ADU Construction in Denver, CO
Backyard cottages, granny flats, modular and custom accessory dwelling units, designed, permitted and built by one owner-operated crew. Joseph Delgado draws the plans, pulls the permit, and runs the job.
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You Want an ADU, Not a Permit Nightmare
If you are looking at ADU construction in Denver, CO, you have probably already run into the real problem: the design, the structural engineering, the permit and the crew are usually four separate companies that have never spoken to each other. Plans get drawn by one office, revised by an engineer, sat on by the permit counter, then handed to a builder who has questions nobody drew answers for. D&J's does all four in-house. Owner Joseph Delgado prepares the architectural drawings, handles the structural engineering, pulls the Jefferson County or Denver-metro permit himself, and runs the build, so the person who designed your accessory dwelling unit is the same person answering for it on site.
Joseph has worked in construction for over 15 years and runs every project personally from the driveway of our shop in Arvada. On an ADU that matters more than on almost any other job, because a backyard unit touches setbacks, utility taps, an existing sewer lateral and a separate address, and any one of those can stall a build for weeks when the design team and the build team are not the same people. Call (303) 570-2753 and you reach the owner, not a dispatcher. Estimates are free and licensed, insured proof is available before any work starts.
Framed accessory dwelling unit under construction on a Denver metro residential lot
ADU Construction in Denver, Start to Finish
An ADU is a second, smaller home on a lot that already has a house: a backyard cottage, a garage conversion, a basement unit, or a granny flat for aging parents. In Denver the rules changed in 2024, when the city legalized ADUs across all residential zone districts citywide, so far more Denver lots can now add one than could two years ago. That does not make the build simple. It makes the design-to-permit path the part that decides whether your project finishes this year or drags into next.
We take that whole path. First a walkthrough of the lot to check setbacks, the existing sewer lateral, and where power and water will tap in. Then architectural drawings and structural engineering, prepared in-house so the design and the build answer to the same person. Then the permit, pulled through the correct jurisdiction, Denver, Jefferson County, Adams, Arvada or Wheat Ridge depending on where you sit. Then the build, supervised by Joseph rather than handed to trades who never saw the plans.
Most of the metro ADUs we look at fall into three buckets: a custom stick-built unit designed to match the main house, a modular ADU set on a foundation we prep, or a smaller backyard cottage or granny flat. The right one depends on your lot, your budget and your timeline, and that is a conversation, not a calculator.
ADU Builders in Denver: The Four Ways We Do It
You call, the owner answers
No dispatcher, no answering service, no callback queue. Just a straight conversation with the person who runs your job.
(303) 570-2753- 01
Custom ADUs
A fully custom, stick-built accessory dwelling unit designed around your lot and matched to the main house. Drawn, engineered and built in-house. This is the route when the unit needs to fit a tight setback, follow an existing rooflines, or add real long-term value rather than just square footage. - 02
Modular ADUs
A modular ADU is factory-built and craned onto a foundation we prepare and connect. It is the faster path once the site work is done, but the site work, the pad, the utility taps, the setback compliance, is where modular jobs go wrong. We handle that groundwork so the module actually lands on a permitted, ready site. - 03
Backyard cottages & granny flats
A detached backyard cottage or granny flat, often built for aging parents, an adult child, or long-term rental income. These are the units most affected by Denver's 2024 rule change, and the ones where getting setbacks and the separate address right on the first submittal saves the most time. - 04
ADU design & drawings only
Sometimes you already have a builder, or you are still deciding, and you just need the plans and engineering done right. We prepare architectural drawings and structural engineering as a standalone service, drawn by someone who builds these for real and knows what a Denver-metro plan reviewer flags.
Finished detached backyard cottage exterior built in the Denver metro
ADU Permits in the Denver Metro: Who Pulls Yours
Here is the part that trips up most homeowners and half the builders. An ADU permit is not one office. Denver proper runs its own permitting; Arvada, Wheat Ridge and unincorporated Jefferson County each run theirs; Adams and Boulder counties are different again. The plan review, the setback rules, the utility connection requirements and the inspection sequence all shift depending on which line your lot sits on. A builder who works one jurisdiction and subs out the rest does not carry that knowledge in their head.
Joseph pulls the permit himself, in the correct jurisdiction, as part of the job. That is the whole point of keeping design, engineering and permitting under one roof: when the reviewer asks a question, the person who answers it is the person who drew the plan, not a middleman relaying it back to an office across town. Fewer revision cycles, fewer stalls at the counter.
"On an ADU, the permit is not paperwork you do after the design. It is part of the design. Draw it without knowing what that specific county reviews for and you buy yourself two extra revision rounds."
We work within roughly a 25-mile radius of Denver for exactly this reason. That radius is deliberate. It keeps us close enough to know the local permit counters, the local inspectors and the local code quirks, and close enough to be on your site the same day when an inspection needs to happen. Ready to talk it through? Call (303) 570-2753 and reach the owner directly.
From bare backyard to a finished unit.
Six stages, one owner accountable for all of them.
1. Lot walkthrough
Joseph walks the property, checks setbacks, locates the existing sewer lateral, and finds where power and water will tap in. This is where a backyard cottage lives or dies, and it is free.
2. Design & engineering
Architectural drawings and structural engineering, prepared in-house so the design and the build answer to the same person. No handoff gap between the office that drew it and the crew that builds it.
3. Permit submittal
We pull the permit through the correct jurisdiction, Denver, Jefferson County, Arvada, Wheat Ridge or Adams, and answer reviewer questions directly instead of relaying them through a third party.
4. Site & foundation
Foundation, utility taps and pad prep. On a modular ADU this is the make-or-break stage: the module only lands cleanly on a site that was prepped and permitted right.
5. Build & supervision
The crew builds it with Joseph on site, not managing from an office. Quality checks happen at each stage rather than as a scramble at the end.
6. Inspections & handover
We book and meet the inspections, close the permit, and hand you a finished, legal accessory dwelling unit with its own address.
Framed accessory dwelling unit under construction on a Denver metro residential lot
When an ADU Is the Wrong Call for You
We would rather tell you this before you spend anything. An ADU is not right for every lot or every budget, and a builder who only ever says yes is not being honest with you.
Don't start an ADU if your lot cannot meet the setback and lot-coverage limits for your zone without a variance you are not prepared to fight for; a variance can add months and is not guaranteed. Don't start one if your only goal is a home office or a hobby room, because a full ADU carries a kitchen, a bathroom, a separate utility connection and a separate address, and a simpler addition or a permitted shed will cost far less. And if your existing sewer lateral or electrical service cannot take the added load, that upgrade has to be priced in first, because discovering it mid-build is the most expensive way to find out.
When an ADU is the right call, though, few things add usable space and long-term value to a Denver lot the way a well-built one does. The difference is doing the design, the engineering and the permit right the first time, which is exactly the part we own.
Build Your Denver ADU with the Owner Running It
Tell us about your lot and what you want the unit to do. Joseph walks the property, checks setbacks and utilities, and sends a written estimate. Call (303) 570-2753 or send your info and we will follow up within one business day.
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- Owner-operated
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