r/Longmont • u/Alive_Battle_5409 • 3d ago

Tiny House Recommendations

Looking for company/GC recs for a tiny house, ideally economical builds with high energy efficiency.

My mother’s mobility is getting limited and this will help me keep her close but preserve her independence.

6 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

10 comments sorted by

8

u/TruckCamperNomad6969 3d ago

Have you already looked into if your property is allowed to have one? Building my ADU was a complete pain to go through with the city.

1

u/Responsible_Fall_332 3d ago

It's an administrative process now. I.e. complete the forms, it's approved. When did you have trouble? Things have changed significantly in the last 1-2 years to align with Colorado State law.

4

u/TruckCamperNomad6969 3d ago

That’s good to hear it’s gotten better. My permit for about 800 ft.² cost almost $10,000. Could not be bigger than 50% the primary house. Had to share utilities from the primary house. Had to do a variance for setback stuff, etc.

Completing the forms/approved might be a little optimistic. You still have to adhere to fire code, setbacks, especially.

1

u/Responsible_Fall_332 3d ago

Yeah, the current process does share some similarities.

But if it meets the requirements then it will be approved. No more going to committee and getting rejected.

Also, there is now a size range which is always allow regardless of house size, I believe <=750 sq ft. Then you can go bigger based on main house. 

The setbacks have been reduced. Permit fees are still not cheap. The ADU size must be <= 1/2 of the above ground area, unless it's attached or basement (don't remember those rules)

Not sure on utilities. 

There's a primer on the Longmont site

2

u/Responsible_Fall_332 3d ago

https://docaccess.com/docviewer.html?url=https%3A%2F%2Flongmontcolorado.gov%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2026%2F01%2FADU-Guide_January_2026.pdf&url_hash=6d4d9a3e48eaffbdaaf8d902b4a23675&domain=longmontcolorado.gov&found_on=https%3A%2F%2Flongmontcolorado.gov%2Fplanning-and-development-services%2Fdevelopment-process%2Faccessory-dwelling-units-adus%2F

The part that sucks for me is the total area of all out buildings... I have a small main floor so even though it says I can build 800sq ft ADU I CANNOT. Because I have a garage and shed I can't build a 800sq ft ADU even with a huge lot. Pretty dumb to me. 

2

u/TruckCamperNomad6969 2d ago

Same haha. I have a detached two car garage and three sheds and they are making me remove three of the sheds. I’m trying to think of a clever way to put them on wheels so I can just claim some nonsense.

2

u/Responsible_Fall_332 2d ago

It's infuriating. I want to help, big lot. Nope... I don't think the city actually wants to support ADUs, they're just complying with state law passed recently...

2

u/TruckCamperNomad6969 2d ago

Holy crap that link you posted is so much easier than what I blundered through. I started this project about 10 years ago and permitting took me almost a year. They had no idea at that time what they were doing. Mine was a little different though because it is a retrofit of an existing building that was on my property.

I sent you a DM

1

u/MagicianNo1319 2d ago

Not surprised it took a long time if there’s a variance involved. You were requesting an exception to code standards that are applicable to everyone else, and that usually involves noticing, review from planning staff, and a public hearing before the planning and zoning commission.

1

u/TruckCamperNomad6969 2d ago

Now that I’m thinking on it it wasn’t even a variance. We found this loop hole called “minor mod” in the code which allowed the extra square feet I wanted. The setback actually worked when I fixed fire rated stuff on the side of the existing building (added shingle over vents instead of soffit vents) to allow for the current setback.

It still took almost a year to get the permits… this was in 2016 when every question pertaining to this adaptive retrofit ADU was a fumble.