A Refreshed Ordinance Keeps Approvals Predictable.
Burlingame updated its ADU ordinance to stay aligned with state legislation, which makes the process consistent for homeowners: the city must review complete submissions within 60 days, and most permits are approved in three to four months. Current rules are posted on the city's ADU page, with the implementation details in the Ordinance 2035 staff report.
ADUs are allowed on any residential lot with an existing or proposed home, there is no minimum lot size, and California law overrides any local standard that would block a qualifying unit. Not sure where a unit would sit? Check your lot and we'll do the layout work.
Size And Height: The 1,000 Sq Ft Wrinkle.
Burlingame caps both detached and attached ADUs at 1,000 square feet, a bit tighter than neighboring cities. Detached units start at a 16 foot height limit, rising to 18 feet near a major transit stop or on a lot with an existing or proposed multifamily building, and 20 feet if the ADU matches the primary home's roof pitch.
Attached ADUs can go taller: up to 30 feet or the underlying zone's limit, whichever is lower, capped at 25 feet in the Hillside Overlay Zone and never more than two stories. Junior ADUs must be created entirely within the walls of an existing single-family home and are limited to 500 square feet.
Setbacks, Foundations, And Design Standards.
All new ADUs keep 4 foot side and rear setbacks, and detached units typically need 4 feet of separation from other structures. Setbacks do not apply to conversions of existing structures or rebuilds in the same footprint, and flood zones can earn additional height where elevation requires it.
The city's design standards are objective rather than discretionary: every ADU needs a permanent foundation, balconies, rooftop terraces, and second-story decks are out, and where possible the entrance should face the side or rear of the property instead of the main home's street. Most ADUs need one off-street parking space, which can sit in the driveway or setback areas, and the requirement is waived near transit, in historic districts, within a block of car-share, on permit-parking streets, or for units built within existing structures. Garage conversions need no replacement parking, and JADUs never require it.
One Lot, Multiple Units.
Single-family lots can add one detached or attached ADU plus one JADU inside the main home; JADUs are only allowed in single-family residential zones. On multifamily lots, Government Code section 66323 allows up to eight detached ADUs, capped at the number of existing units, plus interior conversion ADUs totaling up to 25 percent of the unit count, with two detached units permitted while a building is still under construction. Multifamily owner? See how Abodu deploys units at scale.
What It Actually Costs.
Peninsula construction pricing is unforgiving: custom site-built ADUs in California routinely exceed $250,000 before change orders, and the number keeps moving until the project ends.
Abodu locks it down with transparent published pricing: homes from $234,800 plus a published installation price, an expected all-in from $298,800 that covers design, permits, factory build, delivery, and installation. See how the process works, or hear from homeowners who already live in theirs.