What the city allows, what it charges, and which licensed builders work here. Checked against the city's ADU pages on Oct 18, 2026.
Ranked by a public score anyone can check: license, years licensed, ADU types and cities shown on their own sites, a local office, and published prices. Nobody pays to move up. Quote requests go to our team with the builder you picked. How we rank
Based in Pleasanton, Alameda County
CSLB #1094866 active Class B Licensed 4 years
Based in Campbell, Santa Clara County
CSLB #638333 active Class B Licensed 34 years
Based in Santa Clara, Santa Clara County
CSLB #889458 active Class B Licensed 19 years
Based in Los Gatos, Santa Clara County
CSLB #1126603 active Class B Licensed 2 years
Based in Mill Valley, Marin County
CSLB #1117837 active Class B Licensed 2 years
6 Based in Livermore, Alameda County
CSLB #1081083 active Class B Licensed 5 years
Based in San Jose, Santa Clara County
CSLB #1132916 active Class B Licensed 1 year
Based in Redwood City, San Mateo County
CSLB #1102654 active Class B Licensed 3 years
9 Based in Santa Clara, Santa Clara County
CSLB #1104475 active Class B Licensed 3 years
Based in Beverly Hills, outside the Bay Area; serves Fremont from there
CSLB #1160077 active Class B Licensed under a year
Conversion of existing space[1][2]
Junior ADU (inside the house)[1][2]
Lot coverage[2]
Units on a single-family lot[1][2]
Short-term rentals[2]
| Building plan check and inspection (valuation table) | $967.27 for the first $100,000 of valuation, plus $5.91 per extra $1,000 up to $500,000[3][6] Minimum valuation for a new wood-frame home (R-3, type VB) is $210.01 per sq ft. Add a $153 application fee, a 15% community planning fee and a 3% technology fee. Trade plan check on new construction is 25% of building plan check, $292 minimum per trade. |
|---|---|
| Ministerial design review (ADU/JADU, new) | $2,000 deposit, billed at cost[3] |
| Plan review with a preapproved plan | $1,000 flat[7] Construction and inspection fees still apply. |
| New address | $278[3][2] Every ADU and JADU needs its own address. |
| Construction tax | $3,137 per new single-family dwelling unit[3] The schedule has no ADU line. Ask the city whether it applies to your ADU. |
| City impact fees | $0 at any size[2][8] Fremont says ADUs are not subject to its development impact fees, regardless of size. |
| School fees (Fremont Unified) | $5.38 per sq ft over 500 sq ft[9] ADUs of 500 sq ft or less pay nothing. Above that, the whole square footage is charged. |
| Sewer capacity charge (Union Sanitary District) | $6.46 per sq ft from Oct 1, 2026[10][11] Applies to detached ADUs and additions over 150 sq ft; none for an ADU inside existing living space. USD says this is not an impact fee, so the state exemption under 750 sq ft does not apply. It rises each year to $7.18 per sq ft in FY2032. |
| Water connection (Alameda County Water District) | $11,093 per single-family dwelling unit[12][13] ACWD's schedule has no ADU line. State law says utility charges for an ADU must be in proportion to its size or plumbing fixtures, and an ADU inside existing space pays none. |
PG&E requires a separate electric meter for an ADU. ACWD sets water fees and Union Sanitary sets sewer fees.[2]
Preapproved plans still need site-specific plans and engineering. You contract with the plan's designer.[7]
You need a ministerial design review permit, a building permit and a new address. You can ask for both permits to be reviewed at the same time.[2]
City permit fees apply to every ADU. School and utility fees are paid to Fremont Unified, ACWD and Union Sanitary.[2]
Review time: 15 business days for a standard ADU application, 7 business days with a preapproved plan.[7]
State deadline: Fremont's code gives the city 15 business days to say if your application is complete and 60 days to issue the permit for a complete one.[1]
Apply at: Accela Citizen Access
Fremont preapproves detached ADU plans. You pay a flat $1,000 plan review fee, and review takes 7 business days instead of 15. All plans approved under the 2022 code stopped working on Jan 1, 2026, so only one plan is current.[7]
Who qualifies: Usable anywhere in Fremont. You still need site-specific plans, studies and engineering.
Five designers with 2022-code plans (Adore Homes, ALIGCUS, Cottage, Expand ADU, J Kretschmer Architect) must resubmit before you can use them. The city publishes no plan prices.
A detached ADU can be up to 1,200 sq ft and 16 ft tall (18 ft near major transit), 4 ft from side and rear lines. You don't need parking, and you don't have to live on the property unless you build a JADU that shares a bathroom.[1][2]
1,200 sq ft detached, 1,000 sq ft attached and 500 sq ft for a junior ADU. Converting existing space has no size limit.[1][2]
The city publishes no total. Building fees follow a valuation table, and a preapproved plan pays a flat $1,000 for plan review. There are no city impact fees, but Union Sanitary charges $6.46 per sq ft for a detached ADU and Fremont Unified charges $5.38 per sq ft over 500 sq ft.[3][7][2][10][9]
No. Fremont requires no parking for an ADU, and no replacement parking if you convert or tear down a garage.[1][2]
Yes, but only one is current: a 499 sq ft 1-bedroom from Basically Homes. Plans approved under the 2022 code stopped working on Jan 1, 2026.[7]
Every fact on this page links to one of these. We read each one on the date shown.