New York is doling out millions to help homeowners build tiny homes, named accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, in their backyards.
As of August 15, the Empire State has spent $23.4 million doing so, according to New York State Homes and Community Renewal, which is in charge of the funds.
It's part of a package passed within the state's 2022-to-2023 budget called the Plus One ADU Program, which provides grants of up to $125,000 to homeowners across the state who add an additional housing unit to their property. The state plans to give out $85 million in grants by 2028.
"It comes at a time when we need to investigate every avenue to build every single unit that we have," Jolie Milstein, the president of the New York State Association for Affordable Housing, told Insider.
The program is one way lawmakers are trying to ease a worsening housing shortage, a nationwide issue that's making both buying and renting a home very expensive for most Americans.
An HCR spokesperson told Insider that through this program and other proposals, Gov. Kathy Hochul was planning to address "New York's housing crisis by increasing the housing supply, which is why she brought forth initiatives to expand housing options — including through the construction of accessory dwelling units."
In the first round of funding, HCR gave out nine grants ranging from $500,000 to $2.6 million to local governments such as Ulster County and the Town of Amherst and nonprofits such as Habitat for Humanity of New York City and Westchester, it said.
Through these grants, scores of homeowners — from near Buffalo to New York City — are set to receive cash to turn their garage into an apartment or build a tiny home in their backyards, HCR said.
To apply, owners need to meet a certain threshold of the area median income, which varies depending on where they live in the state.
Many cities in New York and beyond have eased zoning ordinances to allow homeowners to build additional living units on their properties.
In California — where the housing crisis is especially dire — the state legislature even overrode local zoning ordinances to allow all homeowners to build on their properties. A similar bill in New York did not make it through the legislature, Spectrum News 1 reported.
Still, Milstein sees the grant program as an "innovative" method to give those a head start where building is legal and to "show this can be a successful way to allow people the freedom and flexibility to address the crisis in their own home."
