10/14/2026
YOUR GARAGE MIGHT HAVE MORE POTENTIAL THAN YOU THINK
BUT BEFORE YOU GO RUN TO HOME DEPOT AND START BUYING DRYWALL, LUMBER AND SCREWS, THERE IS A PROCESS FOR ALL OF THIS.
That garage full of boxes, old furniture, and tools could potentially become an ADU, an accessory dwelling unit with its own kitchen, bathroom, and living space.
A home for your parents.
Some independence for your adult child.
A long-term rental that helps offset your housing expenses.
Rhode Island law allows one ADU per lot by right when it stays within the existing footprint of a primary or accessory structure. That can include an attached or detached garage. But zoning permission is only part of the process.
Start with your city or town’s planning and building departments. Have qualified professionals evaluate the structure, layout, utilities, and code requirements. Get plans, construction estimates, and the required permits before work begins.
Plumbing. Electrical. Insulation. Heating. Safe exits. Sewer or septic capacity. These all need to be addressed.
Then run the numbers. Construction costs, financing, taxes, insurance, maintenance, and potential rental income. Having a garage doesn’t automatically mean converting it makes financial sense.
And understand this: Rhode Island ADUs cannot be offered as tourist or transient rentals or rented through a hosting platform. Think long-term housing, not an Airbnb operation.
ARE ADUs THE NEXT WAVE OF OPPORTUNITY IN RHODE ISLAND?
I believe they could be. More housing options. More flexibility for families. More work for qualified contractors. And a chance for homeowners to make better use of property they already own.
That opportunity might be right outside your back door.
Would you turn your garage into housing for family, a rental, or keep it exactly how it is?