"The HOME Act facilitates the process for homeowners to build a duplex or split their current residential lot, expanding housing options for people of all incomes that will create more opportunities for homeowners to add units on their existing properties. It includes provisions to prevent the displacement of existing renters and protect historic districts, fire-prone areas and environmental quality."
Many have been concerned about the forced change to single family zoning, and potential negative results to neighborhoods. According to The Terner Center in their July report on SB 9, "This ability to create duplexes and/or split the lot and convey new units with a distinct title would allow property owners to pursue a wider range of financing options than are available for ADU construction to build these new homes." .... "While Senate Bill 9 does not apply to single-family parcels in historic districts, fire hazard zones, and rural areas, local market prices and development costs play a large role in determining where there is financial viability for the addition of new homes. Moreover, physical constraints, such as small lot sizes and other local regulations, can limit the number of new homes built as a result of this bill." Parcels most likely to benefit from this new law are those that are already "financially feasible" under existing law, and that relatively few single family parcels are expected to be financially feasible for added units as a result of this bill. Mortgage products may be accelerated somewhat for parcels that are newly subdivided, for households able to take advantage of new homes of newly divided parcels.
As reported by The Terner Center, restrictions, which may put feasible properties statewide to about 410,000, of which about 110,000 would become newly feasible, include:
1 Cannot be in a historic district or a historically designated property.
2 Lot split cannot be smaller than 40 percent of the original parcel.
3 A locality cannot impose any standards that would preclude the construction of up to two units or physically precluding either of the two units from being at least 800 square feet in floor area.
4 Side and rear setbacks of up to 4 feet is allowed.
5 The lot split cannot require the demolition or alteration of a housing unit currently serving moderate-, low- or very-low income household(s) or a rent-controlled unit.
6 The lot split cannot result in the demolition or alteration of housing that has been occupied by a tenant in the last three years or where an owner has used the Ellis Act to remove a rental unit from the market within the last 15 years.
7 A jurisdiction may impose an owner-occupancy restriction for lot splits, where the applicant must intend to occupy one of the housing units as their principal residence for a minimum of one year from the date of the approval of the urban lot split.
8 No lot splits on adjacent lots.
9 Cannot be created from a previous lot split.
In Long Beach, the impact may be lessened because lot sizes are relatively small, which would preclude much of this from happening. Officials say in order to make financial sense, lot sizes would have to be about 8,000 square feet. Of the 59,803 single family lots in Long Beach, 4,609 are over 8,000 square feet.
For the complete report from The Terner Center, see their July 2021 report here.
Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996
