General Contractor in American Fork, Utah

Chapter 17.4 of the American Fork City Code lists accessory apartments among the permitted uses in every residential zone. For one inside a single-family home, Section 17.5.134, last amended by Ordinance 2019-05-29, sets conditions that include these, in its own order.

• One accessory apartment at most in a single-family home, and none in a multi-family dwelling unit or on a lot or parcel that cannot satisfy the parking requirements
• The property owner shown on the Utah County tax assessment rolls living full time in the main dwelling or the apartment
• Occupants limited to one person living alone; two or more people related by blood, marriage, or adoption, with no more than two unrelated people; or up to four unrelated individuals
• Two off-street parking spaces for the apartment beyond the two a single-family home requires, no parking space in a front or side yard outside an approved driveway, and tandem parking in a driveway allowed to meet the requirement
• Separate meters allowed for each water, gas, and electric service, with every meter in the property owner's name and the owner paying all utility bills
• One address number for both units, the home as unit A and the apartment as unit B, displayed in a visible spot on the street frontage side of the home
• An outside appearance that remains that of a single-family home
• A dedicated entrance on any side or the rear of the home, or at the front if the entrance is below grade and maintains the characteristics of a single-family home
• Living areas for eating, sleeping, and sanitation apart from the principal dwelling unit
• Interior access maintained between the main living area and the apartment
• Construction and remodeling that meet the building codes and ordinance requirements in effect at the time of the work, in accordance with state law on egress window changes in existing dwellings
• An apartment that is rented only, and never sold separately or detached by deed

Section 17.5.136, Detached Accessory Dwelling Units, adopted by Ordinance 2026-09-21 on September 22, 2026, sets conditions that include these, in its own order.

• A lot or parcel of at least 11,000 square feet that holds a detached single-family dwelling and lies where that dwelling is a permitted use, with no conditional use permit required in a primarily residential zone
• One accessory dwelling unit at most on a lot or parcel, whether attached, internal, or detached
• The detached unit and every other permitted accessory structure together taking up no more than 25 percent of the rear yard open space
• Compliance with all applicable building, health, and fire codes
• Conversion of a legally constructed accessory structure on the owner's application, under the dwelling and accessory structure setbacks and the building, health, and fire codes that apply, with no exemption from the requirements for residential occupancy because the structure was legally built
• A setback of at least 12 feet from every side and rear lot line of an interior lot; on a corner lot, at least 12 feet from the interior side and rear lot lines and at least 20 feet from the corner side lot line; and no placement forward of the home's primary elevation
• A height of no more than 24 feet, and no taller than the home
• A footprint of no more than 1,500 square feet, and no larger than the home's footprint
• The same building materials as any single-family detached home in the neighborhood, with no galvanized corrugated or ribbed metallic materials as facade treatments or finishes
• No placement in a public utility easement or other recorded easement, or in the front-yard area of the lot or parcel
• Two on-site parking spaces assigned to a unit with 650 square feet or more of floor area and one to a smaller unit, with any of the home's required spaces in a converted detached garage replaced on-site
• The owner of the lot or parcel living in the detached single-family dwelling or the detached unit
• No renting, leasing, offering, or other occupancy of the unit as a rental for less than 90 consecutive days
• Registration with the American Fork Landlord Registry and a business license for a property used as a rental
• No unit that would lack adequate access to a required utility service that is a project improvement, such as sanitary sewer, culinary water, electrical service, or storm water facilities; and none that must connect to a utility system improvement without the capacity to support the added unit
• Administrative review by the Development Review Committee, which may ask for the documentation it reasonably needs to determine compliance, with a written determination naming any requirement the application does not meet and the provision that sets it

Utah's ADU statutes apply in American Fork as well, as our ADU page explains.

Sources: American Fork City Code, Chapter 17.4; Section 17.5.134; Ordinance 2026-09-21, Signed Copy; Section 17.5.136; Utah Code 10-21-303; Utah Code 10-21-304; Utah Code 10-21-101. The detached conditions are read from the signed ordinance, which differs from the online text of Section 17.5.136 in four places. The online text leaves out the 20-foot corner side setback. It reads "not less than ninety (90) consecutive days" in the rental rule; "detached, internal, or detached" in the one-unit rule; and "primary residential zone" in the conditional use rule. During preconstruction, we check both sections against your lot with the city.

Utah ADU Law and Building Code