Nearly two-thirds of California residences are single-family homes, and the housing department director there says the state is on the precipice of single-family zoning functionally not existing.
Owners of single-family lots aren't able to build multiple-unit apartment complexes on their properties. But the new laws allow homeowners to build an additional unit detached from a single-family home and turn part of an existing structure into a third living space. State policies have eased the way for property owners to build such housing by stripping away local government and homeowners' association requirements that previously blocked or slowed construction, and by curtailing other rules that forced homeowners to pay fees, install parking spots or live on the property prior to building the units.
Once the most recent laws take effect Jan. 1, cities and counties will generally only be able to prohibit the construction of accessory dwellings for health and safety reasons, including on properties at high risk of wildfires.
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