1200 is not an ADU. 1/3 of that size is. It has zero nod to accessibility, for the “granny flat” approval. The garage would need to be removed in order to create access to something like that, and you’d have to create off street parking in front of the home, for the main house. Lose the front yard. And lose most of the back yard too. Really ugly apartment house vibe.

I’d be really surprised if zoning actually allowed a second rental type full house on the lot. Or the loss of permeable surface. Plus the other difficult and expensive logistics already mentioned that would come up if were this a real ADU.

What are your goals for the ADU? Is it for rental? For family members who come to stay awhile? For inlaws to live in?

From the Encinitas website:

Permit-Ready Accessory Dwelling Unit (PRADU) Program

The PRADU Program encourages the construction of ADUs by offering property owners a selection of pre-approved ADU building plans that can be downloaded from this page. The permit-ready plans include customizable options to allow for variations in exterior materials and door and window fenestrations to express individual owners’ tastes and respect community character. The program also helps the city meet strategic plan goals by providing diverse housing options throughout the city.

***************

So, not necessarily for seniors or disabled family members, looks like it enables single-family rentals on a lot shared with another rental or, more likely, the homeowner.

The permit is likely still dependent on the site and existing utilities.

Where will the parking be?

Can you show how you might set the ADU on the site?

I like the hall-access bath, with the tub behind a door. It allows the rest of the bathroom to be used as a powder room.

In the kitchen, I’d move the refrigerator to the right of the range, and slide the whole thing to the left a bit to make an L, with a super-susan or the like in the corner.

Thanks everyone for the feedback and suggestions. I do really appreciate it.

@Bruce in Northern Virginia, I have the sewer, water and gas in the backyard.

@User, those plans already approved. the 1200 square is the max for our lot size (13000 sq.ft)

@bpath The ADU for my family. Not for rent, will never be for rent as long as I am a live. I have 9' 8" access to the backyard (2nd driveway access). then I will have 45 feet length between the house and the ADU. In addition, I have enough space in front of the house and side driveway to park 10 cars (driveway to the garage is 20'x45', and 2nd driveway is 10'x 75').

I drew the black box to show the location of the ADU, the setback will be 4 feet from the fence.

Thank you all

Hello everyone,

Here is the site plan with the 1200 sf. I am not good at sketchup, but I am still learning. It is about 45 ft away from the existing house. Setback is 5' from the fence. The existing house faces North direction.

Suggestions and feedback are welcome. I add the note from @bpath regarding the kitchen layout.

Thanks!!

Is this ADU plan approved in your city? For example, it’s too big for mine.

@AS Yes, the ADU plan is approved in my city. It used to be 800 sf, then they changed it to 1200 sf. max. The city has these pre-approved plans. You just add the site drawing and your are done. You can change it if you wish. They have different sizes. Here is link to different plans:

https://www.sd203k.com/plans.html

Other cities have pre-approved plans, like San Diego (CA), and San Jose (CA).

Very cool! We looked at buying a lot in Vancouver that would have allowed us to build what we call a laneway house as they are common here.

I think the plan is fine. But think about the space and how you and tenants would use it? Where will everyone park? What yard access does everyone get?

With an ADU this size you will be likely getting a family as tenants or roommates depending on your location. What does that look like?

We have a one bedroom and den basement suite and thought long an hard about parking, storage, yard access and shared spaces.

Rental units are a great mortgage helper but it is important to really plan out what you want well

I fear your boxes are misleading. Are they to scale appropriately? Your lot is not that big. The house and ADU will feel quite on top of each other. While your lot is decently wide it is only 155 deep.

Here is the top view drawn to scale with the 30x50 (outside dimensions of the ADU). The black box represents the new ADU. North direction is towards the street.

Thanks for the feedback and advice.

Still doesn't look like it's scaled properly. Your ADU is almost the same size as your existing house, but in your drawing it is barely 3/4. Why is it so large and why 3 bathrooms? (just curious)

@suedonim75

Our house is 51' length + garage to total of 70'. The width of the lot is 85' and 155' deep. The setback for the ADU is 5'. Please notice how the ADU is 5' from the fence wall, while the house is 10'. I hope that makes sense. We decided to do 3 bedrooms, because it would not cost that much difference compared to 2 bedrooms. Besides the cost of constructions is always going up like crazy.

Thanks for comment.

If it’s allowed and what you want then go for it. Enjoy!

@A S

I am looking for feedback, suggestions and advice about the pre-approved floor plan, before going forward. There are lots of brain power in Houzz. I learned a lot and still learning when I read some of the comments. For example, the suggestion from @bpath regarding moving the fridge in the kitchen.

Sometimes, one of the PRO can look at the layout and see a problem.

Once I start, it is very hard to change things. So, I take my time planning, then execute fast :)

Thanks for your comment!!

If this is a pre approved plan are you allowed to make changes to it?

@A S

Yes, you can change it, but you have to pay :). Thanks

The bedroom/ bathroom ratio to public space seems off. With a 3-bedroom (room for six people to sleep if a guest house - or 4-5 if a family), you won’t have room for everyone to sit or eat (small living room, no room for a table(?) and only seating for 3 at the bar). Will people be living here or is this a guest house?

For 3 bedrooms and 3 full baths, I think your living and dining areas are very undersized. I would forgo the 3rd bedroom on the side closest to your yard, and use that space for extra living, dining, and a powder room instead. That also allows you to get more light into the space since you'll really only get good light from 2 sides of the home.

Not an expert, but you may want to receive professional feedback on how far apart you're running your plumbing lines. You have plumbing running nearly the entire length of the house. Grouping rooms that require plumbing near each other can save on labor and materials costs make the systems more efficient.

Our house is around that size. It's designed so there's a bathroom right above where the water/sewer line enters the house, then the line runs straight to the kitchen. The laundry line is right by the kitchen. The master bath is behind the laundry wall. This layout keeps all those plumbing lines nicely tucked together.

Also, depending if you have a cold climate, having water lines in exterior walls may not be the most advisable.

@lmckuin Max of two people (in law).

@calidesign Thanks for the suggestion. I never thought about that :). I do not have feeling for space special when it is on paper. Thanks!!

@Sarah Excellent point. Thank you. Do you mind quick sketch of your layout?

Thanks. I am taking notes of all the feedback and suggestions.

If only two people, then definitely make the living space bigger and get rid of the 3rd bedroom and bathroom. The 2nd bedroom can be an office/ guest room.

If it really is an in-law house and not a rental for a family or roommates, then yes, make changes for Bedroom 2.

Give it double doors (pocket or normal) to the living room, and keep the door to the hall. That way it can be a den or a bedroom/guest room.

Incoprorate its bathroom into a larger laundry room, with storage, maybe move the bedroom closet to make the laundry room better.

Keeping Bathroom 3 as it is allows it to be for the occupants or a powder room, by closing the tub-room door. Nice design. (Although, I’d consider swapping the bedroom closet and bathroom door, so that the bathroom access is through the tub-room. That way people using the powder room don’t have easy access to the bedroom. But, in this particular house, that would be very low on the list of changes.

.

Hm, here's my attempt at a quick, not at all accurately measured, general mockup of our house. Some closets are missing. Unfortunately, it doesn't do justice to all of the well-planned details the original architect created, but you have a general idea of the flow.

(There's no wall between the kitchen and dining area but I just picked the first free design tool and didn't bother to learn it well enough to delete portions of walls.)

The water lines run into the back of our property where the guest bathroom is, then you can see they go straight forward to the master bath / fridge / washer / and kitchen area. There's even an exterior water spigot for gardening right off the laundry area. All of our water lines are located in interior walls since we usually get a few freezing nights per year. The hot water heater is located below the guest bath so guess which bathroom has the quickest hot water. It takes way longer for the kitchen sink's water to heat up since all of the cold water has to run out of those long pipes first, a lot of wasted water and energy for heated water. With your current set up, think about the location of the hot water heater to the areas it'll be serving.

The architect designed the middle space of the house to be the public area and made it feel larger by giving it a shed roof with 16' ceiling and lots of clerestory windows. The house orientation is designed for passive solar, with natural shade from the tree canopy in summer factored into our specific house design (it's why we can have a lot of east-west glazing). The natural lighting in this area of the house in the morning and evenings is magical. I'd strongly consider the natural lighting and views when designing the ADU, after ensuring the house has the correct orientation.

Quick image on house orientation

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/76/62/de/7662deccd71a6bea3bfe38048781250a.jpg

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f3/56/b2/f356b2c0ec240968a2b5da4e16d8d8b6.jpg

Since the ADU is for your in-laws, I'd make sure at least the master bath is ADA compliant. I'd also think about designing other areas of the house to still function well if mobility ever becomes an issue (eg, if they ever need a cane, a walker, or a wheelchair). I'd consider removing one of those bathrooms so a bedroom is larger and gives them more options; maybe they could do an indoor workout room to stay healthy as they age, or maybe they want a crafts room like my own mother-in-law, etc; it just gives them more options.

Fwiw, there are only 2 of us who live here and 2 bathrooms are plenty. The house is 3b 2ba 1,242 sq ft but lives large. We host a lot of get togethers and this layout has worked fantastic for entertaining. We've made the "master bedroom" into another public space, our large office, which works well since it's off the living room.

Hope this helps with more food for thought!

@Sarah

Thank you so much for the drawing and photos. That high ceiling is very beautiful. I love how you have the windows. Very nice!!. I learned how important is the orientation house. Also about being smart about running the pipes in one line. Very good. I will save your drawing and your notes for the future.

If you do not mind, can you share the architecture's information who did this awesome design.

Thank you so much. I do really appreciate it.

@Sam A Unfortunately I'm not sure of the original architect since the house was built in the '70s and we're the third owners to have purchased it.

If I was looking to build an ADU for family, personally I'd speak with some local architects who specialize in ADUs in my area. They can help you think about a million factors you'd never have considered with this project and best plan the ADU in a way that keeps you on budget and better meets your in-laws needs than a standardized plan that doesn't take YOUR building site and needs into consideration.

I've spoken extensively with an experienced architect friend when we were considering a big house renovation/addition to our previous home. I learned "form follows function." That means the shape and layout etc of the house design process comes AFTER you've identified all of the constraints you're solving for.

Off the top of my head, the constraints can include:

-Where utilities enter your property
-Any ordinances / setbacks after a survey
-Any foundation specifics based on soil samples / lot slope etc
-Permeable surface requirements, energy code requirements, building height limitations, etc for your city / county / HOA
-House orientation, climate, relationship to nearby structures
-Placement of water lines, electrical and lighting plan, gas lines, solar panels, etc
-Any plants or views you want or legally need to protect during development
-ADA or other aging in place accomodations
-Exterior and interior building materials choices based on energy efficiency, local availability, building timeline, and budget
-Layouts based on how they live in a house, how much storage space they'll actually need in retirement, etc
-Areas of the plan to "splurge" on and areas to conserve on

Some brief reading you might find useful on residential building constraints:

https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Constraints on construction projects

Residential architects should also be very familiar with "aging in place" design choices, things the layperson like us would never think of. For instance, not putting washer/dryer access in a hallway side wall where a person in a wheelchair can't easily open the bifold doors and machine doors while in their wheelchair.

Great article on aging in place design:
https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/aging-in-place-guide

Anyway, hope all this helps! There are always so many factors and even tiny detail to plan.

I would definitely nix one of the bedrooms and bathrooms in favor of more living area, like a proper dining room. Look for a different plan.

@weedyacres You are right, 3 bedrooms/3 bathrooms layout is too tight. I searched around and I found another pre approved plan for 1200 sf for San Diego, CA. The whole idea is get feedbacks and suggestions, then I know what I am talking about when I talk to the architecture. Basically, trying to find what is a good plan for 1200 sf.

Thanks for your input and feedbacks.

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to everyone!!. Hoping 2021 will be much better than 2020.

@Sarah I like your floor plan, it makes the space looks big. I like how when you enter you side the end of the house instead of looking at wall. How is the noise control in the master bedroom when someone is using the Living space, since there is no hallway and door opens straight to the living space?

Thanks for your help

@Sam A We've never had a problem with noise in the master bedroom (which we use as our office) because there are only 2 of us living here and when we have guests we're both chatting with them anyway. We never hear any noise from the kitchen in the master bedroom/office.

Our TV is right outside the master bedroom/office, but if only one of us is watching then we'll use bluetooth earpods / headphones. My husband also set up bluetooth headphones for his parents to their TV and they used them frequently when only one person wanted to watch TV. I'd highly recommend this set up, especially if one person is hard of hearing like my FIL. My MIL hated the TV always being incredibly loud when she was trying to read or craft, so the headphones were a great compromise for them! ha

If noise is a concern for that room I'm sure you could add some extra insulation / sound proofing on the adjoining wall and a thick door.

We are also in the process of building a ADU for my mom. I’m working with a designer on the floor plan. We are on 2.5 acres and are allowed up to 1250 sq ft house. This is the house design so far, it is at 1020 sq ft, 2 bed, 2 bath. I think I will be moving the front door to the left side.

@Kim Thank you for sharing the floor plan and ideas. I would like to get this one right the first time, since the approval process takes so long down here in California.

Are you OK with the master bedroom door opens straight to the living room?

Would it make sense to move the toilet by the wall, so you can add Grip Bar?

It looks good!!. Please let us know your final layout.

Again, Thank you for sharing and Happy New Year.

@Kim

One more thing, have you thought about aging in place?

Here is preapproved plan to check out

https://www.danville.ca.gov/868/Downloadable-ADU-Plans

https://www.danville.ca.gov/ImageRepository/Document?documentId=5437

Thanks,

Sam, I think we are ok with the master opening into the living room, the condo she has now is similar. Good idea on the toilet placement, thanks! Good luck to you on your project!

These are small custom homes.

@Sarah if you do not mind, what is the orientation of your house. I see light sunlight through the living. Is that East or West? Thank you!!

Hello @Jeffrey R. Grenz, General Contractor

I did not know they were custom homes. How can you tell?

As builder who sees many plans, how do you like the 1000 square feet plan?

plan:

https://www.danville.ca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/5716/2-CO-RD-P-8-27-20-WM-PDF

brochure:

https://www.danville.ca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/5439/Brochure-for-Craftsman-2-Bed-2-Bath-1000SF-PDF?bidId=

Thanks,

I think the plans are well thought out and nicer than the first 3/2 single level tract home I bought and lived in for a while. Not the typical prefab box many ADU sellers pitch, but ADUs have many separate purposes.