Amador County, CA Accessory Structures: Tiny Homes (2026)

Amador County addresses tiny homes mainly through its accessory dwelling unit rules in Chapter 19.72. Section 19.72.05(A)(2) expressly states that a mobile home, recreational vehicle, park-model recreational vehicle, yurt, tent, cargo container, or 'other movable or temporary habitable spaces that do not comply with the California Building Standards Code shall not be used as an Accessory Dwelling Unit.' That means a tiny home on wheels (a THOW) or an RV cannot serve as a permanent second dwelling. By contrast, a tiny home built on a permanent foundation that meets the California Building Standards Code can qualify as an ADU. The ADU definition in Section 19.72.03 includes an efficiency unit (Health and Safety Code section 17958.1) and a manufactured home (Health and Safety Code section 18007), so a code-compliant manufactured or factory-built tiny dwelling on a parcel with a primary residence may be permitted ministerially. For these foundation-based tiny ADUs, the same Chapter 19.72 standards apply: a minimum size at least equal to an efficiency unit, a maximum of 800 square feet for detached new construction, a 16-foot height limit, a four-foot side and rear setback (outside State Responsibility Area fire zones), and Environmental Health certification of adequate water and wastewater. Temporary RV or tiny-home camping is constrained by the county's other regulations; the old House Courts/Camp Spaces chapter (7.16) was repealed in 2020.