The 6 Steps Between You and the ADU of Your Dreams

If you’re thinking about adding an ADU to your property, then let us be the first to congratulate you on your foresight! ADUs are an excellent way to give you and your family some extra living space, or as a rental unit to earn consistent monthly income. The San Diego area is in desperate need of housing and ADU rentals continue to be creative and efficient solutions to help combat this problem. Perhaps you would like to learn more about what it takes to add an ADU to your property. Let’s walk you through OneStop ADU’s process to make homeowners such as yourself, make their backyard dream home a reality.

Here are the six basic steps:

Step 1: Feasibility Study & Initial Consultation
Once you’ve contacted us with your desire to build an ADU, we’ll prepare a Feasibility Study, an in-depth analysis of your property, your lot, and the zoning for your particular area. That will help determine what the best options would be for you in terms of location and size of the ADU. Then we meet with you in person to review the Feasibility Study and discuss what you have in mind as well as the options and the costs we can offer.

Step 2: Model Selection & Contract
Once we meet with you, you’ll have some (fun) decisions to make. We offer three exterior styles: Contemporary, Craftsman, and Spanish/Mediterranean and sizes from Studio to 4 -Bedrooms. You will be able to choose the exterior style and interior finishes to customize your dream ADU. You have many options to suit your desired look and size that works best for your needs and budget. Once you’ve made your initial selections, we estimate the project and seal the deal with a contract. Don’t worry, you’ll be able to adjust interior finishes after permitting if needed.

Step 3: Survey & Plans
After you have your property surveyed, we prepare the plans that will be submitted to the city for approval. There is the initial review of the plans, and once they are approved by you, we’ll take the next very important step. Since OneStop ADU has pre-designed plans, we can move quickly through this stage of the process.

Step 4: Permitting
Often, this is the most complicated step, but we are very familiar with the process. We’ll submit your completed plans to the city on your behalf and then expedite your building permit to the best of our ability. This could take a number of weeks, depending on your city/county review time. It’s possible the city will have some corrections to make to your plans after the first round of review. We’ll adjust as needed and then resubmit on your behalf. Once your permit is granted, all that’s left is to get your ADU built.

Step 5: Final Finishes and Lock Down Pricing. Financing (if applicable)
Now that you’ve got your freshly permitted plans in hand, you have final choices to make. You can decide on the interior finishes —we take pride in our carefully curated options. Then with all of the decisions made, we’ll confirm final pricing and lock it down. If you need financing, we can connect you with experienced local lenders who can help.

Step 6: Construction
The OneStop ADU team will provide you with a timeline, so you know what to expect. Our office coordinator will communicate with you as the timeline progresses to make sure you’re kept up to date on everything happening with your ADU. Watch your new ADU come to life every step of the way! Once the dust settles, you’re left to admire the ADU of your dreams. Enjoy it right away, move in Mom and Dad, or hand the keys to a tenant and start collecting rental income.

It’s all up to you. If you decide to rent it out, our sister company, Onyx Property Management, can help with that process as well.

If you are considering an ADU and have more questions or would like to schedule an in-person meeting and a complimentary feasibility study of your property, contact us by phone at 858-437-8476, or email at info@onestopadu.com.