ADU Construction in Los Angeles

American Reliable Construction & Remodeling, Inc. is a licensed ADU builder based in Sherman Oaks and serving Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. We handle the project end to end: feasibility, design, LADBS or city permits, construction, inspections and the final certificate of occupancy — with one project coordinator and every required permit pulled under CSLB #1155602.

We build in Sherman Oaks, Encino, Studio City, Van Nuys, North Hollywood, Woodland Hills, Tarzana, Calabasas, Burbank and Glendale. If the existing garage is the right footprint for the unit, see our garage conversion guide and permit process.

A detached ADU is a new, free-standing structure in the yard — the most flexible option and the one most homeowners picture. An attached ADU shares a wall with the main house, often built as an extension off the side or rear. A garage conversion ADU turns an existing garage into a living unit and reuses its footprint. A junior ADU (JADU) is a smaller unit carved out of the existing home, typically with an efficiency kitchen. Many lots can have more than one of these; state law lets most single-family parcels add both an ADU and a JADU.

Which type fits your property comes down to lot size and shape, setbacks, where the sewer and electrical service run, hillside status and how you intend to use the unit. We work through those questions at a free in-home feasibility visit and recommend the type that gives you the most usable space for the budget. If what you actually need is connected family space rather than a separate unit, a room addition is often the better fit — we compare both at the feasibility visit.

California has steadily made ADUs easier to build. Cities must review ADU applications ministerially — without a discretionary hearing — and within a set review period. Detached ADUs may be placed within four feet of the rear and side property lines. Cities cannot require additional parking when a garage is converted, and they cannot require the owner to live on the property for ADUs permitted under current law. Most single-family lots may have at least one ADU and one junior ADU.

Local rules still matter: the City of Los Angeles (LADBS), Burbank, Glendale, Calabasas and other cities each apply their own standards for height, design, hillside conditions and fire zones within the state framework. Rules change from year to year, so we confirm current requirements with the building department for every project before the estimate is finalized.

Step one is feasibility: we visit the property, review zoning, setbacks, utilities and access, and tell you what your lot supports. Step two is design — layout, exterior that matches the main house, and construction drawings, using pre-approved standard plans where they fit. Step three is permitting: plan check submittal, corrections and approval, handled under our license. Step four is construction, run by one coordinator with a written schedule. Step five is inspection and the certificate of occupancy, which is when the unit becomes legal to occupy and rent.

You receive an itemized written estimate that separates site work, structure, systems and finishes, so you can see exactly what drives the number and compare it line by line with any other bid. Our guide to what drives ADU cost in Los Angeles explains each of those buckets and the site conditions that move them.

We build ADUs from our Sherman Oaks office throughout the San Fernando Valley and nearby communities — Sherman Oaks, Encino, Studio City, Woodland Hills, Tarzana, Van Nuys, North Hollywood, Burbank and Glendale — and west to Calabasas. Lots and rules differ: Valley flats are mostly a zoning and utility exercise, hillside parcels add engineering and fire-zone standards, and incorporated cities have their own building departments and, in Calabasas, HOA design review.

See our dedicated pages for ADU construction in Sherman Oaks, Encino, Studio City, Woodland Hills and Calabasas, or call (877) 702-6180 to schedule a feasibility visit anywhere in our service area.