ADU Owner Occupancy

The question usually comes up late: "What if we move in a few years and want to rent both units?" In most of Salt Lake County the answer is written into the approval. The city requires an owner to live on the property, records a document saying so, and treats the ADU approval as ending, or needing renewal, if that stops being true. That is worth knowing before you design, finance or plan rental income around a second unit.

What Utah law allows

State law does not require owner occupancy by itself. It lets cities require it.

• Internal ADUs. Utah Code 10-21-303(3)(j) lets a city "prohibit the rental of an internal accessory dwelling unit if the internal accessory dwelling unit is located in a dwelling that is not occupied as the owner's primary residence." The state definition of the "primary dwelling" that holds an internal ADU is a detached single-family home occupied as the owner of record's primary residence.
• Detached ADUs. Under Utah Code 10-21-304, in effect since October 1, 2026, a city's detached ADU rules may require that the owner "reside in the detached single-family dwelling or detached accessory dwelling unit located on the lot or parcel." That is permission, not a mandate.

The city rule is what you actually live with. See Utah ADU laws for the rest of the state layer.

Owner occupancy by city

Each row below comes from the city's own code or official application documents. Where a city's sources disagree, the row says so.

Details and exceptions worth knowing

Millcreek

The property must be "owner occupied," meaning the owner lives there as a primary residence. The application needs a current Salt Lake County tax notice or recent closing statement, a government ID with the address, and documents from at least two more listed categories. The approval lapses if the home stops being owner-occupied. It is a recorded notice, not a deed restriction. See Millcreek ADU rules.

Salt Lake City

Owner occupancy is not required for an ADU on a duplex, multi-family or nonresidential property. It is also excused for "a bona fide, temporary absence of 3 years or less" (such as military service or a temporary job assignment), or when the owner moves to a hospital, nursing home or assisted living facility. The City Council kept the requirement citywide in April 2023.

Murray

The owner may live in the main house or the ADU, "but not both," and may never collect rent for the unit they live in. The affidavit states that "a future purchaser of the property will be required to reauthorize the accessory dwelling unit." Murray's application says approval depends on "maintaining the required on-site parking spaces and permanent owner-occupancy."

South Salt Lake: a conflict to resolve

The code says "The Primary Dwelling or the ADU shall be Owner occupied," with "Owner" defined as the property owner of record. The city's handbook and the recorded affidavit say the same. The city's ADU web page is broader: it says the owner "or an immediate family member" may satisfy the rule. Three sources say owner and one says owner or family, so do not rely on the family option without written confirmation from Planning. The code excuses owner occupancy for multi-family properties, active military service, and an owner placed in a hospital, nursing home or assisted living facility.

Holladay

The owner or an immediate family member (spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent or grandchild) must live on the lot. "Owner occupied" means full-time residency by the owner shown on the county tax rolls. A temporary absence of three years or less is allowed for military service, a job assignment, a sabbatical or voluntary service, if the owner lived there right before and returns.

Sandy

Only the owner may apply, and the fee title owner "may not be a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, or similar entity." Proof includes a government ID, a notarized affidavit and at least two listed documents. The ADU permit ends on a sale, when the primary occupant moves, or when the business license expires, and "is not transferable to new property owners." Sandy's rules for detached ADUs were adopted September 15, 2026 and take effect on publication of a summary.

Cottonwood Heights

Owner occupancy means the owner of record lives at the site "for at least 200 days per calendar year," shown by voter or vehicle registration, a driver's license, county assessor records or similar. Section 19.75.050 lets the owner live in either unit, while section 19.75.090 refers to the owner living in the primary dwelling. Ask the city which applies. A change of ownership requires an updated ADU permit and a new signed affidavit.

Unincorporated Salt Lake County

County code requires owner occupancy of the main unit or the ADU, with an allowed absence of up to two years for medical, military or religious reasons if an on-site manager is designated. A recorded notice with the affidavit runs with the property, and a new owner must sign and record a new one.

What this means for planning an ADU

• Rental plans. Renting both units at once is generally not an option while the rule applies. Our page on ADU rental income walks through the assumptions.
• Resale. A buyer may need to requalify, and in some cities reapply. That can affect how a future buyer views the second unit.
• Ownership form. Homes held in an LLC or a trust raise eligibility questions, especially in Sandy. Check before applying.
• Family use. If the plan is a parent or adult child in one unit and you in the other, the rule usually works in your favor. See in-law ADUs and multigenerational ADUs.

Owner occupancy sits alongside rental rules. Most of these cities also ban short-term rentals of an ADU; see ADU short-term rental rules. For how the recorded documents fit into the application sequence, see the ADU permit process.

Questions about ADU owner occupancy