Remodeling & Renovations
ADUs & In-Law Suites
Room for family — or income — without leaving the home you love. We design and build accessory dwelling units, in-law suites, and guest houses across Tampa Bay, permitted to your county's rules and built to match your home.
More and more Tampa Bay families need a second living space on the same property — a private suite for aging parents, a landing spot for adult kids, a guest house, or a separate unit that can generate rental income. An accessory dwelling unit (ADU) or in-law suite answers all of it without giving up your home or your neighborhood. The catch is that what you can build — attached suite, detached unit, or garage conversion — depends heavily on your county's zoning, and the rules differ sharply across the region. As a licensed Florida general contractor, Carapezza confirms what your lot allows, then designs and builds the suite to fit both the code and your home.
Ways To Add a Second Space
Attached, detached, or converted — the right one depends on your lot.
'ADU' and 'in-law suite' cover a range of very different projects. What fits comes down to your lot size, your zoning, and what the space needs to do.
Attached in-law suite
A private suite built onto the existing home — often a bedroom, bath, sitting area, and sometimes a kitchenette, with its own entrance. Shares the main structure, which can simplify zoning compared to a fully separate unit. A common fit for aging parents who want closeness and privacy both.
Detached ADU / guest house
A standalone unit elsewhere on the property — its own entrance, bath, and typically a full kitchenette — functioning as an independent dwelling. The most flexible option for guests, adult kids, or rental income, and the most dependent on lot size, setbacks, and your county's ADU rules.
Garage conversion
Turning an attached or detached garage into conditioned living space or a suite. Often the most cost-effective path since the structure exists — but it changes the space from garage to habitable, which brings code, egress, and sometimes flood requirements with it.
Garage apartment (above)
A suite built over a new or existing detached garage — living space up, parking or storage below. A smart use of footprint on lots where ground-level coverage is tight, subject to height limits and zoning.
Bonus-room or interior suite
Carving a private suite out of underused interior space or a bonus room — adding a bath, a separate entry, and sometimes a kitchenette. Keeps everything under the existing roof when the floor plan has room to give.
Acreage guest house
On larger Plant City, Valrico, or Lithia lots, a separate guest house or in-law cottage with real distance from the main home. Room to do it properly — subject to rural zoning, well and septic capacity, and setbacks.
An attached suite overlaps closely with a home addition— the difference is that a suite is designed to function semi-independently, with its own entrance and often a kitchenette. If you're reworking the main house at the same time, it can make sense to plan the suite alongside a whole-home renovation rather than in two separate rounds.
The Make-Or-Break
Whether you can build an ADU depends on your county — and your lot.
Nothing decides an ADU project faster than local zoning. Florida has encouraged accessory dwelling units to help with housing, but whether one is allowed — and in what form — is set locally, and it varies across the bay.
Here's the honest version: an ADU or in-law suite that's routine on one lot can be prohibited on the next. Whether a detached unit is permitted, whether it can have a full kitchen, minimum and maximum size, required lot size and setbacks, parking requirements, owner-occupancy conditions, and whether it can be rented all come from local zoning— and Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Polk counties, plus incorporated cities like Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Plant City, and Lakeland, each set their own. Some jurisdictions welcome ADUs; others sharply limit detached units or a second kitchen.
The distinction between an in-law suite and a full ADUoften turns on exactly these details — a second kitchen, a separate entrance, whether it can be rented. That's why the first real step isn't design; it's confirming what your specific parcel allows. Designing a detached rental ADU for a lot that only permits an attached family suite is an expensive way to learn the rules.
We confirm your zoning before we design anything
Building It Right
A second dwelling is real construction — treat it that way.
An ADU or in-law suite is a small home, and it has to be built like one. That means its own considerations for egress (a legal way out of every sleeping room), fire separation where it attaches to or sits near the main house, and its own plumbing, electrical, and HVAC— extended from the main home or run independently. A kitchenette or full kitchen adds ventilation and code requirements a bedroom doesn't. And like any new construction on a Florida lot, the suite has to meet current Florida Building Code, including today's wind-load requirements, even when the main house is older.
On a detached unit, there's more: its own foundation, connection to utilities or its own well and septic capacity on acreage, and site work to reach it. A garage conversion has to properly change the space from unconditioned to habitable — insulation, moisture control, egress, and often flood-elevation checks depending on the zone. Done right, the suite is comfortable, code-compliant, and matches your home. Done cheaply, it's a liability at resale and at inspection. We build them to the same standard as the main house.
New construction meets today's wind code — even beside an older home
How We Work
From 'can we?' to a finished suite.
- 01
Zoning & feasibility
Before anything else, we confirm what your specific lot allows — attached suite, detached ADU, or garage conversion — plus setbacks, size limits, parking, and any owner-occupancy or rental conditions your county sets.
- 02
Design to fit family & home
We design the suite around who'll use it and how it ties to your home — entrance, layout, accessibility for aging parents, kitchenette or full kitchen — matching the architecture so it looks intentional.
- 03
Engineering & permits
Plans are engineered to current Florida Building Code with proper egress and life-safety detailing, and we pull the permits with your county or city, clearing any variance or HOA review.
- 04
Foundation or conversion prep
For a detached unit, we pour a foundation and run utilities — or install well and septic capacity on acreage. For a conversion, we prep the existing structure for habitable use: insulation, moisture control, and egress.
- 05
Build & systems
We frame and finish the suite with its own plumbing, electrical, and HVAC, and — where it attaches — the fire separation and connections code requires, all inspected along the way.
- 06
Finishes & tie-in
Flooring, trim, cabinetry, and fixtures are installed and matched to your home, the suite is joined cleanly to the property, and we walk the punch-list with you before close-out.
Timelines vary with the type of suite — a garage conversion is a different animal than a detached ADU on acreage with its own foundation and utilities. Most run a few months from permit to punch-list, with zoning confirmation, design, and approvals adding lead time before construction starts. We give you a realistic, staged schedule for your specific project, not a number designed to sound good.
Why an ADU is a custom-builder's job
An accessory dwelling asks more of a contractor than a spare bedroom does. You're building a second, semi-independent home — clearing zoning that a simple remodel never touches, meeting egress and life-safety code, tying in or running new utilities, and matching the new structure to the one that's already there. It's part zoning navigation, part engineering, part design, and part craftsmanship.
That's exactly the work Carapezza has done across Greater Tampa Bay since 1989. As a licensed Florida general contractor that builds custom homesfrom the ground up, we bring the same standard to a suite that we bring to a new build — and we handle the whole job: confirming your zoning, design, permitting, construction, and the finishes that make it feel like part of your home. Tell us who the space is for and show us your lot, and we'll tell you what your county will and won't allow.
Questions
ADUs & In-Law Suites — FAQ
Can I build an ADU or in-law suite on my Tampa Bay property?+
It depends on your zoning and your county. Some lots allow a detached accessory dwelling unit with its own entrance and kitchen; others permit an attached in-law suite but not a separate rentable unit; still others limit a second kitchen entirely. The rules differ across Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Polk and the cities within them, so the first thing we do is confirm what your specific lot allows — before you design around something that isn't permitted.
What's the difference between an in-law suite and an ADU?+
The line often comes down to independence. An in-law suite is usually attached to the main home — a private bedroom, bath, and sitting area, sometimes with a kitchenette and its own entrance — and shares the main structure. A full ADU (accessory dwelling unit) is a more independent dwelling, frequently detached, with its own full kitchen and entrance, and in some jurisdictions it can be rented. Which one your lot permits is set by local zoning, and that distinction — a second kitchen, a separate entrance, rentability — is exactly what the rules turn on.
Can I rent out an ADU in Hillsborough or the surrounding counties?+
Sometimes — it's entirely a matter of local zoning. Some jurisdictions allow an ADU to be rented (occasionally with owner-occupancy conditions on the property), while others permit the second unit only for family or guests, not as a rental. Because this varies across Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, and Polk and their cities, we confirm the rental rules for your specific parcel up front, so your plan matches what's actually allowed.
Is a garage conversion a good way to add a suite?+
It's often the most cost-effective, since the structure already exists. The key is that converting a garage changes it from unconditioned space to habitable living space, which brings insulation, moisture control, egress, and sometimes flood-elevation requirements a garage doesn't have. We handle the conversion properly and to code, so it's comfortable and holds up at inspection and resale — not a liability disguised as a shortcut.
Does an ADU need its own permits and inspections?+
Yes — an ADU or in-law suite is a habitable dwelling, so it requires permits and passes the same inspections as new construction, and it must meet current Florida Building Code including today's wind-load requirements, even beside an older home. A detached unit also needs its own foundation and utility connections. We handle the permitting and design everything to current code from the start.
Can I build a detached guest house on acreage in Plant City or Lithia?+
Often, yes — larger lots around Plant City, Valrico, and Lithia give you room to do a detached guest house or in-law cottage properly, with real distance from the main home. On acreage it's subject to rural zoning, setbacks, and your well and septic capacity, which we confirm during feasibility. It's a natural fit alongside the build-on-your-lot and custom-home work we do most in that area.
How much does an ADU or in-law suite cost?+
It depends heavily on the type — an interior or garage conversion, an attached suite, and a detached ADU with its own foundation and utilities are very different projects, and finish level moves the number further. Because every lot and suite is different, we don't publish a flat price that wouldn't hold up. We assess your specific project and give you a real, itemized number you can plan around.
Carapezza Custom Homes
Need a suite for family — or income?
Tell us who it's for and show us your lot. We'll confirm what your county allows and design a suite that fits your home, your family, and the rules — before you commit to a plan.