Do I have to live on the property?
✓ Verified against code · August 19, 2026
Only when you apply: an owner-residency affidavit at application time (waived when the ADU is built together with a new home). The old ongoing owner-occupancy rule and its recorded declaration were repealed by Ordinance 25-45.
Citation: UDC 7.3.304E.1.a
How current is this?
Colorado Springs’s ADU rules run under UDC 7.3.304E (City Code Ch. 7) (Ordinance 25-45). Colorado Springs adopted on time — and pushed back on purpose. Council amended the detached-ADU height cap down to 16 ft from the floor, restored a parking requirement staff had proposed eliminating, and wrote into the ordinance's recitals that conflicting state laws 'may be superseded by local law' under home rule, even while seeking supportive-jurisdiction status. We verified this answer against primary sources on August 19, 2026, and every change we catch is logged in the changelog.
More Colorado Springs ADU questions
- How tall can a detached ADU be in Colorado Springs?
- Do I need parking for a Colorado Springs ADU?
- Can I run my Colorado Springs ADU as an Airbnb?
- What does a Colorado Springs ADU permit cost?
All Colorado Springs ADU rules → · Compare Colorado cities →
Not legal advice — lot-specific overlays can change the answer for your parcel. The citation above points at the governing code section; check it, or ask the city to confirm.