What AB 976 Does.
Permanently eliminates the sunset on owner-occupancy restrictions for ADUs, meaning local agencies cannot require property owners to live on-site to build or rent out an ADU for any permits issued after January 1, 2025. This makes permanent what had been a temporary prohibition under previous legislation, significantly expanding rental ADU investment potential.
What It Means For You.
The owner-occupancy ban is permanent: no city can ever require you to live on the property as a condition of your ADU permit. Buy, build, and rent both homes if you want.
The Official Summary.
Below is the Legislative Counsel's Digest, the official plain-language summary that accompanies every California bill.
The Planning and Zoning Law, among other things, provides for the creation of accessory dwelling units by local ordinance, or, if a local agency has not adopted an ordinance, by ministerial approval, in accordance with specified standards and conditions. Existing law requires a local ordinance to require an accessory dwelling unit to be either attached to, or located within, the proposed or existing primary dwelling, as specified, or detached from the proposed or existing primary dwelling and located on the same lot as the proposed or existing primary dwelling.
Existing law authorizes a local agency to require an accessory dwelling unit to be used for rentals of terms longer than 30 days.
This bill, instead, would authorize a local agency to require terms that are 30 days or longer.
Show The Full Digest
Existing law, beginning January 1, 2025, authorizes a local agency to impose an owner-occupancy requirement on an accessory dwelling unit, provided that the accessory dwelling unit was not permitted between January 1, 2020, and January 1, 2025.
This bill would instead prohibit a local agency from imposing an owner-occupancy requirement on any accessory dwelling unit.
This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 65852.2 of the Government Code proposed by AB 1033 to be operative only if this bill and AB 1033 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.