Key findings
- The City of San Diego issued 1,445 ADU permits in 2025, up from 565 in 2020.
- Clairemont Mesa grew fastest among the larger neighborhoods: 70 permits in 2020, 150 in 2025.
- Clairemont Mesa had the most ADU permits from 2020 to 2025: 723, 11% of the city's.
- Garage conversions were 23% of the city's ADU permits in 2020 and 21% in 2025.
- Detached ADUs issued in 2025 took a median of 279 days from application to permit, up from 156 days for those issued in 2020.
- Median permit time ranged from 168 days in Rancho Penasquitos to 350 days in Greater Golden Hill (all ADU types, 2020–2025).
- 194 of the city's 2025 ADU permits (13%) used its ADU Bonus Program, which trades extra market-rate ADUs for income-restricted ones.
ADU permits issued in San Diego, by year
What kind of ADUs
| Share of ADU permits | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garage conversion | 23% | 24% | 27% | 23% | 20% | 21% |
| Detached ADU | 36% | 35% | 33% | 32% | 32% | 29% |
| Attached ADU | 15% | 16% | 12% | 15% | 15% | 14% |
| Junior ADU (JADU) | 1% | 5% | 7% | 8% | 8% | 6% |
Types are classified automatically from permit descriptions; some permits are unclassified.
How long permits take
| Median days, application to permit | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garage conversion | 120 | 153 | 222 | 243 | 222 | 217 |
| Detached ADU | 156 | 181 | 260 | 296 | 225 | 279 |
| Attached ADU | 142 | 164 | 274 | 269 | 211 | 205 |
| Junior ADU (JADU) | — | 169 | 186 | 198 | 170 | 187 |
By the year the permit was issued. Applications open more than three years are left out.
What owners declared as cost
| Median declared valuation | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garage conversion | $48k | $54k | $59k | $55k | $60k | $72k |
| Detached ADU | $97k | $112k | $137k | $114k | $125k | $137k |
| Attached ADU | $72k | $77k | $88k | $83k | $95k | $126k |
| Junior ADU (JADU) | — | $43k | $53k | $52k | $54k | $71k |
Declared permit valuations (single-ADU permits only) often understate real construction cost.
The ADU Bonus Program
San Diego lets owners build extra “bonus” ADUs in exchange for an equal number of ADUs rented at income-restricted rents for 10 to 15 years; rules in effect since August 22, 2025 narrowed where it applies (more on the San Diego page).
| Year | ADU permits | With a bonus ADU | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1,331 | 30 | 2% |
| 2024 | 1,500 | 138 | 9% |
| 2025 | 1,445 | 194 | 13% |
Permits whose city record lists at least one bonus ADU; the city records this from 2023 on.
By neighborhood
| Neighborhood | Part of the city | 2020 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Garage conversions | Median days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clairemont Mesa | Northern San Diego | 70 | 150 | 723 | 17% | 231 |
| College Area | Mid-City and Eastern San Diego | 60 | 67 | 464 | 24% | 194 |
| North Park | Central San Diego | 44 | 78 | 430 | 37% | 240 |
| City Heights | Mid-City and Eastern San Diego | 27 | 121 | 422 | 31% | 262 |
| Southeastern San Diego | Southern San Diego | 33 | 87 | 398 | 21% | 294 |
| Mid-City Eastern Area | Mid-City and Eastern San Diego | 28 | 95 | 385 | 20% | 230 |
| Peninsula (Point Loma) | Coastal San Diego | 34 | 62 | 314 | 19% | 220 |
| Mira Mesa | Northern San Diego | 19 | 77 | 301 | 7% | 189 |
| Pacific Beach | Coastal San Diego | 12 | 83 | 277 | 22% | 263 |
| Encanto | Southern San Diego | 22 | 67 | 268 | 25% | 246 |
| Linda Vista | Northern San Diego | 17 | 76 | 262 | 13% | 272 |
| Uptown | Central San Diego | 24 | 54 | 243 | 28% | 260 |
| Skyline-Paradise Hills | Southern San Diego | 22 | 43 | 219 | 26% | 203 |
| Otay Mesa-Nestor | Southern San Diego | 21 | 46 | 198 | 26% | 273 |
| Navajo | Mid-City and Eastern San Diego | 17 | 45 | 175 | 23% | 171 |
| Normal Heights | Mid-City and Eastern San Diego | 24 | 38 | 175 | 34% | 243 |
| La Jolla | Coastal San Diego | 8 | 52 | 164 | 9% | 274 |
| Kensington-Talmadge | Mid-City and Eastern San Diego | 16 | 22 | 140 | 46% | 224 |
| Serra Mesa | Northern San Diego | 23 | 21 | 134 | 16% | 216 |
| Greater Golden Hill | Central San Diego | 7 | 24 | 120 | 27% | 350 |
| University City | Northern San Diego | 9 | 19 | 90 | 10% | 221 |
| Rancho Penasquitos | Northern San Diego | 5 | 14 | 75 | 7% | 168 |
| Ocean Beach | Coastal San Diego | 3 | 23 | 75 | 19% | 212 |
| San Ysidro | Southern San Diego | 3 | 10 | 56 | 38% | 239 |
| Rancho Bernardo | Northern San Diego | 3 | 12 | 44 | 30% | — |
| Scripps Miramar Ranch | Northern San Diego | 4 | 9 | 34 | 3% | — |
| Torrey Pines | Coastal San Diego | 0 | 10 | 34 | 6% | — |
| Carmel Valley | Northern San Diego | 2 | 6 | 29 | 14% | — |
| Black Mountain Ranch | Northern San Diego | 1 | 8 | 20 | 10% | — |
| Tierrasanta | Northern San Diego | 2 | 3 | 15 | 13% | — |
| Rancho Encantada | Northern San Diego | 1 | 1 | 14 | 7% | — |
| Otay Mesa | Southern San Diego | 0 | 6 | 13 | 38% | — |
| Del Mar Mesa | Northern San Diego | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0% | — |
| Carmel Mountain Ranch | Northern San Diego | 0 | 5 | 9 | 0% | — |
| Barrio Logan | Central San Diego | 0 | 1 | 8 | 12% | — |
| Pacific Highlands Ranch | Northern San Diego | 1 | 3 | 7 | 29% | — |
| Torrey Highlands | Northern San Diego | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0% | — |
| Sabre Springs | Northern San Diego | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0% | — |
| Torrey Hills | Northern San Diego | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0% | — |
| Kearny Mesa | Northern San Diego | 2 | 1 | 4 | 25% | — |
| Mission Beach | Coastal San Diego | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0% | — |
| Midway-Pacific Highway | Coastal San Diego | 0 | 1 | 2 | 50% | — |
| Old Town San Diego | Coastal San Diego | 0 | 0 | 2 | 50% | — |
| Downtown San Diego | Central San Diego | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0% | — |
Median days shown where there are at least 50 timed permits. Neighborhoods with their own page are linked.
About this data
- Source: City of San Diego Development Services Department permits (data.sandiego.gov), 2020 onward. Counted: building permits that create an ADU or junior ADU, each in the year it was issued, excluding cancelled ones. The city also closes permits that expire without separating them from finished ones, so some expired permits are counted.
- Neighborhoods are the city's community planning areas, matched from each permit's location. Other cities in San Diego County (Chula Vista, Oceanside and the rest) are not included here; see their pages.
- Public-record permit data only — not zoning, feasibility, or legal advice. Records may be incomplete, delayed, or mis-categorized. Check with your city planning department.
Reporters: the figures are free to cite and reuse with credit and a link to this page, under CC BY 4.0. Questions: [email protected].