2021 California Senate Bill 9 (SB9), titled as the California Housing Opportunity and More Efficiency (HOME) Act, is a 2021

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

state law which creates a legal process by which owners of certain single-family homes may either build two 800-square-foot homes on their property or their property into

duplexes A duplex house plan has two living units attached to each other, either next to each other as townhouses, condominiums or above each other like apartments. By contrast, a building comprising two attached units on two distinct properties is ...

to result in a maximum four housing units on a formerly single-family lot, and prohibits cities and counties from directly interfering with those who wish to build such homes. Drafted by State Senator

Scott Wiener Scott Wiener (born May 11, 1970) is an American politician and a member of the California State Senate. A Democrat, he represents the 11th Senate District, encompassing San Francisco and parts of San Mateo County. Prior to his election to the ...

, it was signed into law by Gov.

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California fr ...

on September 16, 2021, and went into effect on Jan 1, 2022. The bill was crafted to reduce the cost of housing in California by increasing housing supply and density within California cities and overriding municipal and county zoning laws requiring

single-family zoning Single-family zoning is a type of planning restriction applied to certain residential zones in the United States and Canada in order to restrict development to only allow single-family detached homes. It disallows townhomes, duplexes, and multi-f ...

. The law also expands the capacity for

secondary suites Secondary suites (also known as accessory dwelling units, ADUs, in-law apartments and granny flats) are self-contained apartments, cottages, or small residential units, that are located on a property that has a separate main, single-family home, ...

(also known in California as accessory dwelling units). However, it is estimated that around 500,000 households (or 1 in 20 households) across California would be able to qualify under SB9. The law also has several exceptions, including the exclusion of historic districts, and a condition prohibiting the same owner from splitting adjacent lots.

References

{{Reflist Zoning in the United States California statutes