center