ADU · Orange County

Can you build an ADU in Warwick, NY?

Town of Warwick has 13 districts. 10 districts prohibit ADUs, 3 allow them with occupancy restrictions. Check your address to confirm the district that applies to your parcel:

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What the Warwick code says

One accessory apartment is available by special use permit only in AI, TN-O and LB, not in RU, MT, CO, SL, SM, OI, DS, SH-F, LC or CB. Its Building Inspector permit is issued to the individual, not the structure, and lasts only for that occupancy or ownership.

Conditions the code attaches:

Where the apartment is accessory to a one-family dwelling, the owner must occupy the principal dwelling (§ 164-43(51)).
A buyer inherits nothing automatically: the permit may be renewed at the transfer of the property after the Building Inspector inspects the apartment.
The Planning Board may revoke the special use permit for cause, after notice to the permittee and a public hearing.
The apartment is limited to one bedroom and not more than 750 sq ft.
It may be within a lawful one-family dwelling, in an accessory structure to one, or in a mixed-use context with a lawful mixed, business or agricultural use (§ 164-22).
The application needs a floor plan and a survey or drawing of the septic system, well and structures; construction needs a building permit and occupancy a certificate of occupancy.

What the Warwick code indicates by district

The table below shows how each district treats ADUs, alongside the lot and setback standards that govern a second unit. District boundaries and conditions vary, so treat this as a starting point and confirm the district that applies to your parcel.

District	Min lot	Setbacks F / S / R	Max height	ADU
Agricultural Industry	1.5 ac	50 / 35 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Rural	4 ac	75 / 75 / 50 ft	35 ft	No
Mountain	5 ac	100 / 75 / 75 ft	35 ft	No
Conservation	6 ac	100 / 75 / 100 ft	35 ft	No
Suburban Residential Low-Density	3 ac	50 / 35 / 50 ft	35 ft	No
Suburban Residential Medium-Density	0.5 ac	30 / 18 / 30 ft	35 ft	No
Traditional Neighborhood Overlay	—	—	—	Occupancy restricted
Office and Industrial Park	—	—	—	No
Local Hamlet Business	—	—	—	Occupancy restricted
Designed Shopping	—	—	—	No
Senior Housing Floating	40 ac	40 / 200 / 200 ft	35 ft	No
Land Conservation	—	—	—	No
Community Business	—	—	—	No

Agricultural Industry - The figures shown are for a one-family dwelling; the district's agricultural and industrial uses have their own standards. Each dwelling unit also needs at least sixty-five thousand three hundred and forty square feet of land, a density control separate from the lot minimum.

Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

Rural - Each dwelling unit needs at least a hundred and seventy-four thousand two hundred and forty square feet of land, a density control separate from the lot minimum. Where the lot adjoins a special area the setback rises to two hundred feet, or a hundred feet in certain cases.

A cluster subdivision of a lot of record of ten acres or more that offers community amenities can reach a three-acre density bonus (§ 164-41.1D(1)).
Special areas are active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands with their adjacent areas.
The figures shown are those for a one-family dwelling; the district's other uses take different standards.

Mountain - Each dwelling unit needs at least two hundred and seventeen thousand eight hundred square feet of land, a density control separate from the lot minimum. Where the lot adjoins a special area the setback rises to two hundred feet.

A cluster subdivision of a lot of record of ten acres or more that offers community amenities can reach a four-acre density bonus (§ 164-41.1D(1)).
Special areas are active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands with their adjacent areas.
The figures shown are those for a one-family dwelling; the district's other uses take different standards.

Conservation - Each dwelling unit needs at least two hundred and sixty-one thousand three hundred and sixty square feet of land, a density control separate from the lot minimum. Deeper setbacks apply where the lot adjoins a special area.

A cluster subdivision of a lot of record of ten acres or more that offers community amenities can reach a five-acre density bonus (§ 164-41.1D(1)).
Special areas are active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands with their adjacent areas.
The figures shown are those for a one-family dwelling; the district's other uses take different standards.

Suburban Residential Low-Density - Each dwelling unit needs at least a hundred and thirty thousand six hundred and eighty square feet of land, a density control separate from the lot minimum.

A cluster subdivision of a lot of record of ten acres or more that offers community amenities can reach a two-acre density bonus at fifteen percent coverage (§ 164-41.1D(1)).
Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.
The figures shown are those for a one-family dwelling; the district's other uses take different standards.

Suburban Residential Medium-Density - Each dwelling unit needs at least 21,780 square feet of land, so a half-acre lot carries exactly one dwelling.

Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

Traditional Neighborhood Overlay - TN-O is an overlay, so a parcel here remains subject to the district beneath it. Its standards vary by use: each use is assigned a lettered use group, and each group carries its own bulk standards under § 164-40.

Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

Office and Industrial Park, Community Business - Standards here vary by use: each use is assigned a lettered use group, and each group carries its own bulk standards under § 164-40, so confirm the figures for the specific use proposed.

Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

Local Hamlet Business - Standards here vary by use: a one-family dwelling takes one use group, while the district's business uses take others, each with its own bulk standards under § 164-40. Confirm the figures for the specific use proposed.

Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

Designed Shopping - DS is a base district for community-scale commercial uses that rely heavily on automobile and truck access. Lot and yard standards depend on the use proposed: each use is assigned a lettered use group with its own bulk standards under § 164-40.

Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

Senior Housing Floating - This is a floating district the Town Board creates for a senior housing development on application. The lot may be no smaller than forty acres and no larger than two hundred acres.

On a county road the front setback is sixty feet, and on a state road eighty feet, instead of the town-road figure shown.
Road frontage must be at least four hundred feet, a standard separate from lot width.
The forty percent figure is maximum site development, counting all buildings, structures, walks, parking areas, landscaped areas, driveways and roads.
The distance between buildings is set at site plan approval by the Planning Board.
The Town Board may vary these requirements to follow traditional neighborhood patterns, except the lot size, the building coverage and the site development cap (§ 164-49.1D(2)).

Land Conservation - A one-family dwelling here needs at least six acres, or five acres under the cluster subdivision density bonus. The district's other uses take other use groups, each with its own bulk standards under § 164-40.

The district is for permanent open space and limited development on land owned or controlled by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission and the National Park Service.
Deeper setbacks apply next to special areas: active agricultural land, Town-designated protection areas, federal jurisdictional wetlands and state-protected freshwater wetlands and adjacent areas.

ADUs vs. short-term rentals in Warwick

Short-term rentals allowed with local rules for Town of Warwick. Renting a home short term in the Town of Warwick requires a permit and registration under Local Law No. 4, as amended in 2024. These are separate questions from whether you can build an ADU — a unit you're allowed to add isn't automatically one you're allowed to rent nightly, so check both.

Good to know

Residential lot minimum0.5–40 ac — an ADU still has to fit the district's lot and setback envelope.
UtilityOrange & Rockland territory.
Zoning codeecode360.com/WA1027
Building dept(845) 986-5000

ADU FAQ — Warwick, NY

Are ADUs allowed in Warwick, NY?

Town of Warwick has 13 districts. 10 districts prohibit ADUs, 3 allow them with occupancy restrictions. Check your address with the free ADU checker, or confirm with the building department at (845) 986-5000.

Do I need a special permit for an ADU in Warwick?

No district in Town of Warwick requires a special-use permit for an ADU - 10 districts prohibit ADUs, 3 allow them with occupancy restrictions. Site-plan review or a building permit may still apply.

Can I use an ADU as a short-term rental in Warwick?

Short-term rentals allowed with local rules for Town of Warwick. ADU occupancy and short-term-rental rules are separate: an ADU you can build isn't automatically one you can rent nightly. Confirm both before you count on STR income.

Run the free ADU check for your parcel →

What an ADU costs to build in Warwick

Permission is one question and budget is another. An 800 sq ft accessory unit here runs roughly $205k–270k at a standard finish, and the per-square-foot rate comes in above a full house because the kitchen, bath, panel and heating plant cost the same either way. See the full cost to build an ADU in Warwick, priced by size.

How we know this

Sections analyzed: 164 Attachment 1 (Table of Use Requirements) · § 164-43 note (51) · § 164-22
Districts confirmed: 13 of 13 — every mapped district.
Last reviewed: 2026-07-12
Not covered here: Overlay districts, the zoning map, and any conditions attached to an individual parcel. Size limits and owner-occupancy terms sit in the code section above, not in this summary.

More on Warwick: Full zoning for new construction · ADU build cost · House build cost · ADU rules across Orange County · All Orange County towns

ADU information for Town of Warwick is compiled from the municipal code (last reviewed 2026-07-12) and provided for decision-support only — not legal or architectural advice. ADU eligibility, size, owner-occupancy and permit conditions vary by district and often carry exceptions; verify with the building department at (845) 986-5000 before relying on any answer. Source: the Offsite / Aldo zoning dataset.