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Accessory dwelling units · Olympia, Lacey, Tumwater

Your lot may already be worth more than you think.

Washington changed the rules on second homes on a single lot. Find out what yours allows, in writing, before you spend a dollar.

Request
the report

ADU Feasibility Report · $350 Credited to your plan set. Delivered in writing within five business days.

What the law now allows inside city limits

  • 2 ADUs permitted per lot in urban areas
  • 1,000 sf minimum size cities must allow
  • None owner-occupancy requirement
  • Capped impact fees, by statute

RCW 36.70A.681. Each city applies it through its own code; the report cites yours.

What a second unit does for the property

  • A place for family Parents nearby, an adult kid, a caregiver. On your land, on your terms.
  • Income the property carries A permitted unit can be rented. The report gives you the local number, sourced, not promised.
  • Value that shows up at sale A second permitted dwelling is an asset a buyer can finance.
  • Options for later Downsize into the small house and let the big one work.

What stays the same if you wait

  • The lot keeps its potential locked The rules changed. Most owners haven't checked what they now own.
  • Every year costs a year of use Rent not collected, family not housed, value not built.
  • Guessing gets expensive People spend tens of thousands on plans and builders before learning the setback, the septic, or the sewer connection decides it.
  • The city's rules keep moving Fee schedules and code cycles change. What's allowed today is what we can document today.

How it works

  1. The report We pull your parcel: zoning, lot size, setbacks, critical areas, water and sewer or septic, and the city's ADU rules. You get a written verdict: yes, yes with conditions, or no, and why.
  2. The city, before the drawings On a yes, we sit in on the city's pre-application meeting with you. The building official confirms what the report found before you commit to a plan set.
  3. The plan set A complete permit set, fixed price, your $350 credited. Or the through-acceptance set, where we field every city comment until the permit is accepted, and part of the fee isn't owed until it is.

ADU Feasibility Report

$350 credited to your plan set

If the answer is no, you'll know why. If the answer is yes and the city later contradicts a finding that was in the public record, the report is refunded and no drawing fee is charged.

  • Zoning, lot coverage, and setbacks for your parcel
  • Critical areas, wetlands, and slopes on record
  • Water, sewer or septic, and what a second unit needs
  • Your city's ADU size, height, and placement rules, cited
  • The three things that decide the cost of your build
  • A written verdict and the next step
Request the report

Questions people ask first

What if the report says no?
Then you've spent $350 instead of a plan set you couldn't use, and you know exactly why. Sometimes the no has a fix; the report says so.
Do I have to live on the property?
No. State law removed the owner-occupancy requirement inside urban areas.
Who draws the plans?
Mink Solutions prepares residential plan sets under Washington's design exemption for dwellings of four units or fewer. Engineered elements go to a licensed engineer. I am not an architect, and I'll tell you if your project needs one.
What does a set cost?
From $2,500 for a complete permit set. Through-acceptance sets, where I field city comments until approval, from $3,500. Both in writing, dated, before you decide.
Feasibility findings are based on public records as of the report date; the building official makes the final determination.