ADU Pass
Reno
Washoe County portion
Also in: No County
ADU Pass helps homeowners in Reno, Washoe County, Nevada navigate the permit paperwork for building an accessory dwelling unit. This area covers 12 ZIP codes.
Map
ADU details
ADU legality: unclear
Nevada leaves ADU regulation to local municipalities under home-rule or Dillon-rule authority. Reno permits ADUs subject to local conditions per its zoning ordinance.
Cost scenarios
| Scenario | Sq ft | Permit | Build | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| minimum | 150 | $2,200 | $44,250 | $46,450 |
| 600 | 600 | $2,200 | $177,000 | $179,200 |
| midpoint | 525 | $2,200 | $154,875 | $157,075 |
| maximum | 900 | $2,200 | $265,500 | $267,700 |
Fee breakdown
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. Reno 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.
Utilities
- Water: Reno Water Utility · 30d connect · $4,500
- Sewer: Reno Sewer / Wastewater · 30d connect · $5,500
- Electric: Reno Electric Utility · 21d connect · $1,800
- Gas: Reno 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
Nevada has no HOA-ADU preemption; HOA covenants restricting ADUs are enforceable.
Regulatory overlays (2)
- flood-zone
Reno has FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas; elevation certificates and flood-resistant construction required for SFHA parcels. - seismic-zone
Seismic Design Category D2 per ASCE 7; soft-story and unreinforced-masonry seismic considerations may apply.
Technical envelope (climate & building code)
Climate & energy code
Building code
Amendments:
- Amendment
- Amendment
Legal history (timeline)
Current ordinance: City of Reno Municipal Code — Accessory Dwelling Units, adopted 2020-01-01, last amended 2024-04-01
- 2024-01-01 — City of Reno ADU code refresh (city-ordinance)
Conforming local-code amendments aligning with current Nevada accessory-dwelling framework.
Effect: Codified permissive ADU standards consistent with state law and local zoning.
Washoe County — county ADU rules and overlays
County ADU ordinance
Washoe County permits accessory dwelling units in most residential and general-rural zoning districts subject to a maximum gross floor area of 1,200 sq ft (or 50% of primary dwelling, whichever is less) and a minimum parcel size that scales with the underlying zoning district. ADUs in the Tahoe Area Plan are subject to the more restrictive Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) coverage and density standards in addition to county code.
County regulatory overlays
- wui-fire-zone — Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District performs defensible-space pre-inspections that gate Certificate of Occupancy for new dwellings. Ignoring TMFPD inspection is the most common cause of CO delay on Washoe ADU projects.
- flood-zone — Lemmon Valley flooding events in 2017 and 2023 prompted county adoption of additional freeboard requirements (1 ft above BFE) for new construction in mapped Zone A. ADUs are subject to these enhanced standards.
- other — TRPA permit reviews can add 90-180 days to ADU project timelines. Land coverage transfers may be required if the parcel is at its base coverage allowance.
- airport-noise-zone — Residential expansion (including ADUs) inside the 65 dB DNL contour typically requires noise-attenuating window assemblies and recorded avigation easements.
Nevada state — ADU law and programs
State financing programs
Nevada Housing Division (NHD), under the Department of Business and Industry, does not operate an ADU-specific loan or grant product as of 2026-04-26. NHD's primary homeowner-facing program is Home Is Possible, providing first-time and qualifying homebuyers in Clark and Washoe counties up to 4% of the loan amount as a non-repayable grant for down payment and closing costs, paired with a 30-year fixed-rate first mortgage. The Home Is Possible For Heroes overlay serves teachers, military, first responders, and healthcare workers. NHD also issued $283.3 million of 2024 tax-exempt bonding authority for affordable-housing development (multi-family); separately, the Nevada Affordable Housing Assistance Corporation (NAHAC) administers federal Hardest Hit Fund and Homeowner Assistance Fund programs for delinquency relief. None of these is ADU-specific; ADU construction can be financed only as part of a qualifying primary-residence purchase or refinance.
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 Codes
- 89501
- 89502
- 89503
- 89506
- 89508
- 89509
- 89510
- 89511
- 89512
- 89519
- 89521
- 89523
Post Office
- 1050 N Hills Blvd, 89506
- 1490 Stardust St, 89503
- 1580 Grand Point Way, 89523
- 2000 Vassar St, 89510
- 75 Mccabe Dr, 89511