Medina, OH Accessory Structures: ADU Rental Restrictions (2026)

13(c) of Medina's Zoning Code draws a hard line against turning an in-law suite into rental housing or business space. The subsection states that an in-law suite shall be used for housing family members only, and immediately adds that no in-law suite shall be rented to non-family members nor shall commercial use of the in-law suite be permitted. That double prohibition closes off the two most common ways homeowners try to monetize an accessory suite: leasing it out as a separate apartment to a tenant unrelated to the household, and operating a business, such as a short-term rental listing or a home office serving outside clients, out of the space.

The rental ban applies regardless of the suite's size within the forty percent floor-area cap set by subsection (b), and it applies even though the suite may have its own bedroom, bathroom and kitchen facilities, because the restriction is about who occupies it and why, not how it is built. The prohibition reinforces the suite's occupancy requirement in subsection (d), which requires the resident family member to have direct internal access to the dwelling's common areas, since a rented or commercial suite would typically need its own separate entrance rather than a household connection. 13 does not offer a path to convert the suite to a rental. Ordinance 109-14, passed June 23, 2014, adopted this restriction.