Roundup of 2025 ADU State Laws

👉Now that the 2025 season has come to an end, let's do a quick ADU news roundup from around the states. 

🪨Massachusetts. Statewide, ADUs are now by right, and now Governor Healey's administration is backing ADUs with a statewide ADU design challenge and $10 million state initiative to reduce pre-development friction and low interest ADU loans. This matters because Massachusetts is shifting from legalization to enablement. 

🐻California. Continued limits on local fees and delays, the state is really cracking down on those, expanded pre-approved ADU plan programs, and importantly, state-backed ADU financing programs. This matters because California is now in the second phase of ADU policy optimization, not just adoption. 

🪶Washington State. Washington passed middle housing reforms that require most cities to allow two units per lot with more near transit and expands where ADUs are permitted. It matters because ADUs are becoming part of a broader density strategy, not just a little exception. 

🦫Oregon. The focus this past year in 2025 was on reducing system development charges and streamlining permit timelines. In some cities, ADUs are making up 20 to 30% of the new residential permits. Why this matters? Oregon's showing what happens when fees, not zoning, become the bottleneck. 

🐴Colorado. Several of the Front Range cities like Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins are expanding by-right ADUs and allowing ADUs in more zone types, and the state lawmakers are debating now stronger statewide overrides to force consistency. Why this matters? Patchwork rules are now the political target. 

🗽New York. There is not a statewide standard yet, and financing and permitting remain major obstacles, but we are seeing some progress in some of the Upstate cities. New York City itself continues to pilot ADU programs as well, focus more on basements and conversions. Why this matters? New York clearly has demand, but is very early in execution. 

🐊 Florida. ADUs are gaining traction, it is still city by city. Focus areas are on workforce housing and multi-generational living. Momentum is building, it seems, towards a statewide mandate, we're just not there yet. Why it matters? The Sunbelt states are starting to follow the coastal playbook. 

👉👉Big picture ADU policy. ADUs are no longer a fringe policy, and the question is moving from, should we allow ADUs, to why are we not building more of them? 

📈 Look for continued momentum here in 2026. We'll update you with the ADU news.

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