In May 2024, the Governor of Colorado, Jared Polis, signed into law House Bill 24-1152 to boost the supply of ADU’s (Accessory Dwelling Units) in urban and close-by suburban areas.  The new law goes into effect June 30, 2025.  The law reduces or removes dimensional, floor area, and even style restrictions which forbade ADU’s or greatly reduced the incentive to build one.  In short, of you have a single family property that has the space to accommodate an ADU, you can begin the process now in some municipalties. 

ADU’s are forecasted to increase a property value by 35%, create intergenerational and age-in-place opportunities, enable child care, the rents are typically lower than small homes, and have low impacts on infrastructure (water, sanitary, electric).   ADU’s use less energy per square foot than a typical home and are thus easier to scale up renewables for energy.  

As homeowners, architects, and builders have been reaching out to their local municipalities to get feedback on what the new local land use / development codes might look like in 2025, some local governments (Counties and Cities) are working to get ahead of the curve and begin processes where ADU projects can start the design and permit documentation process now or in the near future! For instance, The City of Fort Collins staff and City Council are working together to approve a review process, an existing process called a “BDR” review, where staff reviews the site and building design to be in accordance with future HR-1152 law before the new local land use code is actually written.   

We can walk projects through these processes and help people get a jump on ADU projects slated for 2025 construction starts.  Our understanding of the process plus our design strengths of making small spaces efficient, connected, and architecturally exciting. 

Below we have a comparison of anticipated changes in Fort Collins and soon, we will post a breakdown of Larimer County changes.   For any project, we can reach out to the local zoning and building departments and inquire about their process for preparing for HR-1125.