Building an ADU in Seattle for less than $250K: Lessons Learned!

[@megancloses]

This was awesome info!! Thank you

[@avinasht1]

Subscribed. I have a DADU build coming up in Seattle, and your video was so useful.

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Congrats on the kick off the build!! So cool to see new supply come online. Is this you're first build?

[@tubulartuber]

really recommend looking more closely at the building enclosure assemblies

[@brandonthomas6862]

+1 to a painter who can drywall. We use a guy like that (just for our own projects in our house) and it's amazing. Stuff just gets sorted and they know how to prep the drywall correctly to take the paint incredibly well. You can't even tell if things were ripped out or repaired when you have guys that are really good there. And they're SOOO much faster than I would be.

[@lAliusl1]

@@brandonthomas6862 so true! Finding the good contractors and not letting them go is like half the game 👏

[@househackseattle]

Gorgeous build Chris - Nice work!

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Thank you! Appreciate you guys! And I’m looking for another deal so def hit me up if come across another ADU play 🚀

[@JTDesign1]

Just wrapping up the design on a clients lot in Renton. One new small custom home and one, 1,000 sq. ft. DADU. Couldn't make the pre-approved DADU work, so I created a new custom design for both structures. Now we are going in for permitting. Oh Fun.

[@lAliusl1]

Very cool! Always love seeing more homes getting built! Do you have a link to your design work?

[@colekeller]

Probably early to ask this question but have you/your clients found the permitting process more difficult for a custom design?

[@tubulartuber]

really recommend looking more closely at the building enclosure assemblies, what you see in the vid is not that durable vs moisture

[@waddz45]

Gorgeous design overall and love the finish carpentry bench and stairs!! ❤

[@dongyang31]

Great video! I heard the cost for Seattle is $350/sqft and you managed to be your own GC to keep it down at $230/sqft. Amazing.

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Thank you! 250/sf if you’re the builder is usually a good price, if hiring a builder 300-315. 350/sf should get you more high end finishes or more difficult/complex build All this only applies to SFR/ADUs tho

[@4Realkevv]

Living room ugly 😂

[@lAliusl1]

@@4Realkevv😢

[@davidsawyer10]

Super informative video! Looks like I just became your 100th subscriber!

[@backyardbuilds6541]

I was just telling my brother David that this video is gonna put of over the 100 mark 😆🎉

[@cesarortiz8455]

I have a concrete foundation company and this year I already did 8 DaDu in Kirkland and Seattle, it is a highly sought after option by homeowners.

[@lse4709]

Hi CesarOrtiz, do you mind sharing your company name?

[@cesarortiz8455]

@@lse4709 My company name is MC Concrete LLC

[@Fr3d671]

I trying to do something like this on one of my rental properties. Thanks for sharing!

[@Rayji88]

Good video. I learned a lot!

[@lAliusl1]

Thanks Ray!

[@planetvance]

4:30 I watched your video on the foundation. It looks like you used Miranda Concrete Finishing out of Marysville for this.

[@Kudeghraw]

15 and change for electrical? Now I know my gut feeling was correct on a rewire/panel upgrade quote of over 25k.

[@utooboobnoob]

I feel you. Bought my 1983 house 4 years ago. Had two 200 amp Federal Pacific panels that needed replacing. Quotes were $10K - $15K!. Eventually got them done for $5K after three years of intermittent quotes.

[@nuevocomienzo9571]

Great video! Just curious, when you began mapping this project out, did you consider making this into a Passive (or near passive) house? Seems that this project would be an ideal candidate for it.

[@lAliusl1]

Thanks so much! This house is 4 star built green as required by seattle to build 2 ADUs. So it’s not passive but a big step up in sustainability. Going full passive house is quite challenging not something I was prepared to take on for this build. Getting anything built feels like a monumental task sometimes. Hopefully I’ll have the expertise to do passive house builds in the future.

[@BagBuff]

Looks great! Nice work. I plan on taking on a project like this in Tacoma. Was that slatted wall using poplar? Putting one in my entry soon and I like the color!

[@lAliusl1]

Thank you! The wood is 1x2x6 select pine from Home Depot. With water based poly to keep it from yellowing. I’f you plan on using stain be careful with the pine, it often doesn’t take the stain the evenly

[@lindseyhwang469]

This is an eye opening with great info. Two thumbs up and thanks for sharing. I found your email address in one of the comments and sent you a question. I hope to hear from you soon.

[@scottc.6409]

Great video!

[@backyardbuilds6541]

544sqft this is one of the pre approved plans you can find on Seattles ADU universe website if you wanna dig into all the details

[@TMHSproductions]

I'd kill for 1000 sq/ft at even 300k. In Denver and about to build a new 3 car garage with 2/1 over top of it for almost 500k.

[@planetvance]

5:39 Did the $15.4k include all the fixtures? What company did you use for your electrical?

[@chrislowe3060]

Planning an 800 sq ft DADU in my Ballard backyard, would love to get your list of contractors!

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Congrats Chris! Super exciting Ballard is an awesome place to build. Shoot me an email so we can connect [e-mail]

[@tubulartuber]

really recommend looking more closely at the building enclosure assemblies

[@planetvance]

6:18 What company did you use for your floors/doors?

[@planetvance]

6:01 Does that price include the fixtures? What company did you use for this?

[@planetvance]

Can I get the names of all the contractors you used for each phase?

[@MrDbigballs]

Great video and nice build

[@ttownscott]

Is there a size point between ADU and a small home? In this example, is there also a home on this property?

[@lAliusl1]

Yes in seattle you can have a primary house and 2 ADUs. ADUs are a weird housing classification. Primarily motivated by the desire of cities to pitch “gentle density” to residents. Since ADUs have to be smaller and “accessory” to the primary residence city councilors feel like it’s an easier sell to the angry old ppl that show up to council meetings and yell about their neighborhoods changing.

[@kennethnguyen7379]

I literally live on the same street LMAO it’s interesting to see the house I always see when I drive to work being this house u built

[@paulbaird1351]

Amazing. But how much was the land?

[@lAliusl1]

Thanks Paul! The original house and lot together were 655k when purchased in 2022

[@walkersutton]

@@lAliusl1 was the old house located where the accessory dwelling is going up?

[@lAliusl1]

@@walkersutton the SFR house is still there now the ADU is attached to it. These deals tend to pencil way better if you can keep the existing house

[@avinashkakinada]

Where can I find this home plan?

[@planetvance]

7:08 Who'd you have do your cabinets and counters? I looked up GS and Pius. Thanks.

[@justinharjanto]

Awesome build! I had some questions about it as we're building a Schooner ourselves, is there an email I could contact you at?

[@backyardbuilds6541]

👏I love seeing Schooners pop up in Seattle! Would be happy to help email me at [e-mail]

[@justinharjanto]

@@backyardbuilds6541 cool, sent you an email

[@priceandpride]

Do you have the schematic design for this style?

[@backyardbuilds6541]

This is a pre-approved design that is on the seattle website aduniverse-seattlecitygis.hub.arcgis.com/pages/gallery

[@tubulartuber]

what was your target ACH50? did you use continuous exterior insulation? did you use a rainscreen/ drainage gap between the siding and the Tyvek? Why Tyvek Homewrap instead of a less vapor permeable product?

[@lAliusl1]

This one got a 2.0 ACH which is as low as I could go without having and ERV. Next time I'm building this tight I'll put in an ERV so I don't have to stop at 2. For the other items. It all comes down to cost. Gotta build what ppl are willing to pay for otherwise I won't build very many houses. And the truth is at this price point no retail buyer is willing to pay for those upgrades.

[@ThePrideofSociety]

Great vid!! I’m based in Seattle as well, so this is super helpful. Out of curiosity, what is your educational background?? Do you have a background in the construction/architecture/development sphere? Or is this something you’re relatively new to? I’d love to pick your brain more hahaha.

[@lAliusl1]

Other than helping my parents renovate our house, no. The first new build I did here in Seattle was horrendously difficult 😅Wish I had partnered with a build to level up before diving in on my own

[@ThePrideofSociety]

@@lAliusl1 that’s awesome! I’m in the architecture/development space but would love to get into the GC side of stuff too. I feel like the more pieces of the equation that have been integrated, the better more efficiency you can gain from a cost side. And it just makes things go a lot smoother. That’s really cool that even without a background in it you’ve accomplished so much!

[@Evandbec]

Are you considering selling this for a profit? Also did you have to get a GC license? Thanks!

[@taylormarshall-qj9hw]

Wow, nice work! Where in Seattle was this? I am surprised you were able to get this done in under a year and pretty affordable for the area.

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Thank you! This is a 10min walk from the Othello Link station. Building a great team of sub contractors and relentlessly pushing the schedule is key. Some of the best builders can get this model permitted and built in less than 5 months. I’m working on getting to that point 😅

[@deepflux2]

Big windows and big closets? Where? I don’t see either of those things.

[@J.W-u1d]

Were you required per code to have a whole house ventilation system, and if so could you tell me about it?

[@lAliusl1]

All that is required is what they call a “whole house fan” which is a typical bath exhaust fan but usually placed above the laundry machines on a programmable timer that runs the fan throughout the day

[@J.W-u1d]

@@lAliusl1 Thanks for your quick response! We're building the same model & the notes mentioned the whole house fan. Does the fan you mentioned, in the laundry room have a single exhaust/intake, or must it branch out to the bedroom spaces? On the plan it sounded daunting & what you describe sounds simpler. We are also doing scissor truss vaulted ceilings, so simple would be fantastic. Any brand recommendations?

[@lAliusl1]

@@J.W-u1d yeah no sweat at all. Its literally just a standard bath exhaust fan, from any big box store, vented like any other bath exhaust fan but importantly has a programmable switch so it runs on an interval. Youre HVAC guy should be able to install it for you, or give you pointers. Calling it a whole house fan is an ambitious name tbh :)

[@planetvance]

5:49 What company did you use for your HVAC?

[@wiseyman1]

Did you need to setup an HOA? If so cpuld you describe that process?

[@backyardbuilds6541]

If you want to sell Homes individually you do need to declare a condominium you can use a law firm like Wilson Law or Dimension Law to do it for you in WA

[@matthewsmith6934]

This ADU is bigger than my house... also in King Co. Too many millionaires in King Co; things are ridiculous.

[@lAliusl1]

Yeah! We really need to build a lot more housing at all price points. I would have loved to build a small apartment here with more affordable home but the city doesnt allow that 🥲

[@phihoang8283]

How about land acquisition cost?

[@lAliusl1]

655k for the SFR

[@kailiu21]

Great video, any interest in being a paid adviser? I am looking to build a DADU on my property.

[@krakken-]

Was electrical costs included in the HVAC? You didn't have an electrical cost breakdown.

[@lAliusl1]

HVAC if doing mini splits you can estimate about 5k$ per head so in this case it was about $15000 Electrical ball park figures will be 11-18$/sqft for everything rough, trim, service. Doesn’t include the fixtures

[@planetvance]

4:17 What company did you use for this?

[@planetvance]

9:46 Including asking guys that made a video about it. ;-)

[@TreeLovers-h8s]

Do these costs include sales tax/ any other Washington State taxes?

[@lAliusl1]

Yes this break down includes all cost related to the build, including things like costs for the condo docs and final cleaning. Not included at costs associated with purchasing the SFR. Interest on the primary house is about $3k/mo so split between 3 houses you could add $1k a month in capital costs. If you are using a construction loan your capital costs will be quite a bit higher.

[@simon359]

That looks taller than 24 feet? Isn’t that the legal limit?

[@stephenhusted7863]

Hey buddy, how much was the lot purchase?

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Hey Stephen thanks for watching! I purchased the existing home as an owner occupant with conventional financing 5% down in this case. If the existing home is in good enough shape then it's possible to just to conventional like this

[@stephenhusted7863]

How much was the purchase ?

[@backyardbuilds6541]

665K + 10K credit from the seller. 5% down interest rate was 6.75@@stephenhusted7863

[@stephenhusted7863]

Thank you ! Looks great 👍

[@macym2999]

why is the home so far back in the lot?

[@lAliusl1]

Good question! Two reasons when I made this decision, 1 was for parking, the house is allowed to have its own curb cut so I wanted to leave as much room as possible. 2nd was that I didn’t want to make a tiny backyard and a tiny front yard so I decided to give Al the space possible to the front yard since the front yard is required by the city to be bigger than the back yard in this case

[@macym2999]

@@lAliusl1 thank you, I walk past this house nearly everyday and I've always wondered.

[@tubulartuber]

nice video. music made it a big hard to hear

[@lAliusl1]

Thank you for the feedback, your right the mix is off a little bit!

[@ebeyslough]

It looks about $150k

[@helenlee6137]

Oh, so you were acting as a GC?

[@backyardbuilds6541]

Hi Helen, yes! I am the owner builder for these projects. A ton of work but saves 18-30% on total build cost

[@saltydog1505]

lies... $227sf not possible in seattle metro. please share all your contractor info to validate these lies.

[@lAliusl1]

😂it was rough! You can see how tired I am in the video especially the later parts. Some builders can get one build from 200$/sqft you have to just do more things yourself.

[@peterkoon4549]

Yeah, I find this really hard to believe. I’m not a pro so maybe I’m just getting fleeced by Eastside contractors on home renovation costs but my quotes have been wildly different.

[@Trevor_bow]

That's funny I work in construction and the prices seemed right on if you do it all yourself it's going to be way cheaper I was told you get 2 of the 3 fast, cheap, quality of you want it fast and cheap your going to sacrifice quality if you want to be cheap and high quality you better run how to do it yourself

[@lAliusl1]

@@Trevor_bow yeah 100%! the only way to cut costs lower than ~200$/sqft for this type of build is to run all your own crews like drywall/siding/flooring. Which would be crazy cuz it would take 5x longer just like you said 😅 just pay the rate and do more deals

[@z5m2]

Yeah this is by doing significant amounts of work yourself.

[@whatisiswhatable]

No offense but that’s ugly. I’ve lived in Seattle my entire life. Why do people make houses that look like that? Not only that, the living room arrangement is atrocious. Dining table in the middle of a kitchen?

[@lAliusl1]

😮damn bro, why you gotta come at me like that 😅

[@lAliusl1]

I like the open layout increases the livable area as much as possible for these small homes. But your question is actually a good one. Why do these houses look like this? And the answer is because the city mandates it to a large extend through the zoning code. They restrict what is allowed to be built which pushes us into a corner with what we can design to maximize the livable space allowed within their constraints. City council needs to stop micro managing us and just let us build stuff

[@WalterBrosPictures]

Damn why you gotta come at my bro like that? Rude ass

[@rileywilliams809]

That house ugly as hell

[@bao-ngocnguyen1222]

Great video. Liked and subscribed. I’m planning a DADU in west Seattle. I would love to get referrals for your good contractors. Is it possible to contact you via email? Thanks!

[@planetvance]

4:40 What company did you use for this?

[@planetvance]

5:17 What company did you use for this?