Quick answer: AB 1033 (2023), now California Government Code § 66342, lets a city or county adopt an ordinance allowing an ADU and the main house to be split into condominiums and sold separately. It is optional, and as of October 14, 2026 the City of Los Angeles has not adopted it: a draft ADU ordinance that would allow ADU condominiums is in public review, with written comments accepted through October 16, 2026, before it goes to the City Planning Commission and then the City Council. Unincorporated LA County still bars separate sales. Santa Monica, West Hollywood and Culver City already allow them. APLA Construction (CA Lic #1136359) builds ADUs across Los Angeles and can plan one with a possible future sale in mind.
The default rule in California is that an ADU can be rented but cannot be sold apart from the main house. Los Angeles’s current ADU ordinance says it plainly: “ADUs and JADUs may be rented but shall not be sold separate from the existing or proposed dwelling unit on the same lot” (Ordinance 186481).
AB 1033 (Ting, Chapter 752, Statutes of 2023, in effect since January 1, 2024) created an exception that a local government can choose to use. Under what is now Government Code § 66342, a local agency “may also adopt a local ordinance to allow the separate conveyance of the primary dwelling unit and accessory dwelling unit or units as condominiums.” HCD’s ADU Handbook confirms the opt-in reading. Until your city adopts such an ordinance, AB 1033 does nothing for your property.
Two things AB 1033 is not:
There is also an older, narrower path that cities must allow: under Government Code § 66341, an ADU built by a qualified nonprofit can be sold to a qualified low- or moderate-income buyer as a tenancy in common. Most homeowners asking about AB 1033 are asking about the condominium route instead.
A city cannot adopt a looser version. Section 66342 says any such ordinance shall include all of these requirements:
| Requirement | What it means in practice |
| Davis-Stirling Act | The condominiums are created under the Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act, so the property becomes a common-interest development with governing documents. |
| Subdivision Map Act | A subdivision map and condominium plan that meet the state Map Act and the local subdivision ordinance. |
| Safety inspection | Before the condominium plan is recorded, the ADU must pass a safety inspection, shown by a Certificate of Occupancy from the city or a housing quality standards report from a HUD-certified inspector. |
| Lienholder consent | No map or plan may be recorded without each lienholder’s consent, and “a lienholder may refuse to give consent.” The consent is recorded with the county recorder. |
| Consumer notice | Cities must print a standard notice on ADU checklists warning owners to confirm their city allows ADU condominiums and that a lender may require a payoff or refinance. |
| Utility notice | The owner must notify water, sewer, gas and electricity providers of the condominium creation and separate conveyance. |
| Existing HOA | In an existing homeowners association, the association must give express written authorization first. |
| Jurisdiction | Status |
| City of Los Angeles | Not adopted. In September 2025 the City Council adopted a committee report asking for an ordinance to implement AB 1033 (Council File 25-0753). A draft ADU ordinance that includes ADU condominiums is now in public review (see below). |
| Unincorporated LA County | Not adopted. The County’s ADU ordinance says an ADU “shall not be sold separately” from the main building except under § 66341 (County ordinance). A 2026 ADU ordinance amendment is in a draft evaluation phase. |
| Santa Monica | Allowed under Santa Monica Municipal Code § 9.31.026, Accessory Dwelling Unit Condominiums (city ADU guide). |
| West Hollywood | Allowed where consistent with Government Code § 66341 or 66342 and the city’s standards (WHMC 19.36.310 staff report). |
| Culver City | Allowed under Culver City Municipal Code § 17.400.096, Accessory Dwelling Unit Condominiums (Ord. 2026-004). |
| Long Beach | Not yet. The city says it “currently applies state ADU law directly, as a local ordinance is still in development” (Long Beach ADU page). |
Other cities in the county — Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank, Torrance and the rest — each decide for themselves. Ask the planning department directly; third-party “participating city” lists online often disagree with each other.
The City’s Draft ADU Amendment dated September 3, 2026 is part of the Missing Middle LA package. City Planning describes the update as one that would “allow ADUs to be sold separately as condominiums pursuant to Assembly Bill 1033.” As drafted, it would:
This is a draft. A hearing officer held the staff-level public hearing on October 1, 2026. According to City Planning’s hearing page, written comments are accepted by email to planning.missingmiddlela@lacity.org through October 16, 2026 at 6:00 pm, citing case numbers CPC-2025-4430-CA, CPC-2025-4421-CA and/or CPC-2026-4383-CA. Planning will then prepare a recommendation report for the City Planning Commission, and the ordinance requires final approval by the City Council. We will update this article when it is adopted.
If there is any chance you will want to sell an ADU separately once your city allows it, a few decisions are much cheaper on paper than as a retrofit: a site layout that can be drawn as two clean condominium units with defined common areas, utility routing that could be separated later, and complete permit records through final inspection. That last point matters most — without a Certificate of Occupancy for the ADU, the condominium plan cannot be recorded at all.
APLA Construction designs and builds ADUs, garage conversions and additions across Los Angeles under a California B license. We are not attorneys or surveyors — the condominium plan, map and Davis-Stirling documents need those professionals — but we can build the unit to final inspection and plan its layout and utilities so a future condominium split is not blocked by the construction. See our guides to ADU costs in Los Angeles, how many ADUs you can build and ADU utility connections.
Not yet in the City of Los Angeles. Its current ADU ordinance says ADUs may be rented but not sold separately. A draft ADU ordinance that would allow ADU condominiums under AB 1033 is in public review in October 2026 and still needs City Planning Commission review and City Council approval.
AB 1033 is a 2023 California law, now Government Code § 66342, that lets a city or county adopt an ordinance allowing an ADU and the main house to be converted into condominiums and sold separately. It is optional for local governments and has no effect until a city adopts an ordinance.
As of October 2026, Santa Monica, West Hollywood and Culver City have adopted rules allowing it. The City of Los Angeles has a draft in review, Long Beach’s local ordinance is still in development, and unincorporated LA County does not allow separate sales except through the nonprofit path in § 66341. Confirm with your own city before planning a sale.
Yes. Under § 66342(d), no subdivision map or condominium plan can be recorded without each lienholder’s consent, and a lienholder may refuse or set conditions, such as paying off or refinancing the existing loan.
No. AB 1033 creates condominium ownership of the main house and the ADU on a single lot, under the Davis-Stirling Act and the Subdivision Map Act. It does not divide the land into separate parcels.
Call (818) 818-4419 or email info@aplaconstruction.com. CA License #1136359.
Sources, read 14 October 2026: California Government Code § 66342 and § 66311.5; HCD ADU Handbook (March 2026); Los Angeles Ordinance 186481, Council File 25-0753, City Planning Missing Middle LA public hearing page and Draft ADU Amendment (September 3, 2026); LA County ADU ordinance; Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Culver City and Long Beach official sources linked above. Status changes quickly — general information, not legal or tax advice for a specific property.