ADU · Rockland County

Can you build an ADU in Haverstraw, NY?

Town of Haverstraw has 12 districts. 6 districts prohibit ADUs, 6 allow them with occupancy restrictions. Check your address to confirm the district that applies to your parcel:

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What the Haverstraw code says

In R-120, R-40, R-25, R-15, RG and RMH, a lot of at least 2 acres may have one guesthouse, caretaker's cottage or servant's quarters by right, 50 feet from any lot line. An accessory unit is not permitted in CR, PO, C or PIO.

Conditions the code attaches:

A caretaker's cottage or servant's quarters is tied to employment. Whether a guesthouse may be rented is not confirmed, so get the Building Department's position in writing.
The 2-acre floor is separate from the district's own lot minimum and applies in R-15 as well.
In R-25, R-15, RG and RMH, a Town Board special permit for a country commercial use under § 167-37.3 may include a single apartment of up to 900 square feet above the first-floor commercial use.
That special permit needs a lot of at least 17,500 square feet with frontage on a fully improved state or county road, and the principal building may not exceed 2,000 square feet.
The apartment needs a valid certificate of occupancy and two parking spaces, and the building must look residential, with a pitched roof, and go to the Architectural Review Board.

What the Haverstraw 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
Rural Residence	2.75 ac	50 / 40 / 80 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Low-Density Residence R-40	0.92 ac	50 / 30 / 50 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Low-Density Residence R-25	0.57 ac	35 / 25 / 40 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Medium-Density Residence	0.34 ac	30 / 20 / 35 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
General Residence	0.34 ac	25 / 15 / 25 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Residential Mobile Home	0.34 ac	25 / 15 / 25 ft	35 ft	Occupancy restricted
Commercial Recreation	1.38 ac	60 / 40 / 60 ft	35 ft	No
Professional Office	0.46 ac	50 / 25 / 30 ft	35 ft	No
Commercial	0.23 ac	25 / 10 / 25 ft	35 ft	No
Planned Industrial Office	0.92 ac	100 / 50 / 50 ft	35 ft	No
Waterfront Redevelopment	25 ac	150 / 50 / 50 ft	—	No
Limited Apartment 17	10 ac	35 / 35 / 35 ft	40 ft	No

Rural Residence - Street frontage of 200 feet is required as well as the lot width shown. Two coverage caps apply: building coverage limits the footprint, and total coverage also counts everything else on the ground.

The side yards must total 100 feet, so 40 feet on each side falls 20 feet short.
These figures apply to every permitted use in the district, not only to a one-family house.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Low-Density Residence R-40 - Street frontage of 150 feet is required as well as the lot width shown. Two coverage caps apply: building coverage limits the footprint, and total coverage also counts everything else on the ground.

All other permitted uses are a separate row: 60,000 square feet on 150 feet of width and frontage, 80 ft in front, 80 ft to each side with 175 ft for the pair and 80 ft to the rear.
That row's caps are 10% building coverage and 20% total.
The side yards must total 80 feet, so 30 feet on each side falls 20 feet short.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Low-Density Residence R-25 - Street frontage of 125 feet is required as well as the lot width shown. Two coverage caps apply: building coverage limits the footprint, and total coverage also counts everything else on the ground.

All other permitted uses are a separate row: 35,000 square feet on 125 feet of width and frontage, 70 ft in front, 70 ft to each side with 160 ft for the pair and 70 ft to the rear.
That row's caps are 15% building coverage and 25% total.
The side yards must total 60 feet, so 25 feet on each side falls 10 feet short.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Medium-Density Residence - Street frontage of 100 feet is required as well as the lot width shown. Two coverage caps apply: building coverage limits the footprint, and total coverage also counts everything else on the ground.

All other permitted uses are a separate row: 22,000 square feet on 100 feet of width and frontage, 60 ft in front, 60 ft to each side with 150 ft for the pair and 60 ft to the rear.
That row's caps are 20% building coverage and 30% total.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

General Residence - This district carries four complete sets of bulk requirements, and the figures shown are the smallest of them. Street frontage of 80 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.

A two-family house needs 0.5051 acres on 100 ft of width and frontage, with 20 ft to each side and 40 ft for the pair, and its coverage caps drop to 20% building and 30% total.
Multifamily housing and semiattached houses share a row of a different order: 5 acres on 350 ft of width and frontage, 75 ft in front and to the rear, 50 ft to each side and 100 ft for the pair.
That row carries eight storeys with no figure in feet beside it, the most permissive coverage in the town at 30% building and 60% total, and density capped at 6 units to the acre.
All other permitted uses are a separate row: 35,000 square feet on 125 ft of width and frontage, 70 ft in front, 70 ft to each side, 160 ft for the pair and 70 ft to the rear, with no coverage cap.
Two coverage caps apply: building coverage limits the footprint, and total coverage also counts everything else on the ground.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Residential Mobile Home - The figures shown are for a one-family detached house; mobile homes have a separate set of bulk requirements in this district. Street frontage of 80 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.

A mobile home needs 0.1148 acres on 50 ft of width and frontage, with 20 ft in front, 10 ft to each side and 20 ft for the pair, 10 ft to the rear, and no coverage cap.
A mobile home is held to 12 ft of height, the lowest height limit anywhere in this town by twenty-three feet.
All other permitted uses are a separate row: 35,000 square feet on 125 ft of width and frontage, 70 ft in front, 70 ft to each side, 160 ft for the pair and 70 ft to the rear, with no coverage cap.
Two coverage caps apply: building coverage limits the footprint, and total coverage also counts everything else on the ground.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Commercial Recreation - No coverage cap of either kind applies in this district; the yards and the two-and-a-half-storey limit are the whole of its bulk regulation.

A marina needs 5 acres on 250 ft of width and frontage, nearly four times the district minimum, on otherwise identical yards.
Street frontage of 150 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Professional Office - Side yards rise to 35 feet each and 70 feet combined where the lot adjoins a residential district or use; the figures shown apply next to a nonresidential district or use. No coverage cap of either kind applies.

Street frontage of 100 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Commercial - Side yards rise to 25 feet each and 35 feet combined where the lot adjoins a residential district or use; the figures shown apply next to a nonresidential district or use. No coverage cap of either kind applies.

Street frontage of 100 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Planned Industrial Office - No coverage cap of either kind applies in this district. Street frontage of 150 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.

A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Waterfront Redevelopment - The height limit is eight storeys, with no figure in feet. No coverage cap of either kind applies.

Street frontage of 150 feet is required as well as the lot width shown.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

Limited Apartment 17 - The floor area ratio here is a minimum of 0.6, so the rule compels density rather than limiting it. The 50% coverage figure is total lot coverage, counting everything on the ground, and the table sets no building-footprint cap.

Street frontage of 130 feet is required, which is shorter than the lot width shown.
A use that needs a special permit may carry its own bulk requirements under the zoning law.

ADUs vs. short-term rentals in Haverstraw

Short-term rentals prohibited for Town of Haverstraw. Short-term rentals are prohibited in the Town of Haverstraw. Transient rental of a dwelling unit is not listed as a permitted use under Chapter 167, and the Town has no registry or permit pathway. 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 minimum0.34–10 ac — an ADU still has to fit the district's lot and setback envelope.
UtilityOrange & Rockland territory.
Zoning codeecode360.com/11795031
Building dept(845) 429-2200

ADU FAQ — Haverstraw, NY

Are ADUs allowed in Haverstraw, NY?

Town of Haverstraw has 12 districts. 6 districts prohibit ADUs, 6 allow them with occupancy restrictions. Check your address with the free ADU checker, or confirm with the building department at (845) 429-2200.

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

No district in Town of Haverstraw requires a special-use permit for an ADU - 6 districts prohibit ADUs, 6 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 Haverstraw?

Short-term rentals prohibited for Town of Haverstraw. 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.

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What an ADU costs to build in Haverstraw

Permission is one question and budget is another. An 800 sq ft accessory unit here runs roughly $225k–295k 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 Haverstraw, priced by size.

How we know this

Sections analyzed: Ch. 167 § 167-37.3 County commercial uses (added by L.L. No. 2-2011); § 167-14 special permit provisions; Attachments 3-14, the per-district use tables
Districts confirmed: 12 of 12 — every mapped district.
Last reviewed: 2026-07-21
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 Haverstraw: Full zoning for new construction · ADU build cost · House build cost · ADU rules across Rockland County · All Rockland County towns

ADU information for Town of Haverstraw is compiled from the municipal code (last reviewed 2026-07-21) 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) 429-2200 before relying on any answer. Source: the Offsite / Aldo zoning dataset.