We have a housing crisis in the United States. There are simply not enough dwellings for all the people who need them. While there are multiple causes for the crisis, one of them is “zombie zoning.” Zombie zoning is the requirement that prohibits anything other than a single-family house on land in a specific zone. You’ve seen the results all over the United States. Huge swatches of land – usually suburbs with single-family homes and no stores, no multiple-family housing, and no businesses. Zombie-zoning requires that residents get into their cars and drive for everything.
Smart people looking at this issue have realized that one way to allow more housing within a single-family-only zoning district is to encourage homeowners to create Accessory Dwelling Units, often simply called ADUs. An ADU is by definition additional living quarters on single-family lots that are independent of the primary dwelling unit. They are also called granny flats, accessory apartments, or second units. ADUs can fit very nicely within a existing building or residential lot in a way that doesn’t change the character of the house or neighborhood.
Types of Accessory Dwelling Units
There are all sorts of ways that an ADU can be built. This diagram from the New Hampshire Housing ADU Guide for Municipalities shows six common options.
Betty’s Accessory Dwelling Unit
Betty lives in a lovely, well-built, basement ADU that was created by her son and daughter-in-law. In her 80’s now, she moved to it after she had a fall, and it was decided that she should no longer live on her own.
It’s a great example of making space in an existing building. Because the house sits on a hill, the basement has an (almost) ground-level door. Betty’s apartment occupies about a half of the basement. She has a kitchen, full bath, sitting room, bedroom and a insulated porch. It’s probably all of 400 square feet.
She is surrounded by the ducks and other birds her second husband carved, some of which won first class in competitions.
Ramay
Another common option for an ADU is to build it in a garage or above a garage. That’s what Ramay did on her property. She did it because she needed the income, but she was really nervous about sharing her property with another person. Despite her misgivings she went ahead. When it became time for her to find a tenant she posted her notice on a local email list. She found the perfect person, a local teacher who in leaving a relationship was in need of an affordable rental in the community. To Ramay’s surprise she discovered that it felt good to know that another person was around and would be aware if something were to happen to her.
ADU Resources and Grants
Whether within an existing dwelling or adjacent building there are many ways to convert existing housing stock to create an ADU. Building ADUs, creating more living space, is a sensible solution to the problems of scarcity and cost. Some states have recognized this and passed ADU legislation that overrides local zoning regulations. Some states such as California are offering grant money to help homeowners build ADUs. Vermont has a pilot program in the state capitol. A volunteer-run list of ADU regulations can be found here. (Note: The site owner acknowledges that it is not up to date but is the most comprehensive list on the web.)
Is it Enough?
But here’s the thing – despite the lovely surroundings that Betty’s family has provided her, and despite the fact that her son and daughter-in-law live upstairs, she is lonely. They go to work and have their own lives. She doesn’t drive anymore. She’s isolated on a lovely country road in Vermont. ADUs are an answer to a housing shortage, but for many older folks the granny flat could leave them just as isolated as living alone. Shared housing is still a better answer.
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Hi Annamarie, it’s Martin, one of the editors of accessorydwellings.org. Thanks for linking to our site in this post. I’m a little bit confused by it!
I think you bring up some great points, like there is a housing crisis, and antiquated unrealistic zoning doesn’t help. However, I also think the title of this post (“ADUs are not shared housing”) creates a false impression of conflict among these theories of housing. Though occasionally NIMBY’s object to ADUs, I don’t think there is any conflict between the idea of an ADU and the idea of being room-mates. These are just two different ways of housing people.
To me ALL housing is part shared and part independent, whether you’re a hermit on a mountaintop or living in a packed Tokyo “coffin” hotel. There are physical resources that are “private” and “public”, whether they are tiny closets or huge great rooms. And the inhabitants’ relationships interplay with these space rules in lots of ways, and it can play out for better and worse.
Certainly both ADUs and room-mate type arrangements encourage relationships that are closer than might be expected from people who live, say, miles apart. But no physical arrangement can guarantee that those relationships will play out the way you desire, and they definitely can’t guarantee that all of your personal needs will be met!
Your example of Betty describes a person who has a physical space of their own, but perhaps not all the social support one might desire. I’d propose that Betty’s social isolation is a function of geography (living on a country road, car dependent), more than the form of housing! Imagine she had the same ADU in the middle of an urban residential neighborhood with a school nearby.
I’ve experienced both room-mate and private and ADU living firsthand, and I’d say that for my taste, the ADU is a good mix of independence and connection. The ADU is isolated enough I can shut my door and actually feel like I’m by myself — there aren’t footsteps and TV noises . It’s a lot more dignified a feeling than being a room-mate. However, I will admit there were times during room-mate living I was really happy to come home to company.
So it can work lots of ways. Given the housing crisis, I think we need to make it work ALL the ways. If you’d like to talk more about the difference between ADUs and room-mate arrangements, get in touch!
Cheers, Martin
Interesting! The way I see it, whether you share a house with full or partial access, partially or fully divided or separated with the main house, there is still the option of how much time is spent sharing lives or sharing HOME. Renting out a room in the main house, sharing a kitchen could still mean little or no sharing of meals or conversation or home activities. It’s up to those who make these arrangements to work out those details and agreements on how much of a shared relationship they are willing and able to give. Even if Betty lived in the main house and had her own bedroom, shared the kitchen, used the living room, etc. her family would still be at work all day and come home eventually to take care of what’s needed in the evenings after work which often does not include much in the way of social time. There is much to be said for having privacy for both parties in a set up such as hers. To provide social needs which vary widely among everyone, requires an open, honest, communicating, caring, loving, and mature relationship. If they realized she needed more, perhaps they could offer more and if not able to they could find ways to bring others who could into their lives to help with this.
Sharing HOUSING is just that. There is always some degree of also sharing HOME involved once someone is sharing your space physically either inside or outside or both. Disagreeing or not making an agreement on how much or when to share social time is what is often the source of resentment and contention in living together arrangements.
I’m preparing to offer some of all the ways there are to share our home and property here and appreciate your book and work which provides much needed insights into all this!
What a great conversation. Finding that balance and understanding takes time, effort, and willingness to be vulnerable. I see Annamarie’s point about how being in literally shared space can be more conducive to interaction and connection, but I can also definitely relate to being in the same physical presence and space as someone else and still feeling lonely.