Small homes tucked behind existing houses — known as accessory dwelling units, or ADUs — are emerging as one proposed solution to Denver’s housing crisis, but a city-backed program designed to make them affordable faces an uncertain future.
ADUs are self-contained homes built on the same lot as an existing house. Sarah Senderhauf, sales manager at L&D Construction, said her company has been building them in Denver for about 10 years.
“When we first started, you looked at a map of Denver, and it was like a checkerboard as far as where they were allowed to be built,” Senderhauf said.
West Denver neighborhoods were among the first to allow ADUs. It wasn’t until 2025 that Denver expanded ADU zoning citywide — and demand exploded…