One row for each of the county's 19 permit authorities. Every official link was checked on the day shown, and only the authority can confirm the rules for a specific parcel.
Accepts Encinitas's permit-ready plans and the standard plans of the County and Chula Vista, reviewed in 30 days; a designer may also seek pre-approval for a set of their own.
The ADU Home Density Bonus adds bonus units in exchange for deed-restricted affordable ones, and caps ADUs and JADUs together at four, five or six on a single-family lot by lot size; the cap dates from 2025 amendments not yet in effect in the Coastal Overlay Zone.
Most new ADUs in the Coastal Overlay Zone need a Coastal Development Permit, and the 2025 ADU amendments do not apply there until the Coastal Commission certifies them.
Most new ADUs in Carlsbad's Coastal Zone need a minor coastal development permit, which the City Planner decides without a hearing once neighbors have been notified.
Detached ADUs cannot have roof decks, and in the Coastal Zone an uncovered parking space lost to an ADU has to be replaced.
Twelve City Standard plans, six sizes between 498 and 1,199 square feet in mirrored pairs, plus approved private designs, reviewed in 14 business days rather than 21.
ADUs of 750 square feet or more pay development impact fees in proportion to the house, from 2027 on the area above 750 only, and most of those fees can wait until final inspection.
The City's ADU loan pilot for low- and moderate-income owners stopped taking applications in June 2024; you can join an interest list in case funding returns.
Plans in three architectural styles are being prepared; the City expects them by fall 2026, and a draft went before the Planning Commission on July 14, 2026.
Every ADU application is processed as an administrative coastal development permit, under local ADU rules the Coastal Commission certified on June 12, 2025.
The ADU Incentive Program trades incentives for renting your ADU to a low-income household for at least 30 years.
Three City standard plans for detached units (a 560-square-foot studio, a 649-square-foot one-bedroom and an 802-square-foot two-bedroom), drawn to the 2022 codes.
A deferred City loan helps owner-occupants build an ADU that then stays affordable for at least five years; requests since April 1, 2024 are taken in order of arrival.
A February 2025 HCD review flagged ten issues in the City's 2024 ordinance, including attached ADU heights tied to setbacks.
Eight plans by Design Path Studio and DZN Partners, 224 to 1,199 square feet and studio to three bedrooms, and since 2025 a program lets private designers seek pre-approval for their own sets; edits mean standard review.
In the Coastal Zone a new ADU, a conversion of non-habitable space or a garage JADU needs a coastal permit before the building permit, reviewed within 30 calendar days of payment.
Where a parcel lies in the Coastal Commission's own permit area, you apply to the Commission instead of the City.
Five City plans, from a 224-square-foot studio up to a three-bedroom of 1,199 square feet; Planning emails you the construction set on request, and the County's plans are linked too.
A single 797-square-foot design (one story, two bedrooms, detached) drawn to the 2025 codes, with a streamlined 30-day approval and no changes allowed.
In December 2025 HCD told the City that its flat 16-foot height limit for detached ADUs and its rule that an ADU's style complement the house break state law.
Oceanside is certifying its ADU ordinance with HCD, says its earlier local standards no longer apply, and points you to state law and HCD's handbook meanwhile.
HCD's June 2026 findings on the ordinance adopted March 25, 2026 run to 26 items, from parking to setbacks.
A policy since March 4, 2025 lets architects submit plans and promises users a 30-day review, but none had arrived when it was written and none are posted.
Mostly finished City designs for single-story detached ADUs, decided within 30 days once the application is complete; the City won't take a modified set.
San Marcos regulates ADUs under Municipal Code Chapter 20.410; in September 2024 the City filed a notice for a proposed rewrite of that chapter to match state ADU law.
The City's June 2025 handout asks for a copy of the California Coastal Commission's approval letter with a new ADU's building permit application.
In December 2025 HCD called the rule hiding an ADU's entrance from the street subjective, and said the two-ADU cap on multifamily lots falls below the state's limit of up to eight, never more than the existing units.
Four plans from a 499-square-foot studio to a 1,194-square-foot three-bedroom, for lots with an existing house; plan check fees are waived when you use one.
Under Ordinance 2019-11, some impact fees are waived if you record a ten-year agreement to house a lower-income household, or a family member or caregiver who provides regular care, in the ADU.
For the City's plans, grading review by Land Development Engineering comes before plan intake, and a septic lot needs County Health clearance first.
Six County designs between 600 and 1,200 square feet, downloadable in PDF or CAD and about 85 percent complete; a checklist covers what you add for your lot.
Since April 4, 2026 you can sell an ADU as a condominium, and sales since September 18, 2026 add a posting period, a right of first refusal and a buyer's occupancy affidavit.
In July 2026 HCD found five conflicts with state law in the County's ADU rules, among them owner occupancy for every JADU and replacement parking for garage JADUs.
