03-09-26-WS - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Vancouver, British Columbia, allows the separate sale as "strata" (condominium) units alley -fronting "coach houses" on lots with "character" homes (certain ones built before 1940 that are not on a historic register) as a financial incentive to carry out major upgrades needed to bring homes up to current building codes.46 "Condominium" refers not to a type of structure but a form of ownership in which an agreement among the parties defines separate and common areas and establishes standards and procedures governing the common areas. Allowing ADUs to become separately owned condominium units avoids the political reaction of authorizing land divisions to create separate lots W ADUs. But fee simple ownership is less complicated and easier to finance and sell than condominiums. As a matter of terminology and logic, it would be confusing to call a detached dwelling "accessory" to a principal dwelling if that dwelling is on a separate lot with separate ownership. The Model Local ADU Ordinance leaves this policy question open, providing as alternatives the allowance of and prohibition of the separate sale of ADUs. N. Owner Occupancy (Residency) Standards Requirements that the owner live on the some property (whether in the primary dwellings or the ADU) are pervasive. The 2000 edition of the AARP Model Local ADU Ordinance noted: "Many communities monitorADUs to ensure that the owner still lives on the premises. A variety of methods are used to do this monitoring including registration of occupants, certification of occupancy, and annual licensing of rental units with annual inspections. Other communities require ADU owners to record the requirements of the ADU ordinance as deed restrictions, particularly the owner -occupancy requirement. The deed restrictions accompany the title of the property and give notice to all subsequent buyers of the occupancy requirement." Owner occupancy covenants or conditions give pause to homeowners or institutions financing home purchases because of the limits they place on successive owners who will not be able to rent out or lease their main house, which might be necessary as a result of a divorce, job transfer or death. They can also make financial institutions reluctant to provide financing for construction of the ADU. Finally, because a covenant or condition serves as a restriction on a mortgage lender's security interest in the property, the mortgage lender can withhold consent to any requirement that takes the form of a covenant, which means the local government would be required to deny the application to build an ADU.41 The practical impact of the occupancy requirement is to inhibit construction of mostADUs. That conclusion is reflected in amendments to California's and Oregon's ADU legislation and in Seattle's 2019 local code revisions. Aside from its effect on ADU production, there is a problem with the logic and fairness of applying an occupancy standard to ADUs if there is no such requirement for single-family homes generally. If single-family homes can be rented out (by a nonresident owner), then what is the policy basis for requiring occupancy when there is an ADU on the property? One of the justifications for the owner occupancy requirement is the assertion that owners take better care of their property than nonresident owners. But there are certainly resident homeowners who do not take care of their property and nonresident owners who keep their property in excellent condition. The 2020 Model State ADUAct treats ADUs as an equal and important type of housing that, in general, should be subject to the some set of rules that governs the use of other housing. ADUs should not be treated as an inferior form of housing that requires additional restrictions and policing. Authorizations of or prohibitions on renting out 42 1 HARP - Accessory Dwelling Units: Model State Act and Local Ordinance