ADU Pass
Franklin
ADU Pass helps homeowners in Franklin, Howard County, Missouri navigate the permit paperwork for building an accessory dwelling unit. This area covers 1 ZIP code.
Map
ADU details
ADU legality: unclear
Missouri leaves ADU regulation to local municipalities under home-rule or Dillon-rule authority. Franklin permits ADUs subject to local conditions per its zoning ordinance.
Cost scenarios
| Scenario | Sq ft | Permit | Build | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| minimum | 150 | $1,700 | $33,000 | $34,700 |
| 600 | 600 | $1,700 | $132,000 | $133,700 |
| midpoint | 525 | $1,700 | $115,500 | $117,200 |
| maximum | 900 | $1,700 | $198,000 | $199,700 |
Fee breakdown (as of 2026-04)
Permitting process
- Walk-in inquiry at New Franklin City Hall (~7d)
Visit City Hall at 130 E Broadway or call (660) 848-2288 to confirm whether the city issues building permits locally, what documentation is required, and whether the parcel is in a Missouri River floodplain that triggers separate review. - Determine applicable jurisdiction (~5d)
If New Franklin defers to Howard County (which adopts the IBC/IRC baseline), the building permit goes through Howard County rather than the city; clarify which entity issues the dwelling-unit permit and which inspects. - Paper application submittal (~1d)
Counter-only paper intake — no online portal. Provide site plan with setbacks, floor plan, elevations, septic layout if not on city sewer, and any flood-elevation certificate within Missouri River bottoms. - Plan review and fee assessment (~21d)
Building official (often a contracted third-party reviewer in small Howard County cities) reviews against IRC with Missouri amendments; floodplain and septic add'l review when applicable. - Inspections to final (~100d)
Footing, framing, rough, insulation, and final inspections scheduled by phone with the building official; rural-pace turnaround. - Final sign-off (~7d)
Final inspection results in a certificate of occupancy or simple building-official sign-off; no separate residential occupancy permit beyond the building C of O.
Viability (permitted uses)
- Long-term rental: yes Long-term rental of ADU generally permitted; landlord-tenant law and any city rental-registration ordinance apply.
- Short-term rental: with-restrictions STR rules vary by city. Franklin regulates STRs separately from ADU permitting; check local STR ordinance and HOA covenants.
- Office rental: with-restrictions Detached office rental requires home occupation permit or rezoning.
- Home office: yes Home occupation permitted with restrictions on signage and customer traffic.
- Studio / workshop: yes Personal artist studio is a permitted accessory use.
- Agriculture: with-restrictions Limited urban agriculture permitted in residential zones; livestock varies by district.
- Relative support: yes Family-occupancy ADU explicitly permitted in single-family zones.
Contacts
Staff: Howard County Commission (County permits coordination (when city defers)), Howard County Health Department (Septic / on-site wastewater approvals (rural parcels))
Utilities
- Water: Franklin Water Utility · 30d connect · $4,500
- Sewer: Franklin Sewer / Wastewater · 30d connect · $5,500
- Electric: Franklin Electric Utility · 21d connect · $1,800
- Gas: Franklin Gas Utility · 30d connect · $1,500
Property values & taxes
Construction timeline
Realistic total: best 7mo · typical 10mo · worst 16mo
Financing
State ADU loans:
Insurance impact
HOA prevalence & preemption
Missouri has no HOA-ADU preemption; HOA covenants restricting ADUs are enforceable.
Technical envelope (climate & building code)
Climate & energy code
Building code
Amendments:
- Amendment
- Amendment
Legal history (timeline)
Current ordinance: City of New Franklin Code of Ordinances and Howard County IBC/IRC adoption, adopted 1835-01-01, last amended 2018-01-01
- 1828-01-01 — Original Franklin abandoned after Missouri River floods (1826 & 1828) (other)
The historic Franklin settlement (then the second-largest town in Missouri and the eastern terminus of the Santa Fe Trail) was washed away in successive Missouri River floods. Residents relocated to higher ground and chartered the new municipality.
Effect: Established that the modern incorporated city in Howard County is New Franklin, Missouri (chartered 1835), not 'Franklin' - any present-day permit work in this slug refers to the New Franklin city government. - 1835-01-01 — City of New Franklin chartered (other)
City of New Franklin (130 E Broadway, Howard County) chartered as the successor municipality.
Effect: Modern City Hall at (660) 848-2288 administers the local construction-permit regime; the city operates a small-town counter-only intake without a public permit portal. - 2018-01-01 — Howard County / state of Missouri IBC + IRC adoption baseline (state-law)
Howard County adopts the International Building and Residential Code as the construction baseline used by New Franklin, with Missouri state amendments (no IRC R313 sprinkler mandate).
Effect: ADU-equivalent dwelling permits in New Franklin are reviewed under IRC standards plus any local floodplain triggers along the Missouri River bottoms.
Missouri state — ADU law and programs
State financing programs
Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC), the state housing finance agency under the Department of Economic Development, does not operate an ADU-specific loan or grant product as of 2026-04-26. Construction or rehab of an ADU on a primary residence may be financed indirectly through MHDC's First Place Program (first-time-homebuyer mortgage with below-market rate) or Next Step Program (mortgage paired with a forgivable second of up to 4% of loan amount). Both are mortgage-purchase products and require the property to be the borrower's primary residence; an existing ADU on the property is permitted under standard agency guidelines. MHDC also administers Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, the Affordable Housing Assistance Program (AHAP) tax credit, and federal HOME funds — none of which is a homeowner-facing ADU instrument.
Federal (United States) — ADU-relevant rules and programs
Federal ADU law
The United States has no federal statute that directly regulates accessory dwelling unit entitlement or design. Land-use authority over ADUs resides with states and local governments under the traditional police power. Federal engagement is limited to financing (Fannie/Freddie/FHA/VA/USDA), flood insurance (FEMA/NFIP), and discretionary housing programs (HUD), which are recorded in sibling sections of this file.
Federal financing programs
Federal housing-finance agencies and GSEs set nationwide underwriting rules that govern whether an ADU can be financed, appraised, and counted toward mortgage qualifying income. The relevant actors are Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA (HUD), VA, and USDA Rural Development.
Federal tax credits
There is no ADU-specific federal tax credit. ADUs may incidentally qualify for existing federal energy-efficiency and clean-energy tax credits when the ADU construction includes qualifying measures.
Federal housing programs
HUD administers several discretionary programs that can fund ADU-related activity at the grantee's election, but none is an ADU-specific program.
ZIP Code
- 65250
Post Office
- 107 2nd St, 65250