Are you thinking of remodeling? Do you want to build a home? Do you think you will have a home for sale in Everett soon? The cities honchos are mulling over changes to the building codes. Specifically changes in what the definition of an MIL is. What is an MIL well that’s a Mother in Law unit.
Allan Giffen, Everett’s director of planning and community development said this about Mother in Law units. MIL’s offer the home owner the benefits of affordable housing and extra money from a small rental.
Currently an owner can make an MIL within their home but it can’t be a separate unit. You are allowed only one utility service for the whole property. The home owner must live in one of the units. That by the way is a totally unenforceable rule. These rules were designed to prevent too many duplexes within the city limits, again an unenforceable idea.
The proposed changes will do away with those rules but only for properties north of 41st St. Why, you say only north of 41st St? I haven’t a clue. If you know please tell me because it doesn’t make sense. The idea is to keep mother- in-law apartments small, partly so large families aren’t moving in and overloading neighborhood streets with too many cars, Giffen said. This is total baloney.
The new rules allow for up to 600 sq ft additions separated from the main house by at least 18 feet. In other words you can now convert a garage if it’s 18 feet off the main house.
Under state law, cities with a population of more than 20,000 are required to allow homeowners to add some kind of extra unit, but the law doesn’t tell cities what standards to set. Everett’s population is more than five times that number.
The city’s Planning Commission put its stamp of approval on the plan, and it’s set to go to the City Council in the next month or two. A date hasn’t been set yet. So there you have it if you have a home for sale in Everett and it fits the above rules maybe you can remodel. And turn a garage into an MIL and thereby get a higher price for you home.
As always comments are most welcome. Jim Johnson
