CITY OF BURBANK
ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT RENT SURVEY
AND AFFORDABILITY ANALYSIS
February 2020
City of Burbank
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
150 N. THIRD STREET
BURBANK, CA 91510
ATTACHMENT 4 - Accessory Dwelling Unit Rent Survey
and Affordability Analysis
ATTACHMENT 4-1
Background
In January 2017, the State enacted SB 1069 and AB 2299 that established new regulations regarding how local jurisdictions can regulate and process development proposals for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in residential zones. A year later, the State enacted SB 229 and AB 494, establishing further requirements for localities to adopt provisions which facilitate the creation of ADUs. In response to the new State laws governing ADUs, the City of Burbank adopted new development controls for ADUs consistent with State requirements, while imposing a 500 square foot maximum size in an effort to maintain neighborhood compatibility.
Further amendments were made to State ADU laws, effective January 2020, including prohibitions on size limits of less than 850 square feet, or less than 1,000 square feet for ADUs with more than one- bedroom. While Burbank has updated its development standards in compliance with these new requirements, during calendar year 2019 in which the following affordability analysis is conducted, the 500 square foot maximum size was still in effect.
Accessory Dwelling Unit Rent Survey
The City recognizes that attached and detached ADUs may provide affordable rental options for smaller households, such as students, seniors, in-home health care providers, the disabled and others. In order to assess the anticipated affordability of newly created ADUs in Burbank, a market survey was conducted of ADUs advertised for rent within Burbank and surrounding San Fernando Valley communities. For consistency with unit sizes that could be produced under Burbank's ordinance in calendar year 2019, the rent survey excluded ADUs in excess of 500 square feet.1
Staff reviewed numerous websites containing rental listings, includingApartments.com, Westside Rentals, Craigslist, Zillow and Trulia, as well as rental listings on real estate company websites with a presence in Burbank. Only Craigslist contained specific rental listings for "guesthouses" - detached accessory dwelling units with private bathroom and kitchen facilities. While other websites included rentals for studios comparable in size to a 500 square foot ADU, many of these were in luxury apartment buildings and commanded premium rents. As a result, the rent survey was based entirely on ADUs advertised for rent on Craigslist.
During the two week period of February 3-17, 2020, a total of 50 Craigslist ADU rentals were identified within Burbank and the surrounding San Fernando Valley that fell within the maximum size threshold (Refer to Table 1 on the following page for complete results of the survey). Monthly rents ranged from a low of $999 to a high of $1,900, with an overall median rent of $1,500. Within the Burbank city limits, four ADUs were advertised, ranging from $1,400 to $1,600, with a median rent of $1,538. Almost all listings indicated utilities were included in the rent, and the majority specified a maximum occupancy of one person.
ADU rentals are dispersed throughout the San Fernando Valley. The scatter plot map following Table 1 depicts the location of the 50 ADUs in the rent survey by zip code.
1 Where unit square footage was not specified, staff reviewed photos included in the rental listing and eliminated one and two bedroom ADUs which appeared larger than 500 square feet in size.
ATTACHMENT 4-2
Table 1: Accessory Dwelling Unit Rent Survey (Feb 2020) Rent Unit Size Location
$999 1bd Woodland Hills
$1,100 400sf/1bd Winnetka
$1,195 400sf/1bd Sun Valley
$1,195 studio Encino
$1,200 330sf/studio La Crescenta
$1,200 1bd Sun Valley
$1,250 studio Studio City
$1,250 400sf/studio Sylmar
$1,290 1 bd Arleta
$1,295 400sf Pacoima
$1,300 260sf North Hollywood
$1,300 400sf/1bd Granada Hills
$1,300 studio Winnetka
$1,300 300sf/studio Woodland Hills
$1,300 300sf/Studio Northridge
$1,348 350sf/studio Mission Hills
$1,395 studio Winnetka
$1,400 400sf Lake Balboa
$1,400 500sf Panorama City
$1,400 studio Burbank
$1,400 1bd Tarzana
$1,450 studio Reseda
$1,450 studio Winnetka
$1,495 1bd Northridge/North Hills
$1,500 325sf Burbank
$1,500 500sf Encino
$1,500 1bd Reseda
$1,500 400sf/1bd North Hollywood
$1,550 475sf/1bd Northridge
$1,575 525sf/1bd Burbank
$1,600 500sf/1bd Burbank
$1,600 400sf/studio Valley Village
$1,600 1bd Granada Hills
$1,650 400sf/1bd Arleta/Reseda
$1,650 studio Tarzana
$1,650 500 sf/1 bd Woodland Hills
$1,695 511sf/1bd Glassel Park/Highland Park
$1,695 2bd Winnetka
$1,699 400sf/studio Valley Glen/North Hollywood
$1,700 1bd West Hills/Canoga Park
$1,700 1bd Reseda
$1,745 studio Valley Village/Studio City
$1,750 1bd Highland Park
$1,700 510sf Montrose
$1,800 450sf/studio North Hollywood
$1,800 1bd North Hills
$1,800 450sf/1bd Winnetka
$1,895 450sf/studio West Hills
$1,900 1 bd Tarzana
$1,900 472sf/1bd Sherman Oaks
$1,500 MEDIAN RENT
source: Craigslist 2/3-2/17/20 guesthouse listings
ATTACHMENT 4-3
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Sources: Esri, HERE, Garmin, USGS, Intermap, INCREMENT P, NRCan, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong), Esri Korea, Esri (Thailand), NGCC, © OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community
0 5 102.5 Miles Source: Craigslist 2/3 - 2/17/20 Guesthouse Listings, US Census Bureau,
LA County GIS Data Portal.
Legend
!( ADU Rentals
Burbank Boundary
^_
Inset Map
50 Houses - ADU
Rent Survey (2020) ADU Rentals Survey by Zip Codes (Feburary 2020) ¯
ATTACHMENT 4-4
Accessory Dwelling Unit Affordability
The affordability of accessory dwelling units can be assessed by comparing the rent distribution derived from the ADU rent survey with the amount that households of different income levels can afford to pay for housing. Based on the standard that households should spend no more than 30 percent of gross income on housing cost, Table 2 presents the maximum affordable rents for low and moderate-income households. Given the small size of ADUs, combined with the fact that the majority of ADUs in the rent survey specified a maximum occupancy of one person, a household size of one person is assumed. As presented below, 36 percent of ADU rents were within the level affordable to low income households, 12 percent were affordable to moderate income households, and 52 percent were at levels affordable to above moderate income households.
Table 2: Accessory Dwelling Unit Affordability by Income Level Income Category
2019 LA County
Income Threshold
(1 person household)
Maximum
Affordable Rent
# ADUs in
Rent Survey
Rent
Distribution
Low Income
(80% AMI) $58,450 $1,461 23 46%
Moderate Income
(120% AMI) $61,400 $1,535 5 10%
Above Moderate
(>120% AMI) >$61,400 >$1,535 22 44%
Notes:
1. Income levels reflect the 2019 Official State Income Limits published by State HCD.
2. ADU rents based on February 2020 internet rent survey (craigslist.com) of guesthouse rentals <500 sf, or small 1 bdrms located in Burbank and nearby San Fernando Valley communities.
The results of the rent survey and affordability analysis can be utilized as a proxy for the assumed income distribution of ADUs being produced in Burbank. This income distribution can be utilized in the City's Annual Reporting to the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) on the City's progress in addressing its regional housing needs (RHNA), as well as in the update of its Housing Element in 2021.
ATTACHMENT 4-5