Small backyard homes gaining in popularity
“Additional dwelling units,” or ADUs, are fast becoming an option to cut down on the high cost of living.
“We're sitting on a lot of existing residential land that people can transform into housing,” said Sarah Cipkar, a housing researcher with Family Services Windsor-Essex.
She said there are over 25,000 residential properties in the City Of Windsor eligible for an ADU.
“That means they can essentially house a minimum size additional dwelling unit which in Windsor is 40 metres squared or 431 square feet,” she explained.
Todd Moore sold his house in downtown Windsor, Ont. to build and live in an ADU in the backyard of his parents’ south Windsor home.
“My parents are getting a little bit older in age so I moved to try and take care of them,” said Moore, whose ADU looks like a detached garage. “I decided to sell my house and build a little ADU in the backyard.”
Based on a zoning by-law formula, Moore's ADU is able to be about 700 square feet or ten per cent of the size of the property -- that's 250 square feet smaller than the downtown home he was living in but it has everything he needs, including a bedroom, bath, kitchen and living room.
“What I made from my house when I sold it more than paid for this,” he said.
Companies like Laneway Housing that specialize in ADU and additions are noticing an increase in demand.
“We're getting a lot of interest in rental properties,” said Anthony Keirouz, Laneway Homes manager. “People who want to put these up in their backyards and potentially make some extra income on them.”
Some companies, like BK Cornerstone, are building ADUs inside the homes using grade entrances to separate the basement from the rest of the house. That is allowing for multi-generational housing or renting.
“I think they're just trying to keep the door open for future planning in a lot of cases,” said BK Cornerstone Vice President Brent Klundert, who said the ADU trend has been growing for the past year-and-a-half.
“Went from probably one out of every 10 houses to now probably one out of every three. So considerably more,” he said.
With an aggressive push by the Ford government to build 1.5 million homes in the next ten years, including 13,000 in the City Of Windsor, Cipkar feels ADUs are an important part of the equation.
“If even one per cent, two per cent, 10 per cent, how many people can build a unit that contributes a lot to our housing supply? It really helps meet those provincial targets,” said Cipkar, who is working on an online tool through Family Services, called adusearch.ca, to help educate and inform people interested in ADUs.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
Crypt near Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner could fetch US$400,000 at auction
A one-space mausoleum crypt in the vicinity of Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner will go on auction Saturday, when it is expected to reach between US$200,000 and $400,000.
This Toronto restaurant is no longer accepting tips. Here's how it's going
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff – tipping is no longer accepted.
A fight to protect the dignity of Michelangelo's David raises questions about freedom of expression
Michelangelo's David has been a towering figure in Italian culture since its completion in 1504. But in the current era of the quick buck, curators worry the marble statue's religious and political significance is being diminished.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Premiers not being truthful about carbon tax, Trudeau says while sparks fly in Ottawa
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Conservative premiers across the country are 'not telling the truth' when it comes to the carbon tax. Trudeau's comments came as fresh sparks were flying in Ottawa at a recalled House of Commons committee.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.