Brentwood, CA Accessory Structures: ADU Owner Occupancy (2026)
Key Facts
- JADU owner occupancy
- Required: owner in house or JADU
- Standalone ADU
- No owner-occupancy requirement
- Exempt owners
- Government agency, land trust, housing org
- Enforcement tool
- Recorded deed restriction, BMC § 17.715.050(I)
- Citation
- BMC § 17.715.050(L)
Summary
Brentwood requires the property owner to live on-site when a junior accessory dwelling unit is added, occupying either the main house or the JADU itself, but the same chapter imposes no owner-occupancy requirement on standalone ADUs. Government agencies, land trusts and housing organizations are exempt from the JADU rule.
L. Owner Occupancy. JADUs are subject to an owner occupancy requirement. The legal owner or owners shall reside in either the remaining portion of the single-family dwelling or the JADU. The owner occupancy restriction shall not be required if the owner is another governmental agency, land trust, or housing organization.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4604307; v5 updated 2025-12-09).
Full Breakdown
050(L) states the owner-occupancy rule squarely: JADUs are subject to an owner occupancy requirement, and the legal owner or owners must reside in either the remaining portion of the single-family dwelling or in the JADU itself. The exemption is narrow: it applies only when the owner is a governmental agency, land trust, or housing organization, not to ordinary investor-owners. 050(I)(2) requires that before a building permit issues for a JADU, the recorded deed restriction must state that either the single-family dwelling or the JADU is the bona fide principal residence of the legal owner, again exempting the same three institutional categories.
By contrast, the chapter is silent on owner occupancy for a standalone ADU built without a JADU: subsection (L) addresses only JADUs, so an owner may rent out both the primary home and a detached or attached ADU without living on the property, consistent with state ADU law's removal of local owner-occupancy mandates for standard ADUs. 050(A)(2), so the owner-occupancy condition attaches specifically to that single-family, single-JADU configuration.
Violations & Fines
Occupying neither the primary dwelling nor the JADU as required violates the recorded deed restriction under § 17.715.050(I)(2) as well as § 17.715.050(L); the city can pursue this as a Title 17 infraction under § 17.890.007, punishable by a fine of up to $250 for each day the violation continues, and a false owner-occupancy deed restriction can also expose the owner to civil enforcement by the city as beneficiary of the recorded instrument.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to live on my property if I build a JADU in Brentwood?
Does the owner-occupancy rule apply to a regular detached ADU?
Who is exempt from the JADU owner-occupancy requirement?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Brentwood
California rules heatmap·Compare Brentwood to another location·View the California accessory structures overview
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