Detroit, MI Accessory Structures: Tiny Homes (2026)

Detroit's Chapter 50 Zoning Ordinance does not contain a tiny-home or tiny-house use classification. Tiny dwellings are instead permitted under one of two existing frameworks. First, when sited as permanent, foundation-built single-family detached homes on individual residential lots, they are regulated as standard one-family dwellings, subject to the lot, setback, height, and use rules of the underlying district (R1, R2, etc.). This is the framework used by Cass Community Social Services for the Tiny Homes Detroit project, which placed 25 permanent tiny dwellings of 250-400 square feet on 30 by 100-foot lots along Elmhurst, Monterey, and Richton between Woodrow Wilson Street and the Lodge Freeway. Cass coordinated with the City to confirm appropriate zoning and parcel selection before construction. Second, since the October 16, 2025 'Let's Build More Housing, Detroit' text amendment, a tiny dwelling may also be sited as an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) on a lot containing a primary residence in R2 through R6 districts, subject to the ADU provisions in Chapter 50 (including the owner-occupancy affidavit requirement). All tiny homes used as habitable dwellings must comply with the Michigan Residential Code (administered by the State of Michigan and adopted by the City of Detroit), which sets minimum standards for room dimensions, ceiling height, egress, structural design, energy, and life-safety. Tiny houses on wheels (THOWs) registered as recreational vehicles are not recognized as permanent year-round dwellings under Chapter 50, and parking a THOW for occupancy on a residential lot is not a use authorized by the zoning ordinance. Michigan's Zoning Enabling Act (Act 110 of 2006, MCL 125.3101 et seq.) preserves local authority over residential uses, and there is no statewide preemption requiring Detroit to permit tiny houses on wheels as dwellings.