Why is Massachusetts encouraging homeowners to build ADUs, and does the state actually stand behind them?

By Buz Artiano, BuildX | August 2026

Watch: Can ADUs Help Fix the Massachusetts Housing Crisis? Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll Tours BuildX ADUs

You're thinking about putting your money into building an ADU but something is holding you back. It isn't the cost, it's the worry that this is just a trend. The rules might change, different government officials might stop giving permission and you might be left with a permit for something that the state isn't supporting. When there's a new housing idea, it's fair to ask whether the people who wrote the law will really stand behind it, or will they just move on to the next idea.

My name is Buz Artiano, and I am the founder of BuildX. We've built dozens of ADU projects across Massachusetts, mostly around the South Shore and Plymouth County areas. We are the only team you need: we do the design, permitting, and construction. So we see every phase of a project from the first site visit up until you move in. We evaluate septic constraints, zoning issues, utility connections and the requirement to get a permit from the city. We've been able to see how seriously the state takes the right to build an ADU. In 2026, Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll toured our ADUs on camera to highlight the state's new ADU law, and what she said is a very clear answer we can give you to your question.

With the ADUs we've built in Massachusetts, we haven't seen another change in housing that's this clearly supported by the state. It isn't a pilot program or just an experiment. It's now a statute, and a regulation, and the second-highest elected official in the Commonwealth spent an afternoon touring our ADUs and explaining why. Below is what Massachusetts is doing, and why and what the Lieutenant Governor told us directly.

Does the State Really Stand Behind ADUs, or Could This Get Reversed?

The honest answer is that this is already a law, not just a policy you have to hope lasts. On August 6, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed the Affordable Homes Act, and its ADU provisions took effect on February 2, 2025. The law changed the state's Zoning Act to make one ADU buildable by right on single-family lots across Massachusetts, up to 900 square feet or half the gross floor area of the main home, whichever one is smaller. You can review the state's summary of the law and its requirements at mass.gov.

"By right" is the part that matters, and here is what it means in simple terms. Before the law was passed, most homeowners who wanted an ADU had to ask their town for a special permit, which meant there would be a public hearing and the board could vote no even after you'd already paid for plans. By right eliminates that step. If your project meets the state's requirements, the town has to approve it. There isn't a hearing to lose and no vote by a board to take a chance on.

That one change means the most from our point of view. For a long time, that risk was what killed backyard ADU projects, not the cost or the design. It was the risk that a homeowner would spend money on drawings and engineering only to have a discretionary board say no to the project. When the way to get approval is predictable, we can be honest with a family from the first meeting. If the plan goes by the rules, it will get built. That certainty is worth more to most homeowners than any design feature, because it lets you make a commitment with risk.

None of this eliminates your town's rules: building code, fire code, Title V septic rules, and dimensional limits like setbacks and height will still apply, and every town decides how to administer them. The right to build comes from the state level but the details of how you build the ADU are still resolved by your town. That's exactly the kind of structure that tends to last, because it gives towns some say instead of eliminating their role entirely.

Why Is Massachusetts Encouraging Homeowners to Build ADUs?

The state isn't encouraging ADUs because they're in fashion. It's because Massachusetts is very short on homes by such a large number that it's affecting everyday life here. On the tour, the Lieutenant Governor said this: "We're 220,000 units short of housing in Massachusetts, so ADUs for us were an opportunity to get housing fast." That number goes along with the state's own housing plan, A Home for Everyone, has set a goal of 222,000 additional homes by 2035 to get costs under control. The plan and the state's progress toward it are published at mass.gov.

She was also honest about how the shortage happened. "In the 70s and 80s we actually were building a lot more homes," she said, "and in the last two decades we just haven't built enough and there's huge demand and that's just driving affordability challenges." ADUs are a good option for the state because they add homes without new roads, new lots, or new infrastructure. The land and the utilities are already in place so an ADU in the backyard is one of the fastest ways to add a home to a neighborhood that's already there.

There's also another reason the state gives and it's about who needs the housing. The Lieutenant Governor said that a large and growing share of Massachusetts residents are older. Her figures are that 20 percent of residents are over the age of 60, and the state's own aging figures says the percentage is even higher. Her point of view was that aging in place with dignity "warrants more opportunities for ADUs." An ADU allows an older parent to stay near family instead of going into assisted living, and it lets an adult child find a place in an area that they normally couldn't afford to live in. That's the same reason families call us. The state's goals and the homeowner's goals tend to be the same.

What Did the Lieutenant Governor Say When She Toured Our ADUs?

Lots of builders can tell you the state supports ADUs but not many have had a current Lieutenant Governor who toured one of their finished ADUs and said it on camera. That's what happened when Kim Driscoll toured two of BuildX ADUs in Massachusetts. She started by talking about the law itself. "This is our opportunity to showcase the new state law which allows accessory dwelling units, affectionately known as ADUs, as of right in every city and town in the Commonwealth."

She was clear that the state isn't recommending one kind of ADU. "It's our opportunity to be able to showcase what you can have in your backyard, in your garage, in your attic," she said. "There's lots of ways to build ADUs, we just want you building them." After taking a tour of our ADUs she gave her opinion: "This is a great design and good opportunity for families to not only stay together, but get you in the housing market, help your parents have a place where they can stick around and age in place." She closed the same way she opened, discussing the housing shortage: "It really can help meet our housing crisis. So, we're excited."

If you've been hesitating because an ADU seemed like a fringe idea that the state wouldn't support, this is proof that's not the case. The person helping lead the Commonwealth's housing agenda chose real family ADUs to support the case. We'll be honest about what endorsement is and isn't because that's the next thing you need to get straight before you make a decision.

Should a State Endorsement Make You Choose BuildX?

No, and we want to be honest about that. The Lieutenant Governor just supporting the case for ADUs and the law that makes them possible. She wasn't recommending any one builder and she said that: "There's lots of ways to build ADUs, we just want you building them." The tour happened to be at our units, and we're proud of that. But the main thing to remember is that the state wants these homes built, not that the state told you who should build yours.

So use the endorsement for what it's worth. It should rid you of the worry that ADUs are risky or unsupported, because neither one is true. It shouldn't replace the job of choosing a builder who will fit your profit. A design and build team under one roof, which is the way we do it, is a good idea for a homeowner who just wants one team accountable from the first drawing through the last inspection, and who wants a smooth path through the permit process over the lowest possible sticker price. It's not as good a fit if you already have your own architect and general contractor chosen, or if your priority is the cheapest price no matter how the project is managed. Both are choices but only one of them is us.

The right way to decide on a builder, including us, is to make them show you finished work and walk you through how they'd deal with your specific lot. A state endorsement of the idea is a reason to move forward but it's not a substitute for that discussion.

You Are Building on Law, Not on a Trend

If you've been waiting to make sure that Massachusetts is serious about ADUs, this is it. The right to build one is state law, the state is actively working to add homes, and a sitting Lieutenant Governor toured our finished units and called them part of the answer.

What's left is the part that belongs to you: finding out whether your lot works, what your town requires and what the unit should be. That's an important conversation, and it is the one you should have next.