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
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
- 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.
- 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.
- 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
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.