Building an ADU in San Jose

[Wayne Brady]

Hello fellow BPers,

I want to start a thread for those interested or is in the process of building an ADU in the city of San Jose. Let's share experiences with the city, utilities, etc!

W

[Jason Hsiao]

The assessed value of your ADU should be close to the cost of building it, or replacement cost. Your basis for land and improvement should stay the same. "Fair market value" is just a fancy way of saying what another person is willing to pay for it. With the high construction costs nowadays it's hard to add that much value, plus ADU's don't sell at the same $/sqft as the regular house, and there's not a steady readily available comparable properties to base valuation so the easiest method is replacement cost.

I hosted a Meetup and wrote about ADU's on my website. I have a few architect friends that have gone through the process in multiple cities. It is definitely a hot (and evolving) topic so thanks to @Wayne Brady for creating a thread. If you have other questions or need referrals shoot me note!