We live in a world full of hacks, loopholes and workarounds that often lead to more work and dead ends. When my wife, Kristy, and I discovered a way to live mortgage free, it seemed too good to be true. There had to be a catch. Six years later, we are still living out that dream through the magic of an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU. It’s never been easier for you to do the same. 

An ADU is defined by King County as “a separate complete dwelling unit that is either attached to the existing single-family residence, wholly contained within the basement or attic, or in a separate stand-alone structure that is accessory to the primary use on the premises.” An ADU can either be a detached accessory dwelling unit, or DADU — which is separate from the existing home — or an AADU (attached accessory dwelling unit), which is a part of the existing home. 

Alternatively, the tiny home, which has been popularized by shows like Tiny House Nation, is rather small for most people to comfortably live in. According to the Washington state Department of Labor and Industries, “Tiny Houses/Tiny Houses with Wheels” are small dwelling units no larger than 400 square feet. Per King County regulations, an additional drawback of the tiny home on wheels is that they are treated like recreational vehicles, meaning they “may not be used as a full-time residence.” 

With much deliberation over what style of housing to pursue, and plenty of research and foresight, Kristy and I decided to build a DADU adjacent to our existing house in Shoreline. Through a combination of penny pinching, ditch digging alongside our builder and tackling as much of the project ourselves as we could, our house was built for less than $100K.

As soon as we could, we moved into our backyard house and rented our “main” house at a rate that covered our mortgage. Within two years, we paid off our ADU and voilà. We are now living as if we have no mortgage and no rent. 

At 382 square feet, our ADU is small indeed, partly due to necessity since the city of Shoreline dictates that the ADU must not exceed 50% of the existing home’s footprint. Despite minimal square footage, we maximize space by utilizing a loft accessed via a ladder, several closets and strategic kitchen shelving. 

One key to successfully storing all our possessions, including lots of outdoor equipment, has been sharing the garage in our main house with our tenants. If this arrangement isn’t doable, a small storage shed could do the trick. More important, having a minimalist attitude is essential when living in an ADU. It forces you to hold onto only what you truly need instead of keeping things just in case.

With two kids under 3 years old, living in such a small space has its share of challenges. There’s no getting away from each other or finding a quiet nook in the house, but that is part of the point. We wanted to create a family environment that forced us to become a close unit and work out problems, instead of avoiding them beyond closed doors. 

Additionally, we chose a property with a large backyard so that we could spend most of our time outside, encouraging our kids to romp around freely whether playing in the sandbox or on the swing, or climbing on our homemade rock-climbing wall. 

In 2019, former Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan passed a law removing barriers to creating ADUs in Seattle. “Seattle has a housing crisis, and we have a responsibility to grow the supply of housing options as quickly as possible,” she said at the time. “We need to use every tool in our toolbox to boost the supply of housing. That’s why we are knocking down barriers for homeowners to build more backyard cottages and in-law units.”

A recent study found that the share of homes built in Greater Seattle since 2014 is only 8.7%, an indication of how built up the city already is.

As housing density, affordable housing and bidding wars continue to be an issue in Seattle and beyond, there has never been a better time to build an ADU. Companies such as Seattle ADU Builders, Hammer & Hand, and MyKabin will handle the entire process of building an ADU, including permitting, while Abodu builds prefab ADUs that can be shipped and then built on site. 

Living in or renting an ADU is not for everyone. It demands compromise and thinking intentionally about every possession. It forces you to live smaller. 

But for those willing to think outside the box, the rewards of this lifestyle are plentiful. For our young family, we’ve been able to set aside more money for traveling, to buy a new car, and find more excuses for outdoor barbecues and camping trips. 

And did I mention we live rent and mortgage free?