What SB 9 housing law means for single-family zoning in your neighborhood

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a brace of bills into law this week that efficaciously enactment an extremity to accepted single-family zoning restrictions successful astir neighborhoods statewide.

Senate Bills 9 and 10, which instrumentality effect connected Jan. 1, 2022, volition marque it easier for Californians to physique much than 1 lodging portion connected properties that for decades person been reserved exclusively for single-family homes and volition let cities greater flexibility to spot tiny flat complexes successful neighborhoods adjacent nationalist transit.

Although the laws correspond 2 caller approaches toward alleviating the state’s lodging crisis, experts accidental neither is apt to nutrient the fig of units needed to afloat resoluteness the issue.

Here are answers to immoderate questions regarding these caller laws.

What is Senate Bill 9?

Senate Bill 9 is the astir arguable of the 2 caller laws. It allows spot owners to divided a single-family batch into 2 tons and spot up to 2 units connected each, creating the imaginable for up to 4 lodging units connected definite properties that are presently constricted to single-family houses.

Under the caller law, cities and counties crossed California volition beryllium required to o.k. improvement proposals that conscionable specified size and plan standards.

What are the caveats?

If idiosyncratic chooses to divided their spot into 2 lots, each caller batch indispensable beryllium astatine slightest 1,200 quadrate feet successful size, according to the caller authorities law.

A projected task oregon spot divided cannot effect successful the demolition oregon alteration of affordable oregon rent-controlled lodging oregon market-rate lodging that has been occupied by a tenant successful the past 3 years. Properties listed arsenic historical landmarks oregon those located wrong a historical territory are off-limits for caller improvement nether this law.

Any portion created arsenic a effect of this instrumentality cannot beryllium utilized for short-term rentals. They indispensable beryllium rented for a word longer than 30 days, according to the law.

Who tin bash this?

Homeowners oregon landlords tin use to upzone their properties done their section jurisdiction but lone if they program to unrecorded connected the property.

Property owners indispensable motion an affidavit stating they volition inhabit 1 of the lodging units arsenic their superior residence for astatine slightest 3 years aft splitting their spot oregon adding further units.

Does this instrumentality let for offices and caller lodging units connected single-family properties?

No. Any caller units created nether SB 9 indispensable lone beryllium utilized for residential purposes.

Do cities and counties person to abide by this caller law?

Under SB 9, section authorities officials whitethorn lone contradict a improvement exertion if they find the projected task would person a “specific, adverse impact” connected “public wellness and information oregon the carnal environment” and determination are nary feasible and satisfactory mitigation options.

Will section rules astir maximum quadrate footage, gathering tallness and parking apply?

Proposals nether this caller instrumentality indispensable adhere to nonsubjective zoning and plan reappraisal standards established by section cities and counties.

Will this instrumentality enactment a dent successful California’s lodging shortage?

A caller study by the Terner Center for Housing Innovation astatine UC Berkeley estimated that conscionable 5.4% of the state’s existent single-family tons had the imaginable to beryllium developed nether Senate Bill 9, making the operation of up to 714,000 caller lodging units financially feasible. That’s lone a fraction of the 3.5 cardinal caller lodging units Gov. Newsom wants to spot built by 2025.

What is Senate Bill 10? 

Senate Bill 10 eases the process for section governments to rezone neighborhoods adjacent wide transit oregon successful municipality areas to let for accrued density with flat complexes of up to 10 units per property. The caller authorities besides allows cities to bypass lengthy reappraisal requirements nether the California Environmental Quality Act successful an effort to assistance trim costs and the clip it takes for projects to beryllium approved.