Accessory Dwelling Units: What are They and Who are They For?

In this Living to 100 Club Podcast, we explore the topic of Accessory Dwelling Units, commonly called ADU’s.  Our guest for this conversation is Lisa De Jesus, a leading authority on planning, permitting, and building these secondary living units on your property. Sometimes referred to as granny flats, casitas, and even garage conversions, the “accessory” in the ADU term refers to an “accessory” to an existing home on a single or multi-family lot.

Why is there a push to add ADU’s to your property? Are some parts of the country seeing more of these additions? Who are the typical homeowners making this choice? When do city or county zoning laws come into play, and how does one get the proper building permits? What about costs, and what about returns on these investments? And one of the central questions, where does the resistance or pushback come from. Who is not so welcoming to this trend? Stay informed about one of the hot trends to increase housing stock and be sure to tune in.

Mini Bio

Lisa De Jesus is the owner of ADU Gurus LLC, located in Vista, California. Her company understands everything needed to build an Accessory Dwelling Unit on a single family parcel or a multi-family lot. Her practice offers an understanding of ADU feasibility, parameters for local government acceptance, development impact fee (DIF) waivers, financing, architectural design and construction management. She provides property owners with Structural Plans and Title 24

documentation to obtain permits to build ADUs in any local municipality. Considered the San Diego County "ADU Expert", Lisa is a native San Diegan, a former City of La Mesa Planning Commissioner. She currently sits as a Vista City Council appointed Commissioner on a local Review Board. Her key strength is helping to navigate the complexities of a city's Planning & Building Departments.

Lisa earned an Associate of Arts in Spanish from Grossmont College and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration from San Diego State University. She has a 20+ year interest in and involvement with local government, specifically in density and in-fill.

Items Mentioned for Our Listeners

Lisa's website: ADU Gurus

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