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Clearwater, FL

Clearwater Backyard Cottages Sized to Half the House

The size of a Clearwater cottage for your parent is set by the house in front of it, so measure the main home's floor area before choosing a design.

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62The age at least one parent or grandparent must have reached for the living quarters reduction in Florida Statute 193.703
50%Of a structure's market value, the cost at which 44 CFR 59.1 makes an addition a substantial improvement
16 townsCovered across Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties, each with its own local rules set out on its page
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Detached ADUs quote in Clearwater

Who the space is for, whether it needs a kitchen, and the address. With those three answers we can say which city or county rules govern the lot before a contractor draws anything.

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Credited by us on your first booked job.

  • One credit per customer per property, on your first booked job.
  • Valid through December 31, 2026.
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Five short questions about who the space is for and what it needs to hold, then where to reach you. Most people finish in about a minute.

Question 1What are you thinking of building?

Pick the closest. If you are not sure yet, that is exactly what we help sort out.

Question 2Who will live in it?

This matters more than it sounds. In Florida the answer can change the property tax on what you build.

Question 3Does the new space need its own kitchen?

In Florida law a space with its own kitchen, bathroom and bedroom is a second dwelling, and each city and county decides whether one is allowed on your lot.

Question 4Is the house in a flood zone?

In a flood zone, a large enough addition can mean the whole house has to meet today's flood rules. Your insurance declarations page or the county flood map will say.

Question 5When does the space need to be ready?
About you, and the house the space would join

Who should we ask for?

How can we reach you?

We call to confirm the details before anyone is sent out.

Where is the property?

The contractor match is by property, not by person, so the street line matters.

Anything else we should know?

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Your details are used only to respond to this request and arrange the service.

Deciding

Flood value and review on a Clearwater cottage lot

Once the size is right, the flood zone is the next question. Clearwater's NFIP record runs to 2,951 claims, 1,472 of them in 2024. If the job also touches the main house, the Pinellas County Property Appraiser's FEMA/WLM letter for the parcel shows the structure value used for 50 percent determinations. The ADU itself is a Level One flexible standard use in the low and low-medium density residential districts, so the city reviews it as more than a routine building permit.

  1. Measure gross floor area

    The half-the-house test uses the principal dwelling's gross floor area, so get that figure measured before the cottage is sized.

  2. Check the district

    Clearwater's ADU standard applies in its low and low-medium density residential districts, one unit per parcel with conforming density.

  3. Read the parcel's FEMA letter

    If the job also remodels the main house, that letter shows the structure value the work is measured against.

How detached adus works →

Local Detail

Clearwater's ADU cap and its NFIP claim record

Floor plan drawings for a small home addition beside a tape measure

Clearwater treats an accessory dwelling unit as a Level One flexible standard use in its low and low-medium density residential districts, capped at 750 square feet or 50 percent of the principal dwelling's gross floor area, whichever is less, one per parcel with conforming density, with entrances to attached units not visible from the street.

Source: City of Clearwater (Municode), accessed 2026-09-23

OpenFEMA's redacted NFIP claims data (as of September 2026) records, by NFIP community, with records beginning in 1978: St. Petersburg 16,189 claims (8,670 in 2024, $1,266.6 million paid in total); Clearwater 2,951 claims (1,472 in 2024, $231.5 million paid in total); Dunedin 1,601 claims (791 in 2024, $123.0 million paid in total); Tarpon Springs 1,415 claims (717 in 2024, $56.3 million paid in total); Largo 781 claims (497 in 2024, $78.6 million paid in total); Pinellas Park 895 claims (228 in 2024, $15.9 million paid in total); Oldsmar 776 claims (454 in 2024, $40.5 million paid in total); Seminole 223 claims (180 in 2024, $13.9 million paid in total); Safety Harbor 147 claims (61 in 2024, $5.2 million paid in total).

Source: Federal Emergency Management Agency (OpenFEMA), accessed 2026-09-23

The Pinellas County Property Appraiser publishes a FEMA/WLM letter for each parcel, reached from the Quick Pick Tool box on the parcel page, showing the structure value used for 50 percent or 49 percent determinations.

Source: Pinellas County Property Appraiser, accessed 2026-09-23

Because the Pinellas County parent or grandparent reduction requires the property to be in unincorporated Pinellas County, homesteads inside St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo, Pinellas Park, Dunedin, Seminole, Safety Harbor, Tarpon Springs and Oldsmar do not qualify under the county program as the Property Appraiser describes it.

Source: Pinellas County Property Appraiser, accessed 2026-09-23

Licensed and insured Florida contractorsVetted local contractors licensed by the State of Florida and insured for the work, who price and contract it themselves
The three rules checked for your addressThe kitchen, the flood line and the county tax rule looked at before any contractor is asked for a number
Told when an addition is not the answerIf a first-floor room or a bathroom change inside the house would do, you hear that before anyone draws a suite
In The Field

What detached adus involves in Clearwater

Floor plan drawings for a small home addition beside a tape measure
A wide doorway with no threshold and a lever door handle
Local Context

How big a Clearwater cottage can be

A separate cottage lets a parent keep their own routines a few steps from yours. In Clearwater the ceiling on that cottage moves with your house. The city caps an accessory dwelling unit at 750 square feet or 50 percent of the principal dwelling's gross floor area, whichever is less, and allows one per parcel where density conforms. On a larger home the 750 figure is the limit. On a modest one, half the house arrives first. Compare any floor plan you like against your own figure, not against the headline 750, and you avoid paying to redraw it.

A quiet Tampa Bay street of single-story ranch houses near a canal
Next Step

How big is the Clearwater house?

Send the address and the home's size if you know it. We will work out the cottage ceiling before a contractor prices a design.

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Questions

Clearwater backyard cottage questions

Is a Clearwater ADU approved over the counter?

It goes through a Level One review as a flexible standard use. The approval is the city's decision; our part is making sure the plan the contractor submits already fits the size and district standards.

Does the county's parent or grandparent tax reduction help with a Clearwater cottage?

Not under the county program as the Property Appraiser describes it, because that program requires the property to be in unincorporated Pinellas. Clearwater homesteads fall outside it.

Next Step

Tell us about the Clearwater lot

Who the cottage is for and roughly where it would sit. We pass it to a vetted Florida-licensed contractor, who designs and prices it.

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