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Looking for a Los Gatos home with a second unit on the lot? The listings below pull every Los Gatos home on the MLS tagged with an accessory dwelling unit, a guest house or an apartment over the garage. Sold homes stay in the mix. You'll see what these properties actually trade for.
Los Gatos is an incorporated town of about 33,000 people at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That detail matters here. The Town of Los Gatos, not Santa Clara County, writes the ADU rules for every home inside town limits.
An ADU, or accessory dwelling unit, is a second home on the same lot with its own kitchen, bathroom and entrance. Town of Los Gatos rules cap an ADU at 1,200 square feet and a junior ADU, built inside the main house, at 500. Most detached units top out at 16 feet. Setbacks run 4 feet from the side and rear lines, and the owner doesn't have to live on site. Any ADU approved after February 6, 2018 can't be rented for under 30 days, and no ADU can be sold apart from the house. Small units skip the Town's traffic impact fee.
Scroll down for live listings, or jump to the Los Gatos ADU rules and buyer checklist.
Los Gatos follows California's ADU law, then layers its own standards on top. The table below comes from the Town of Los Gatos ADU summary brochure and lists the figures that matter when you buy a home with a second unit, or plan to add one. Start here.
| Rule | Town of Los Gatos standard |
|---|---|
| ADU maximum size | 1,200 square feet, attached or detached |
| Junior ADU maximum size | 500 square feet, inside the main house |
| Smallest allowed unit | 150 square feet (efficiency unit) |
| Height | 16 feet for most ground-floor units |
| Side and rear setbacks | 4 feet |
| Parking | 1 space for each ADU, with exemptions; none for a junior ADU |
| Owner occupancy | Not required for an ADU |
| Short-term rentals | Prohibited in ADUs approved after February 6, 2018 |
| Separate sale | Not allowed |
| Traffic impact fee | None for ADUs under 750 square feet |
| Bedrooms | No limit |
Source: Town of Los Gatos ADU information and the Town ADU summary brochure.
Some figures shift with the site. According to the California Department of Housing and Community Development ADU Handbook, a detached ADU within half a mile of major transit can reach 18 feet and needs no parking space at all. Converting an existing garage doesn't trigger replacement parking either.
Hillside lots work differently. The Town allows ADUs in its hillside and rural zones, where a detached unit may even sit in front of the main house, and the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines shape the design. Planning staff review the smaller parcels.
One more thing. The Town has an update to its ADU ordinance under review, and state law keeps shifting, including on how many units a single-family lot can hold. Call the Los Gatos Planning Division at (408) 354-6874 before you write an offer that depends on a specific rule.
A listing that says "guest house" isn't promising a legal second home. On the MLS, the seller's agent picks the label from a short menu, and that choice says nothing about permits, kitchens or whether anyone can legally live there. So read the terms below as clues. Proof comes later.
Accessory dwelling unit. Under California law, an ADU has complete independent living facilities, meaning a place to sleep, cook, eat and bathe, according to the HCD ADU Handbook. It can stand alone, attach to the house or fill a converted garage. Permitted ones count as legal homes.
Junior ADU. Smaller, and always inside the walls of the main house. A junior ADU needs only an efficiency kitchen and may share a bathroom with the rest of the home.
Guest house. A detached building, yes. But does it have a kitchen? A permit? Some Los Gatos guest houses are full ADUs, while others are a bedroom and bath out by the pool.
Apartment over the garage. Same question, different spot. A unit above a detached garage counts as an ADU only if the Town permitted it as one.
In-law suite, casita or granny flat. These are marketing terms, not legal categories. An in-law suite is often a bedroom wing inside the house with its own bath, sometimes with no kitchen at all.
What about a home with a second primary suite and no tag? It won't show up in the search on this page. Browse the full list of Los Gatos homes for sale for those.
Ask the listing agent for the building permit and final inspection on the second unit, then compare its square footage with the Santa Clara County Assessor record.
Start with the permit. A permitted ADU is a legal second home, while lenders, appraisers and insurers may treat an unpermitted one as little more than a bonus room with a sink. Utilities, any existing lease and your own rental plans come next. Price the difference into your offer.
The Town of Los Gatos Building Division keeps permit records and takes requests at (408) 354-6876. Then look at the utilities. Does the unit share the main house's electrical panel and water meter, or run on its own?
Rental plans need their own homework. If a tenant already lives in the unit, get the lease and any rent history before you remove contingencies. State and local tenant rules may carry over to you as the new owner.
Planning to build after closing? Los Gatos offers a gallery of pre-approved ADU plans, which you must use without changes. State law also puts the Town on a firm clock once your application is complete, according to HCD.
Money questions come next. Ask your lender whether projected ADU rent can count toward qualifying, then test the payment in the SVRET mortgage calculator. The buyers guide walks through the rest of the process.
Selling instead? A Los Gatos home valuation built on MLS comparable sales shows how a permitted second unit shapes your price. The sellers guide covers prep and timing.
A Los Gatos mailing address doesn't always mean the Town's rules apply. Homes in unincorporated pockets follow Santa Clara County standards. Up in the mountains, parts of the 95033 ZIP code sit in Santa Cruz County.
Check the parcel first. The Los Gatos ZIP codes map shows how the area divides, and you can browse ZIP 95030 homes for sale or ZIP 95032 homes for sale on each side of town.
Want a wider net? The Bay Area homes with a guest house or ADU page covers the whole region. Nearby city pages narrow it to Campbell, San Jose, Sunnyvale and Cupertino. Read the team's Client Reviews before you call.
Town rules allow an ADU of up to 1,200 square feet, attached or detached. A junior ADU inside the main house is capped at 500 square feet. Up to 800 square feet of ADU space doesn't count against a lot's floor-area limit, so even a tight parcel can often fit one. Confirm the standard for a specific address with the Town's Planning Division.
Usually not. According to the Town of Los Gatos, rentals shorter than 30 days are prohibited in any ADU the Town approved after February 6, 2018. An older unit may qualify under the Town's short-term rental program, which carries its own registration and night limits. Longer leases are a different story, and those are allowed.
No. The Town's ADU summary states that an ADU stays with the main house and can't be sold on its own. State law does let a city opt in to selling ADUs as condominiums. Ask the Town whether that has changed before you count on it.
Not because of the ADU. A standard ADU in Los Gatos carries no owner-occupancy requirement, so an owner can rent out both the house and the unit on long-term leases. Junior ADUs are different. One can carry an owner-occupancy rule, so check with the Town before you buy a home where a tenant already lives in one.
Only if it was permitted as one. A guest house with a kitchen, a bathroom and its own entrance may be a legal ADU, but the listing label alone doesn't prove it. Ask for the permit and final inspection. Then confirm the record with the Town's Building Division.
This page summarizes public Town of Los Gatos and State of California ADU information for home buyers. It is not legal advice. Rules change, so verify every standard with the Town of Los Gatos and consult an attorney or licensed design professional before you buy, build or rent.
The data relating to real estate for sale on this display comes in part from the Internet Data Exchange program of the MLSListingsTM MLS system. Real estate listings held by brokerage firms other than Real Estate Company are marked with the Internet Data Exchange and detailed information about them includes the names of the listing brokers and listing agents.
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All measurements and all calculations of area (i.e., Sq Ft and Acreage) are approximate. Broker has represented to MetroList that Broker has a valid listing signed by seller authorizing placement in the MLS. Above information is provided by Seller and/or other sources and has not been verified by Broker. Copyright 2026 MetroList Services, Inc. The data relating to real estate for sale on this web site comes in part from the Broker Reciprocity Program of MetroList® MLS. All information has been provided by seller/other sources and has not been verified by broker. All interested persons should independently verify the accuracy of all information. Last updated .