ADU Pass
Dallas
No County portion
Also in: Collin County · Dallas County
ADU Pass helps homeowners in Dallas, No County, Texas navigate the permit paperwork for building an accessory dwelling unit. This area covers 31 ZIP codes.
Map
ADU details
ADU legality: with-restrictions
Cross-listed entry. See dallas-county/dallas.json for the primary record. Dallas's overlay-petition framework is unusual: ADUs are largely opt-in by neighborhood vote rather than allowed citywide.
Cost scenarios
| Scenario | Sq ft | Permit | Build | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| minimum | 200 | $2,400 | $50,000 | $52,400 |
| 600 | 600 | $3,500 | $150,000 | $153,500 |
| midpoint | 600 | $3,500 | $150,000 | $153,500 |
| maximum | 1,000 | $4,400 | $250,000 | $254,400 |
Fee breakdown (as of 2026-04)
Permitting process
- Confirm ADUO coverage or pursue BOA exception (~14d)
Cross-listing notice: primary record at dallas-county/dallas.json. Use the Dallas zoning map to confirm parcel sits inside an existing Accessory Dwelling Unit Overlay (ADUO). If yes, proceed to permit. If no, two options: (a) initiate an ADUO petition (50+ single-family structures, 50% homeowner signatures min, 75% waives $500-$2,400 fee), or (b) file a Board of Adjustment ADU special-exception application ($600 filing fee). - ADUO petition or BOA hearing (if not in overlay) (~90d)
Overlay path: City Plan Commission and City Council typically 6-9 months from filing. BOA exception path: typically 60-90 days from filing to hearing. Either path must conclude before building-permit application is accepted. - Submit residential building permit via Posse online portal (~1d)
Submit at https://buildinginspection.dallascityhall.com/ via Posse. Required: site plan, foundation plan, framing, MEP, IECC 2021 Texas amendments compliance, and owner-occupancy affidavit (one of the units must be owner-occupied). - Residential plan review (10-15 business days first cycle) (~18d)
Dallas Development Services targets 10-15 business days for first-cycle residential review. Express plan review available for qualifying small projects. Concurrent disciplines: Building, Plan Review, Fire Marshal address verification, Public Works for driveway/drainage. - Pay fees and permit issuance (~3d)
Pay valuation-based building permit, plan review, and any owner-builder or contractor registration fees through Posse. Permit issues 1-3 business days after payment. - Construction inspections via DSD
Foundation, plumbing rough, framing, electrical rough, mechanical rough, insulation, energy, and final inspections through Posse / Dallas DSD app. - Certificate of Occupancy (~5d)
Final inspection passes trigger CO issuance. Required before separate utility billing or rental tenancy.
Viability (permitted uses)
- Long-term rental: yes 30+day rental of ADU permitted; no rent stabilization. Owner-occupancy condition restricts whole-property rental of both units.
- Short-term rental: with-restrictions (Dallas STR ordinance (litigated)) Dallas STR registration ordinance has been subject to litigation; verify current rules. ADU + STR is a high-demand pattern in Bishop Arts / Lower Greenville / Deep Ellum corridors.
- Office rental: no ADU is a dwelling unit; commercial rental tenancy not permitted in residentially-zoned ADU.
- Home office: yes Home occupation permit available.
- Studio / workshop: yes Personal artist/workshop use permitted.
- Agriculture: with-restrictions Limited residential urban agriculture; livestock by zone.
- Relative support: yes Family-occupancy ADU explicitly anticipated by ADUO framework.
Incentives
- Texas Homestead Exemption — Owner-occupied primary residence exemption applies to primary structure; ADU added value generally taxed at full rate.
Contacts
Utilities
- Water: Dallas Water Utilities (DWU) · 21d connect · $4,800
- Sewer: Dallas Water Utilities (sewer division) · 21d connect · $5,800
- Electric: Oncor Electric Delivery (regulated TDU) · 30d connect · $1,800
- Gas: Atmos Energy (Mid-Tex) · 30d connect · $1,500
Property values & taxes
Construction timeline
Realistic total: best 8mo · typical 11mo · worst 18mo
Financing
State ADU loans:
Insurance impact
HOA prevalence & preemption
Texas has no HOA-ADU preemption. Many North Dallas / Far North Dallas / Lake Highlands neighborhoods have active HOAs.
Regulatory overlays (3)
- historic-district — Dallas has 21+ Historic Districts (Munger Place, Swiss Avenue, Junius Heights, Winnetka Heights, etc.) and Conservation Districts; ADU work requires Landmark Commission Certificate of Appropriateness · +60d · +12% cost
Landmark review adds 30-60 days and aesthetic constraints. (map) - flood-zone — FEMA SFHA along Trinity River corridor, White Rock Creek, and tributaries · +14d · +7% cost
Finished-floor elevation, vented enclosures, NFIP flood insurance for federally-backed financing. (map) - other — ADUO requirement (51A-4.510) - parcels NOT inside an approved ADUO must petition or seek BOA exception · +90d
Single biggest scheduling impact on Dallas ADU projects. (map)
Technical envelope (climate & building code)
Climate & energy code
Building code
Amendments:
- Amendment
- Amendment
Legal history (timeline)
Current ordinance: Dallas Development Code Section 51A-4.510 - Accessory Dwelling Unit Overlay, adopted 2017-04-26, last amended 2024-01-01
- 2017-04-26 — Dallas Accessory Dwelling Unit Overlay (ADUO) ordinance - DCA 167-006 (city-ordinance)
Dallas City Council adopted Section 51A-4.510 establishing the ADUO framework via City Plan Commission case DCA 167-006(VP).
Effect: Created the ADUO petition / overlay zoning process; ADUs remain non-by-right in most single-family districts. - 2024-03-01 — Dallas Development Services 100% paperless permitting transition (city-ordinance)
Development Services Department migrated all building permit intake to ProjectDox (commercial) and Posse (residential) for digital plan review.
Effect: ADU permits are submitted, reviewed, paid, and tracked entirely online. - 2024-09-01 — Dallas resident-input ADU initiative (other)
City of Dallas opened public input on potential expansion of ADU rights citywide.
Effect: No ordinance yet; signals possible future relaxation of by-right ADU rules.
Known issues (2)
- policy-review (since 2024-09) — City staff is exploring an ordinance to permit ADUs more broadly without overlay petitions. (source)
- structural (since 2017-04) — Most parcels are NOT in an existing ADUO and must run a 6-9 month petition (or 60-90 day BOA special exception) before any permit can issue. (source)
County: no attribution (synthetic bucket)
No county
This city sits in the state's "no county" bucket — its ADU rules derive directly from state law and city ordinance without a county intermediary. No county-level sections apply.
Texas state — ADU law and programs
State ADU law
Texas has NOT enacted a statewide ADU preemption or ADU-by-right statute. Local governments (municipalities and counties) retain full authority over ADU zoning, setbacks, parking, size limits, owner-occupancy, and permitting. Two recent housing-reform bills in the 89th Legislature (2025) touch density and zoning procedure but do NOT preempt ADU-specific local rules: SB 15 (Bettencourt, signed 2025-06-20, effective 2025-09-01) caps minimum single-family lot sizes in cities over 150,000 in counties over 300,000, and HB 24 (signed 2025-06-20, effective 2025-09-01) raises the protest petition threshold for zoning changes. A dedicated ADU-preemption bill — SB 673 (Hughes, 2025) — passed the Texas Senate on 2025-04-10 and was reported favorably by the House Land & Resource Management Committee on 2025-05-08, but died on the General State Calendar when the 89th Regular Session adjourned on 2025-06-02. In the absence of a state ADU statute, homeowners must consult the ordinance of the municipality (or the county's subdivision rules for unincorporated areas) where the lot sits.
- Texas SB 15 (89R, 2025) — Relating to size and density requirements for residential lots in certain municipalities; authorizing a fee — Prohibits municipalities of population greater than 150,000 located in counties of population greater than 300,000 from imposing minimum lot sizes greater than a specified threshold (3,000 sqft for certain residentially zoned subdivisions; lower for new subdivisions) and limits their authority over setbacks, parking, permeable-surface, and height on those lots. Not ADU-specific, but functionally expands the footprint of small-lot single-family housing in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, and other qualifying cities. Signed 2025-06-20; effective 2025-09-01.
- Texas HB 24 (89R, 2025) — Relating to procedures for changes to a zoning regulation or district boundary — Raises the protest-petition threshold for neighboring property owners who wish to trigger a supermajority city-council vote on a rezoning from 20% to 60%, and constrains the ability of a small minority to block citywide zoning updates. Not ADU-specific; affects the procedural posture of any city-wide ADU-enabling rezoning. Signed 2025-06-20; effective 2025-09-01.
State financing programs
Texas does not operate an ADU-specific statewide loan, grant, or forgivable-loan program comparable to California's CalHFA ADU Grant. The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) administers the state's general housing finance programs — My First Texas Home, My Choice Texas Home, Mortgage Credit Certificates, multifamily Housing Tax Credits, the Homeowner Assistance Fund, and Housing Trust Fund awards. None target ADU construction directly, but several can apply to an ADU as part of a primary-residence purchase or refinance when program criteria are met. ADU-specific financing in Texas is primarily local: the City of Austin's ADU Loan Program (administered through Neighborhood Housing and Community Development) and a handful of smaller pilot programs are the most visible, but these sit at the city tier, not the state tier.
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
- 75221
- 75222
- 75242
- 75250
- 75262
- 75263
- 75264
- 75265
- 75266
- 75267
- 75313
- 75315
- 75336
- 75339
- 75342
- 75354
- 75355
- 75356
- 75357
- 75360
- 75367
- 75370
- 75371
- 75372
- 75374
- 75376
- 75378
- 75379
- 75380
- 75381
- 75382
Post Office
- 10502 Markison Rd, 75238
- 13770 Noel Rd, 75240
- 13904 Josey Ln, 75234
- 1502 E Kiest Blvd, 75216
- 15300 Seagoville Rd, 75253
- 2341 W Northwest Hwy, 75220
- 3055 Al Lipscomb Way, 75215
- 400 N Ervay St, 75201
- 401 Tom Landry Hwy, 75260
- 4475 Trinity Mills Rd, 75287
- 5055 Norwood Rd, 75247
- 5521 S Hampton Rd, 75232
- 5606 Smu Blvd, 75206
- 5959 Royal Ln Ste 539, 75230
- 5995 Summerside Dr, 75248
- 6640 Abrams Rd, 75231
- 8624 Ferguson Rd, 75228
- 9130 Markville Dr, 75243