Building an ADU in Culver City. Rules, costs, timeline.

On a single-family lot, three: one conversion ADU carved out of existing space, one newly built detached ADU, and one Junior ADU (CCMC § 17.400.095.E.1). That matches the full state stack at Gov. Code § 66323. On a lot with an apartment building the numbers are much larger — see the multifamily answer below.

Two separate allowances stack. You may convert non-livable space inside the existing building — storage, boiler rooms, passageways, attics, basements, garages — into at least one ADU and up to 25 percent of the existing unit count (Gov. Code § 66323(a)(3)(B)). On top of that you may build up to eight detached ADUs, capped at the number of units already on the lot (§ 66323(a)(4)). A proposed rather than existing building allows two detached. A 12-unit Culver City building could therefore add three conversion units plus eight detached ones.

Yes — and that is genuinely rare. Culver City opted into AB 1033 through CCMC § 17.400.096, added by Ordinance 2026-004 and effective February 9, 2026. An ADU may be sold as a condominium under Gov. Code § 66342. The requirements are substantial: a parcel map or final map to establish the condominium parcels (four or fewer parcels skip the tentative map; five or more need a tentative map and a final one), compliance with the Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act and the Subdivision Map Act, a safety inspection before the condominium plan is recorded — evidenced by a certificate of occupancy or a HUD-certified housing quality standards report — and written lienholder consent. The default across California is that separate sale is not permitted unless a city opts in, so this is a meaningful local advantage.

No. CCMC § 17.400.095.I imposes no parking requirement for an ADU, and § 17.400.095.M.4 imposes none for a Junior ADU. Replacement parking is not required either, so you can convert a garage without rebuilding the spaces. This is a flat waiver, not a list of exemptions you have to qualify for — Culver City goes further than the state floor at Gov. Code § 66322, which only removes parking in specific situations.

The limit is the one that applies to the primary residence in your zone, and R1 and R2 differ. In R1 it is 27 feet to a flat roof, or 30 feet where the roof slopes at 3:12 or steeper. In R2 it is a flat 30 feet regardless of roof form. Other zones allow 30 feet. Both R1 and R2 also cap the unit at two stories, and that limit binds independently of the height figure (CCMC § 17.400.095.F, applying § 17.210.020 Table 2-3). This is an unusually generous envelope — well above the 16-to-20 foot detached floor state law guarantees — and it is why a full two-story ADU is a normal design here rather than an exception.

A detached ADU may be up to 850 square feet for a studio or one-bedroom, and 1,200 square feet with two or more bedrooms. An attached ADU takes the same caps or 50 percent of the primary dwelling, whichever is less. An ADU created entirely within the existing house has no size cap at all. The minimum for any ADU is 150 square feet, and a Junior ADU is capped at 500 (CCMC § 17.400.095.B–C, M.1). On height, an attached ADU takes the primary-residence limit for your zone, but Gov. Code § 66321(b)(4)(D) sets a floor underneath that: 25 feet, or the height limit that applies to your primary dwelling if that is lower. A zone limit below 25 feet cannot be used to push an attached ADU below the primary dwelling’s own allowance.

Four feet from side and rear lot lines where the ADU abuts a residential zone, and only two feet where it abuts a mixed-use or special-purpose zone, a street, or an alley (CCMC § 17.400.095.L). An ADU created within an existing structure needs no setback at all beyond what fire safety requires. The two-foot allowance on alley-facing lots is more generous than the state floor and is worth designing around on Culver City’s many alley-served parcels.

No. CCMC § 17.400.095.K imposes no owner-occupancy requirement on an ADU, matching the state prohibition at Gov. Code § 66315. For a Junior ADU, owner-occupancy applies only where the unit shares sanitation facilities with the main house, per Gov. Code § 66333 as narrowed by AB 1154 on January 1, 2026. Culver City’s ordinance was already written that way, so there is no gap between the local rule and the state rule.

Yes — it is the most current ordinance among the cities we cover. CCMC § 17.400.095 runs through Ordinance 2026-004, incorporates the Gov. Code § 66323 statewide exemption ADU directly, already reflects the SB 1211 multifamily counts and the AB 1154 Junior ADU narrowing, and adds the AB 1033 condominium option. The ordinance also carries its own supremacy clause stating that Gov. Code §§ 66310–66342 override any conflicting portion of it.

Our Signature plan fees are fixed, and cover architectural design and full permit processing. Construction is separate and depends on the model, the site, and your contractor. City permit and impact fees are paid to Culver City on top of both. An ADU of 750 square feet of interior livable space or less is exempt from impact fees entirely under Gov. Code § 66311.5(c)(1); above that, fees must be proportional to the size of your main house rather than a flat per-unit charge.

Yes, and it is one of the better markets in Los Angeles County for it. The 27-foot flat and 30-foot pitched envelope in R1 and R2 comfortably accommodates a two-story detached unit, which lets you put a 1,200 square foot program on roughly half the ground footprint. On a typical Culver City lot that difference is the difference between keeping a usable back garden and losing it.

State law gives the City 15 business days to determine whether your application is complete, in writing, and 60 days from completeness to approve or deny it (Gov. Code § 66317). Review is ministerial — no hearing, no discretionary design review. Plan for the overall project to run longer than the statutory clocks: design and construction documents come first, and your turnaround on any plan-check comments is usually what drives the total. Budget six to twelve months from first drawing to permit in hand.

No. Rentals of 30 days or less are prohibited. Gov. Code § 66323(e) requires a local agency to impose a term longer than 30 days on these units — it is mandatory, not optional — and Culver City states the prohibition directly at CCMC § 17.400.095.K, with § 17.400.095.M.7 covering Junior ADUs. Plan for a tenancy of at least 31 days.

Generally no. Under Gov. Code § 66322(b) a city may not deny an ADU application because of nonconforming zoning conditions, code violations, or unpermitted structures that do not threaten health and safety and are not affected by the ADU you are building. If the unpermitted structure is itself an ADU or Junior ADU built before January 1, 2020, Gov. Code § 66311.7 goes further — the City may not deny the permit over most violations, may not penalize you, and may not charge impact fees or connection charges on it.