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If you are planning to add a unit to your property, working with an experienced adu contractor in Maywood means understanding how state law and local conditions interact before a single drawing goes to the permit counter. California consolidated its ADU statutes into Government Code sections 66310 through 66342 in 2024, and those rules were updated again on January 1, 2026. Under the current framework, square footage is measured as interior livable space, a reviewing agency has 15 business days to determine whether an application is complete, and 60 days to approve or deny it. Approval is ministerial, meaning no public hearing and no discretionary design review stands between a complete application and a decision.

For a Maywood property, the application goes to the City of Maywood, which issues building permits for work inside city limits. No unusual local overlay applies here, so the building code and the age of the structure are what govern the scope of required upgrades. That is a straightforward permitting environment compared to some cities, though the age of Maywood’s housing stock matters in practical terms. The city was platted in home tracts starting in 1919, built out through the 1920s and the mid-century decades, and incorporated in 1924. Homes from that era regularly carry older wiring, original drain lines, and foundations that predate current seismic standards, all of which affect what a utility connection or structural tie-in will involve.

The typical Maywood lot is narrow, and the house sitting on it is usually a small early twentieth century structure in one of the county’s densest cities. That combination shapes almost every ADU decision: where a detached unit can physically sit, how far utility lines have to run from the main house, and whether converting an existing garage makes more sense than building a new detached structure. We walk each parcel and check setbacks, grade, equipment access, and utility routes before any drawings are started.

State law sets a floor of protections that apply regardless of which of Los Angeles County’s 88 incorporated cities issues the permit. A local agency cannot cap an ADU below 850 square feet of interior livable space, or below 1,000 square feet for a unit with more than one bedroom. Side and rear setbacks cannot exceed four feet. Owner-occupancy cannot be required as a condition of building an ADU. Constructing one cannot trigger a fire sprinkler retrofit of the main dwelling. And there are no impact fees on a unit of 750 square feet or less.

It is also worth noting that the county’s own ADU ordinance, which governs unincorporated territory rather than incorporated cities like Maywood, was amended in July 2025 and subsequently found non-compliant with state law by the California Department of Housing and Community Development in December 2025. Among other findings, it caps detached ADUs on multifamily lots at two where state law allows up to eight. Maywood residents are not subject to that ordinance, but the situation is a useful reminder that local handouts and summary sheets are not always current with the statute. We stay current on the rules so your project starts on solid ground.