A second unit on your lot can bring in rent, and it adds permitted, livable square footage to a property you already own. What that is worth depends on your street and what you want the unit to do — which is a conversation, not a calculator.
An ADU is not a converted basement or a room over the garage. It is a separate, permitted dwelling with its own entrance — and that is the difference a tenant, an appraiser and a future buyer all price differently.
Why ADUs command a premium: Detached ADUs offer what a converted basement cannot: a private entry, no shared walls, dedicated outdoor space, and new-construction finishes. That is why they sit apart from the rest of the rental stock — and why they keep doing so at resale.
Beyond rental income, an ADU changes what your property is worth.
A permitted, inspected ADU adds livable square footage to your property record rather than sitting outside it. An appraiser counts that space; an unpermitted conversion does not get the same treatment.
Properties with ADUs attract a wider buyer pool: investors see rental income, families see multigenerational flexibility, remote workers see a dedicated office. In competitive Front Range markets, this differentiation matters at resale.
Your ADU construction cost becomes part of your property's tax basis, which matters when you sell. How that plays out depends on your situation — your tax advisor is the right person to ask.
The first step is knowing which plan sizes fit your property. Our free finder checks your lot against the zoning your own jurisdiction publishes — eighteen of them across the Front Range.
Keep exploring
ADU rules by city
Cited, city-by-city ADU rules across the Front Range.
Questions answered
Allowed, how big, what it costs, how long — answered from the adopted codes.
How the finder works
What to type, what you get back, and what it deliberately will not tell you.
ADUs for family
Aging parents, multigenerational living, childcare.
How to finance an ADU
HELOC, construction loans, and CHFA options.
Process & timeline
What to expect from contract to move-in.
Floor plans & pricing
Five plans, three finish grades, five architectural styles.
About Addwell
Who we are and how we build.