Modern Garage Conversion ADU in Los Angeles

A homeowner in LA's San Fernando Valley had a quaint home with a garage out back that was underutilized. Having heard the news about the Los Angeles ADU boom and seeing them popping up everywhere, he became interested in creating a modern space for a home office and a place he could have for personal or family use, or to rent out. Reusing the garage seemed sensible, economical, and sustainable.

Los Angeles garages are a great opportunity for ADUs, especially with recent statewide and local regulation changes that have reduced legal roadblocks to building an ADU. However, as the homeowner discovered through his research, garage conversion ADUs have some questions to consider during the initial project stages. When the homeowner had his first consultation with Cottage, he soon found that the Cottage team was well equipped to help answer his questions and define a path forward.

First off, the Cottage team worked with the homeowner to identify whether the garage was suitable to convert into an ADU at all. It turned out that part or all of the existing garage structure could indeed be reused, but as with many garage conversions, a number of upgrades would be required in order to make the space habitable – after all, the original garage, first constructed over half a century ago, was designed as a place to park cars, not to live in.

Secondly, as a typical example of a two-car garage in Los Angeles, the garage space was only about 300 to 400 square feet – that’s enough square footage for a studio or a one-bedroom scheme, but adding an office and keeping a layout that felt roomy enough was challenging with the existing footprint.

Thus, the Cottage team worked with the homeowner to come up with a plan that incorporated an addition to the garage, thereby opening up the overall living area and allowing for the home office as well. Importantly, the Cottage team took care to design the entrances appropriately: the home office has its own separate entrance to the outside, so that the homeowner can work in the home office and have the living and bedroom areas for personal use or for renting out.

A big win for the project overall was the swift permitting timeline. The project secured permits in under three months from the City of Los Angeles Planning Department, which is extremely fast considering the city receives a large number of permitting requests and is known for long permitting times.

“I live in the City of Los Angeles, where I believe this jurisdiction has the toughest standards for building approvals,” said the homeowner. “To date, Cottage has taken complete control of all aspects of the job and make it very, very non-stressful."

At Cottage, we believe in providing homeowners the best ADU experience possible from start to finish. From the initial feasibility and planning conversations to design to permitting to construction, we're here to guide your project from start to finish.

Interested in building a similar attached or detached ADU, or converting an existing garage space? Contact us today by clicking the link below for a free, no-obligation consultation & estimate for your ADU vision with one of our ADU experts!