Detached ADU vs. Garage Conversion: A comparison
Both the ADUs provide extra storage, accommodation, and private space for study. These ADUs can be utilized as a home office, gym, or library. You can choose one of these ADUs depending on the following factors.
Building Codes in Your City
The only concern is obtaining permits for building a detached ADU or converting your space into a dwelling space. If your city codes allow a new construction, you can choose this type of ADU.
On the other hand, if your city codes do not permit new construction, you can convert a garage or basement into a dwelling unit to meet your accommodation needs.
Requirements
If your parents live with you, you can construct a separate dwelling unit (ADU). If you have a small family and you want an extra space for a gym, home office, or library, you can go with conversion ADUs.
Budget:
A newly constructed ADU is more expensive than a conversion ADU as you have to start from scratch. On the other hand, conversion ADUs have an already existing structure, which only requires some additions like doors, windows, and electrification.
So, if you are confused between detached ADU vs. garage conversion, you can choose between these two structures depending on your budget.
Benefits of Conversion ADUs
We can discuss the benefits of converted ADUs to understand which ADU suits our requirements the most.
Garage conversion ADU
If you do not use your garage very often, you can convert this space into an ADU, which will also save a lot of garden space on your property.
You can clear the space by removing everything in your garage to build an additional living unit.
Benefits:
- This type of ADU is suitable for areas where the density of the population is high. In such areas, there is a shortage of housing and hence limited space is available on your property.
- So, if you want to build an ADU on your property with limited space, then you can go with this option. You can build a garage conversion ADU in both attached and detached garages.
- There are enormous options to use a conversion ADU. You can use this unit as a library, guest room, unit for storage, a place to start a home business, gym room, and a children’s play area.
Benefits of Newly Constructed Detached ADUs
The detached ADU is a separate house built on your property and is detached from the primary residential unit. This unit is eligible for one bedroom, one kitchen unit, and one bathroom.
You can build an ADU with a maximum of 1200 square feet of area.
You can go with this type of ADU if the ADU ordinance in your location allows such construction on your property.
If your property is big then you can build this type of ADU to generate more space for your house. Your caretakers can also live there without any hassles.
Benefits:
- A detached ADU serves as a separate house. So, it can help solve the accommodation issues in your family.
- This can work as a separate home for your parents. Moreover, they can have a peaceful stay in a detached unit without the interference of visitors or guests.
- If your caretakers are staying with you, this can be a great option for accommodation.
- It can also solve your storage issues.
- This type of ADU can increase the resale value of your property.
- These days, everyone is facing storage issues due to a lack of adequate space. So, newly constructed ADU helps create more storage options.
Moreover, you can use this space for your home office, study unit, rental living unit for additional income, accommodation for parents, library, etc. Alternatively, this unit can yield many benefits and help increase the value of your property.
Takeaway:
Both conversion and newly constructed detached ADUs provide several benefits to homeowners. If you have more space on your property and your city code allows you to build a separate detached ADU, you can definitely go for this.
On the contrary, you should settle with a conversion ADU, if you have limited space and your city code does not allow you to build a newly constructed ADU. Also, budget plays a vital role in deciding which ADU is best for you.
FAQs
You can get the following financial benefits from ADUs:
- It helps increase property value
- You can earn extra money by renting this unit to tenants.
Yes, there are several financing options available for building an ADU, such as home equity loans, personal loans, and various ADU finance programs. You can also get rebates if you adopt sustainable and green building practices.
Garages are smaller than the layout of an ADU. So, design options are limited for this unit. Consequently, your conversion ADU will lack functionality due to space limits. If you purchase a vehicle later, you will face parking issues. Moreover, local regulations may have restrictions on what you can do with a garage conversion ADU.