Thinking About Building a Place for an In-Law or Renter?
You Could Get Up to $50,000 to Help You Build It Here in Northfield!

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An Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) is a smaller, independent dwelling unit that is located on the same lot as an existing single-family home. Vermont’s law on equal treatment of housing and town bylaws requires municipalities to allow homeowners to add one ADU to their house as a permitted use as long as certain conditions are met.

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are apartments located within or on the same property as a single-family, owner-occupied home. ADUs are often located above a garage, in a basement, or as a backyard cottage, and have been utilized widely in cities across the US as a tool for older adults to remain in their homes as they age, to create housing for an elder or a dependent, and provide homeowners with a way to offset housing costs.

A new Vermont Home Improvement Program called VHIP-ADU program is a low-barrier way for Vermont homeowners to help solve the housing crisis one unit at a time. This program offers grants of up to $50,000 that can be used for expenses related to creating and or remodeling an accessory dwelling unit.
Vermont Housing Improvement Program (VHIP) is now accepting applications. This program offers grants of up to $50,000 per unit for repairs needed to bring vacant rental units up to Vermont Rental Housing Health Code guidelines, add new units to an existing building, or create an accessory dwelling unit on an owner-occupied property. Application review and project oversight is conducted through the regional Homeownership Centers.

Program participants are required to provide a 20% match for VHIP project grants and maintain HUD Fair Market Rent prices.

You can learn more through the Central Vermont Homeownership Center, Downstreet, LLC, by going to https://downstreet.org/vhip.

You can also reach out to the Northfield Economic Development Office at 802-485-9835 or tdavis@northfield.vt.us.