ADU rules in Orange County

One ADU permitted by right in conjunction with a single-family dwelling in the zoning districts indicated in the Sec. 38-77 use table (marked P in A-1, A-2, A-R, R-CE-5, R-CE-2, R-CE, R-1AAAA, R-1AAA, R-1AA, R-1A, R-1, R-2, R-3, R-CE Cluster, R-T-1, and R-T-2), including PD districts. A detached ADU (not connected, or connected by a passageway over 20 feet) gets its own setbacks: one-story units 5 feet from the rear line, two-story or above-garage units 15 feet from the rear line, principal-structure setbacks otherwise; it may not sit in front of the primary dwelling unless the primary dwelling is entirely in the rear half of the lot.

An ADU connected to the primary dwelling by a fully enclosed or open-sided passageway of 20 feet or less is an attached ADU; it must meet all principal-structure setbacks, may share or use a separate entrance (separate entrance only on the side or rear), needs doors at both ends of any connecting passageway, and may not have a separate power meter.

Height may not exceed the maximum permitted for the primary dwelling; detached ADUs also count against the cumulative detached-accessory-structure square footage caps in § 38-1426(1) (for parcels under 1 acre: 10% of net land area or 500 sq ft, whichever is greater, capped at 3,000 sq ft cumulative).

The primary dwelling and ADU must remain under single ownership at all times, the lot must qualify as homestead property, and the owner must occupy either the primary dwelling or the ADU at all times. ADU approval does not authorize separate ownership or division of the lot.

Stated as a flat requirement with no zone-based waivers in the section.

A maximum of one ADU may be 'permitted by right' on a lot in the zoning districts indicated in Sec. 38-77 (the use table marks ADUs as P, permitted, not S, special exception, in every district where they appear). Construction requires a building permit through the county's Fast Track Online Services portal with engineer- or architect-sealed plans and fire separation per the Florida Building Code.

The Sec. 38-77 use table lists 'single-family dwelling transient rental' as a permitted use in only one residential column, matching the R-3 carve-out cross-referenced in § 38-1426(2)c.14. No minimum lease term beyond the 30-day threshold and no deed-restriction recording requirement appear in the section.