New York City Might… Pay You to Build an ADU?

In a new initiative that launched this week, New York City residential building owners could begin receiving financial support to construct new accessory dwelling units (ADUs). The Plus One ADU pilot program provides up to $395,000 to up to 15 eligible single-family homeowners seeking to add a small home to their property by creating a detached unit, basement unit, attic unit, or garage property, or by rehabbing an existing basement unit.  

According to a New York Times story, the program will target areas of the city where zoning permits another unit to be added, but Mayor Eric Adams will be pushing for zoning changes in other areas to encourage more density. Funding for the initiative is coming from a combination of local coffers and state grants, and assistance will target lower-income families making up to 165 percent area median income— homeowners earning up to $233,000 for a family of four will be at the top of the eligibility ceiling, reads the Times story. 

Plus One is a part of Mayor Adams’s moonshot "City of Yes" (a political one-liner indicating modifications to regulations to "say yes" to more new projects) framework that hopes to add 100,000 new housing units to the city over the next 15 years, on top of meeting carbon neutrality and economic development goals. It’s an ambitious program; to meet these housing goals, the mayor’s office is considering major shifts in zoning, parking requirements, and restrictions on shared living spaces, according to Bloomberg, and it hasn’t escaped scrutiny. New York editor Christopher Bonanos foresees challenges from neighborhood groups, which often fight to stop large-scale developments. As for the Plus One program, several news sources have noted that basement units have posed significant threats to occupants when increasingly heavy flooding occurs.  

Similar to recent ADU policies in California, Plus One will not likely be a panacea to local housing woes—in New York more than half of residents are rent-burdened, more than 4,800 New York City Housing Authority units are vacant, and nearly 13,000 rent-controlled units were unoccupied over the past two years. But for lower-income homeowners hoping to house in-laws, age in place, or simply earn some extra income, applications for the program are currently open.  

Related reading:

Trying to Buy? ADU Rental Fees Can Now Be Used as Income to Secure Your Mortgage

Los Angeles Is Giving Away Plans for a Pre-Approved ADU

Top image: C. Taylor Crothers/Getty Images