What agents should know about homes with ADUs

A home with an ADU raises questions a single-family listing does not. Was it permitted? Can it be rented? Does the buyer have to live there? Can they build another one? This guide covers what to check before you list, what the listing can and cannot say, and what ADUCheck gives agents for free. It is not legal advice; for disclosure questions, talk to your broker or a real estate attorney.

Permitted or not

Start with the permit. Ask the seller for the building permit and the final inspection for the ADU, and check the city's permit records for the address. In the City of Los Angeles, that is LADBS. Compare what you find with what the assessor shows: a property the assessor counts as two homes, with only one on the permit record, needs an answer before the listing goes live.

If the ADU was built without permits, there may be a path. Under AB 2533 (2024, in effect from January 1, 2025), an ADU built without permits before January 1, 2020 can be legalized. The city can require only health and safety fixes, and it may waive fees (ADUCheck rules, section 11). LADBS published Information Bulletin P/BC 2026-161 on July 28, 2026, a streamlined way to permit these ADUs and junior ADUs, with an optional third-party inspection and impact fee exemptions. Work done after January 1, 2020 goes through the regular permit path. Our garage conversion guide shows the evidence LADBS accepts for the construction date.

Legalizing takes time, and not every structure qualifies. A listing should describe the ADU as it is today, not as it might be once a permit is issued.

What the seller and agent disclose

California's Department of Real Estate describes two duties that matter here. The seller completes a disclosure statement covering the property's physical condition and known hazards or defects. The agent must also visually inspect the property and disclose readily observable defects. An ADU's permit history, its condition and any work done without permits are the kind of facts buyers expect to see.

What exactly to write, and how, is a question for your broker or a real estate attorney. Fire zones add their own rules for sellers; the fire check for sellers explains what applies.

What the listing can and cannot say

Describe the ADU plainly: its size, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, whether it has its own entrance, and whether it was permitted. Then keep to what the rules support.

What a listing can say, with the source:

• Owner occupancy. State law does not allow an owner-occupancy rule for an ADU. A junior ADU needs the owner to live on the property only if it shares a bathroom with the main home (ADUCheck rules, section 5).
• Rentals. Junior ADUs and conversion ADUs must rent for more than 30 days, and a city may apply the same rule to other ADUs. Do not market an ADU as a short-term rental without checking the city's rules.
• Room for more. On a single-family property, a conversion ADU, a junior ADU and a detached ADU can be built together. A home that already has one may have room for another; the property report shows which kinds fit.

What a listing should not say:

• That the ADU adds a set amount to the home's value, or any value at all. That is an appraiser's question.
• That the ADU can be sold separately. ADUCheck never says this. A buyer who asks should talk to a real estate attorney.
• That a permit for more work is guaranteed. A report is not a permit.
• That the property qualifies for more homes. Say it "may qualify", and that a review decides.
• A rent figure presented as a promise. A rent estimate is a guide, with its source and date.

In the City of Los Angeles, rent control can matter too. A property with two or more homes on one parcel whose certificate of occupancy dates on or before October 1, 1978 is generally covered by the Rent Stabilization Ordinance; a single-family home alone on its parcel is exempt. If a listing may be covered, tell buyers to ask LAHD before they count on rent or plans (ADUCheck rules, section 16).

The property report and the listing kit

ADUCheck gives agents a free property card for any Los Angeles listing at aducheck.com/agents. It shows buyers the zone, which kinds of ADU fit, the pre-approved plans that fit and what an ADU nearby could rent for, with the agent's name, brokerage and DRE license number on it. Every fact carries its source and the date it was read.

The listing kit is sent in one email once your DRE license number matches the Department of Real Estate's list of current licenses:

• The report PDF, with your name, to attach to the MLS.
• A flyer PDF to print for open houses.
• A photo for the MLS, without agent branding.
• An image for social posts.

The card also comes with a link and a QR code, so buyers at an open house can open the full report on their phone.

ADUCheck gives full reports for the City of Los Angeles and the City of San Diego. Every other city gets a report under the state rules, labelled as such, because local rules can differ. The free fire check covers the hazard zone, the department that inspects and past fires nearby.

Questions buyers ask

Can I rent the ADU? Yes, for more than 30 days in the cases above. Check the city's short-term rental rules and, in Los Angeles, whether rent control applies.

Do I have to live here? Not because of the ADU. Only a junior ADU that shares a bathroom with the main home brings an owner-occupancy rule.

Can I build another ADU? Possibly. The report shows which kinds still fit and where a detached ADU could go.

Is the ADU legal? Show the permit and final inspection. If there are none, explain the AB 2533 path and suggest the buyer ask the city.

Could this property hold more homes? It may. The report shows "Room for more than one home: may qualify" when the property looks promising, and Vivienda reviews properties with room for more homes. See SB 9 and more than one home.

To see what a listing's buyers will see, check the address in the free property report, or make a property card on the agents page.

A guide is a starting point, not a permit or legal advice. Confirm permit history with the city and disclosure duties with your broker before you list.