Jefferson County, WI Accessory Structures: ADU Owner Occupancy (2026)

Sec. 22-588(b)(9) bars selling or transferring an accessory dwelling unit separately from the principal residence or from the lot it sits on, so an ADU can never become its own parcel or a rental investment split off from the main house. Sec. 22-588(b)(10) then requires that the property owner occupy either the principal structure or the accessory dwelling unit as a primary residence, ruling out an absentee owner who rents out both units. The county backs this with a recording requirement: Sec. 22-588(b)(13) says that before a permit for construction of the ADU is issued, the owner must file a deed restriction with the Register of Deeds stating that the independent sale of the ADU is prohibited and that an owner of the property must occupy either the principal dwelling unit or the ADU as a primary residence.

That deed restriction runs with the land, so it binds future buyers and gives the planning and zoning department a recorded document to enforce against, not just a permit condition that can lapse. This provision was added to the zoning code by Ord. No. 2025-21, effective February 23, 2026, alongside the rest of the county's first ADU standards.