The Seattle City Council’s land use committee will hear Wednesday that the creation of new “accessory dwelling units” in the city continues at record levels but those numbers could finally begin to fall with planned changes to zoning.

The city’s 2023 Accessory Dwelling Unit Annual Report (PDF) shows paperwork for the backyard housing units hit a new high last year with 987 permits issued including attached and detached units. That total continues a trend starting with the reforms five years ago that more than tripled the number of new backyard projects started in the city.

The 2019 reforms came after analysis showed only 1% of approximately 124,000 single-family zoned lots in Seattle in use for single family residential development had added attached or detached “accessory dwelling unit” structures.

The new analysis shows 87% of the permits are being made in Seattle’s Neighborhood Residential zones. According to the report, planned changes in city zoning could slow the growth.

Seattle leaders are considering a new 20-year growth plan that officials say will bring opportunities for new population growth in more neighborhoods and could make the development of multifamily housing more widespread in the city.

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