Everything homeowners need to know about building an accessory dwelling unit in Bend - size limits, setbacks, permits, and the 2025 ordinance change that let homeowners add a second ADU to help ease Central Oregon's housing crunch.
| ADU type | Max size | Max height | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| First ADU (detached, attached, or a combination) | 800 sq ft | 20 ft | Raised from 18 ft under a June 2025 ordinance |
| Second ADU (in addition to the first) | 500 sq ft | 20 ft | Allowed citywide since June 2025; sized smaller to encourage single-room units |
ADUs are allowed with a single-family home across Bend's residential zoning districts. Bend also now allows a second kitchen inside the primary home for multigenerational households. Confirm your zoning district and exact site standards with the Planning Division before designing.
| Setbacks | A detached ADU generally needs at least 6 ft of separation from the main house, plus the standard residential setback for your zoning district; exact figures depend on your zone and lot, so confirm them at pre-application review |
| Parking | No additional off-street parking required. Oregon state law bars cities from requiring it, and Bend dropped its own ADU parking requirement in 2019 |
| Units per lot | Up to 2 ADUs per lot as of June 2025 (previously capped at 1) |
| Owner-occupancy | Not required. Oregon's HB 2001 bars cities from conditioning ADUs on owner-occupancy |
| Building code | Must meet Oregon Residential Specialty Code dwelling-unit standards |
| Rental license | No separate long-term rental license currently required; confirm current short-term rental registration rules with the city if that's your plan |
By 2025, Bend had issued roughly 954 ADU permits since 2001, more than 750 of them in just the prior decade, according to reporting in The Bulletin. Even so, state housing regulators have told Bend it needs more than 15,000 new housing units within eight years, at least half of them affordable - a target that's hard to hit given a tight urban growth boundary the city has expanded nine times since 1981. City housing staff have pointed to ADUs as one of the few housing types that still fit on already-developed lots. Oregon's Department of Land Conservation and Development reviews city ADU codes for compliance with state law; Bend's code hasn't been flagged for falling short.
Confirm your zoning district, lot constraints, and whether you're pursuing one or two ADUs with Bend's Planning Division before you design.
Consider the city's pre-approved ADU design library, launched with the Bend Chamber in September 2025, which can skip much of the design-review time versus a fully custom plan.
Site plan, floor plans, elevations, and a calculation showing how the ADU (or two ADUs) fits within your zoning district's standards.
File with the Community Development Department; reviewers check zoning compliance, setbacks, and Oregon Residential Specialty Code standards.
Budget for building permit fees plus System Development Charges for water, sewer, transportation, and parks, unless your project qualifies for an income-restricted affordable-housing deferral.
Once permits issue, schedule the standard framing, plumbing, electrical, and final inspections before occupancy.
Fees and review timelines vary by project scope and current workload - confirm current figures with the City of Bend's Planning Division and Building Safety division before budgeting.
| Garage conversion | Roughly $90,000-$180,000, running higher than Willamette Valley cities given Central Oregon's tighter construction labor market |
| Basement conversion | Less common in Bend's high-desert building stock than in wetter parts of the state, but roughly $120,000-$220,000 where feasible |
| New detached ADU | Roughly $180,000-$340,000+; local builders and real-estate sources describe Bend pricing as at or above Portland-area levels given resort-market demand |
| System Development Charges (SDCs) | Commonly cited in the $8,000-$20,000 range for water, sewer, transportation, and parks combined; Bend's tiered fee structure charges smaller units less, and income-restricted affordable ADUs may qualify for a deferral |
| Building permit fees | Typically a few thousand dollars, separate from SDCs |
These are general ranges from local contractor estimates and regional reporting, not quotes - actual cost depends heavily on lot conditions, finishes, and utility access. Bend's cost premium over cities like Eugene and Salem is a recurring theme in local reporting, driven by high housing demand, land constrained by the urban growth boundary, and construction costs comparable to or above the Portland metro area.
