What do you do if you’re a millennial or a Gen Z’er who can’t afford to buy a home in Southern California?

Well, you could fly a prefab home over mom and dad’s house with a crane and plop it down into your childhood backyard.

LA Times features writer Lisa Boone met one family who did just that. Boone joined Lisa McRee on “LA Times Today” with the story. 

The number of permits for additional dwelling units, or ADUS, has exploded in Southern California in recent years. Boone explained how one company, Villa Homes, has taken advantage of the trend and sells pre-fab ADUs.

“They’ve done about 50 in Los Angeles. How it works is you have a consultation with them. This young couple I wrote about this week, they did a video consult with them and you can customize the ADU and then it is built offsite, including all the appliances and the cabinetry and everything. And then they truck it to your house and then they crane it into your backyard after they have put in the foundation for you,” Boone explained.

Melanie Guevara and her husband Devon Hollowood used Villa Homes to create an ADU behind Melanie’s parent’s house in the South Bay. Both are working professionals who still could not afford a home in today’s pricey market.

“The ADU, which ended up costing $475,000, it was more than what [Melanie’s parents] bought their house for 28 years ago. It’s a small house. It’s 1300 square feet. It’s on a big lot. I believe it’s like 8,800 square feet, which is a big lot. So they decided to put a pre-fab ADU that was built locally and put it in the backyard. Melanie and Devon subsidized the cost of the ADU and they’re going to pay the mortgage,” Boone said. 

Melanie and Devon aren’t alone in their decision to create their own home on their family’s property. 

“Another family I wrote about the son’s disabled and so they put it to use and they know that it’ll be taken care of and have a place to live someday. So I just think that there’s a lot of different reasons. But the ultimate it’s all comes down to keeping family close, I think, and not being displaced,” Boone shared. 

Click the arrow above to watch the full interview.

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