Accessory Structures in New York (2026)

Islip allows an accessory apartment only within the existing structure of an owner-occupied single-family home, on a…

An Accessory Apartment Review Board of nine Town of Babylon appointees hears every application and renewal, deciding…

Greenburgh allows one accessory dwelling unit per lot only in the R-5 through R-40 and PUD districts, and only after…

Adding a second kitchen to a one-family home in the Town of Hempstead requires approval from the Board of Architectural…

Huntington allows one accessory dwelling unit per owner-occupied single-family home, but only as a conditional use…

North Hempstead does not zone stand-alone accessory dwelling units. The only legal second unit in a one-family home is…

An accessory apartment, the closest thing to an ADU in the Town of Oyster Bay's zoning code, is allowed only in the RO…

Schenectady allows a temporary 'accessory home-care unit' on a single-family lot, but only with a special use permit…

Smithtown's zoning code permits accessory apartment dwelling units only as a Board of Appeals special exception, and…

Yonkers allows an accessory apartment inside an existing single-family house only if it satisfies a detailed checklist…

Albany allows one accessory dwelling unit per single-unit lot, but the property owner must live in the primary or…

An Amherst accessory dwelling unit needs a Special Use Permit under § 8-6 and must meet § 6-8-2 standards: 500 to 900…

Colonie allows only one accessory dwelling unit per lot, and it must attach to the single-family home rather than stand…

Greece allows one in-law apartment per one-family home as a permitted accessory use, capped at 30% of the house's gross…

New York City legalized Ancillary Dwelling Units (ADUs) citywide on December 5, 2024 through the City of Yes for…

Ramapo only allows accessory apartments in the R-15A and R-15C Zoning Districts, and Town Code § 376-65 caps them at…

Saratoga Springs allows one detached secondary dwelling unit per lot, only on parcels that meet two-family standards…

Utica permits one ADU per single- or two-family dwelling. The owner must occupy either the main house or the ADU as a…

Brookhaven doesn't set a dollar figure for accessory-apartment fees in its zoning code; Town Code § 85-258D delegates…

An accessory dwelling unit permit in Colonie can only be held by the owner-occupant of the main house. Town Code §…

Greenburgh requires the owner of any lot with an ADU to swear, under penalty of perjury, that they live in one of the…

Hempstead's Board of Architectural Review only approves a 'mother-daughter residence' second kitchen when it serves the…

An accessory dwelling unit permit in Huntington only issues if the main house is the owner's principal residence…

The property owner behind an Oyster Bay parent-child accessory unit must live on-site as their primary residence, in…

Schenectady's accessory home-care unit program is an owner-occupancy program: Section 264-29B(13)(b)[9] requires the…

An accessory apartment in Yonkers can only keep its legal status if the property owner actually lives in the main…

Albany requires the owner of a lot with an accessory dwelling unit to live in either the primary home or the ADU as…

Amherst requires the owner of an accessory dwelling unit property to live in either the principal dwelling or the ADU…

The Town of Babylon requires the homeowner to live on-site before granting an accessory apartment permit, and bars…

Brookhaven requires the property owner to live in either the main house or the accessory apartment before the Town will…

Cheektowaga will not register a detached accessory building, trailer, tent, or mobile residential equipment as a…

Yonkers does not allow an accessory apartment to be rented on the open market. Section 43-22 restricts occupancy of any…

Albany requires the owner to live in either the main house or the accessory dwelling unit and bars renting either one…

Colonie restricts who can live in an accessory dwelling unit to individuals related to the owner-occupant, by family…

Huntington lets homeowners rent an accessory dwelling unit only if the owner keeps living on-site and holds a valid ADU…

Oyster Bay's 'parent-child residence' accessory unit is not a rental apartment: it may house only an immediate family…

Schenectady allows an accessory home-care unit on a single-family lot only through a Planning Commission special use…

Smithtown limits accessory apartment dwelling units to premises with a qualifying commercial use, such as a retail…

Town of Babylon accessory apartments must be at least 350 square feet, capped at three rooms, and can't sit in a…

Brookhaven caps every accessory apartment at 650 square feet by right, one apartment per lot, and one bedroom, so…

Greenburgh bars owners from leasing an accessory dwelling unit for less than a full year, and if that lease breaks…

Sheds in Albany are regulated as accessory structures under the Unified Sustainable Development Ordinance (USDO)…

Sheds and other accessory structures in Amherst's residential districts can't sit in the required front yard and are…

Accessory buildings in the Town of Babylon's A Residence District top out at 500 square feet and 14 feet to the ridge…

Brookhaven treats every detached storage shed as a structure subject to zoning setbacks under Town Code § 85-190B(9)…

Buffalo lets homeowners build a single detached storage shed up to 144 square feet without any building permit, but…

In the RS Single Residential District, an accessory building like a storage shed must stand at least 10 feet from…

Clarkstown exempts a detached tool or storage shed up to 144 square feet from needing a building permit at all. Any…

Colonie lets accessory structures like sheds cover up to 40% of a single-family or two-family rear yard, with a…

Glen Cove's R-2 Half-Acre Residence District caps accessory buildings, including sheds and garages, at one story or 16…

In Greece's single-family districts, a shed is any detached accessory building under 200 square feet used to store…

Huntington exempts small tool sheds from a building permit only if they stay at or under 144 square feet, no taller…

A shed in Islip may be built without a permit if it is 144 square feet or less, no more than 8 feet high, has no…

Mount Vernon caps an accessory building like a shed or detached garage at one story and 12 feet in height under §…

New Rochelle's Zoning Code keeps sheds and other accessory buildings out of the front yard entirely and holds them at…

New York City permits sheds, tool rooms, and similar accessory storage buildings in required rear yards in all…

A tool or storage shed in North Hempstead skips the building permit only if it is a one-story detached structure of 144…

In the City of Oneida, Madison County, New York, every shed or other accessory building needs a zoning permit and…

Oyster Bay zoning caps a residential storage shed at 200 square feet and 10 feet tall, and the building code separately…

A shed on the property line in unincorporated Ramapo is capped at 144 square feet of floor area and 8 feet of exterior…

Rochester limits residential properties to one detached storage structure, such as a shed, and requires it to sit in…

In Saratoga Springs, a detached shed must sit at least five feet from every lot line in most districts, stay under 22…

Smithtown lets homeowners skip a building permit for a small detached tool or storage shed, but only if it stays under…

In Utica a one-story detached tool or storage shed of 144 square feet or less needs no building permit. Any accessory…

Yonkers City Code § 43-41O scales shed size to lot area: 100 square feet per 5,000 square feet of lot, with an…

A detached tool or storage shed at a Schenectady one- or two-family home skips the building permit if its gross floor…

Huntington's Zoning Code lets homeowners build a detached garage sized for two or three vehicles depending on the…

Converting a lawful garage or other accessory structure into an ADU in Greenburgh caps the unit at 800 square feet and…

Islip permits private garages whose gross floor area does not exceed the main dwelling's ground-floor living area, but…

The Town of Oyster Bay lets homeowners convert an attached garage into habitable space, but only after a three-year…

Converting a Smithtown garage into living space requires a building permit under the Town's general construction-permit…

Utica has no standalone garage-conversion ordinance. Converting a garage to living space is treated as creating a…

Islip has no tiny-home ordinance; a standalone tiny house on wheels or a separate small cottage is not a permitted use…

Automobiles and trailers (including tiny homes on wheels) may not be occupied as a residence or business in Buffalo for…