Casita, In Law Suite, Carriage House: What Homeowners Call an ADU in Your State

If your ads and your website only say "ADU," you're missing a lot of homeowners. Depending on where you build, they're searching for a casita, an in law apartment, a granny flat or a carriage house. Same job. Different word.

We pulled the search numbers so you can see it for yourself. All numbers are monthly Google searches from SearchAtlas, October 2026.

What homeowners type nationwide

• adu builder: 8,100 a month
• adu builders near me: 4,400
• pool house builders: 1,900
• casita builders (all versions): about 920
• granny flat builders: 590
• carriage house builders (all versions): about 520
• mother in law suite builders: 390
• garage apartment builders: 320

And one more: garage conversion contractors gets 14,800 searches a month. A lot of ADUs start as a garage.

What they call it, state by state

Arizona: casita

This is the big one. "Casita builders phoenix" costs about $38 a click on Google. Most Arizona homeowners never say ADU. See the Arizona page.

Washington: DADU or backyard cottage

Seattle calls a detached ADU a DADU. "dadu seattle" gets about 210 searches a month. See the Washington page.

Texas: garage apartment or casita

"garage apartment houston" gets about 320 searches a month. In San Antonio you'll hear casita. See the Texas page.

New York: basement apartment

Under NYC's City of Yes, a basement apartment can count as an ADU. "basement apartment nyc" gets about 320 searches a month. See the New York page.

Colorado: carriage house

It's the old Denver name for a unit over or behind the garage. "carriage house denver" gets about 590 searches a month, though some are for historic homes and venues. See the Colorado page.

Massachusetts and Maine: in law apartment

New England homeowners grew up saying in law apartment. "in law apartment" gets about 720 searches a month nationwide. Massachusetts and Maine.

Florida: granny flat or mother in law suite

The statewide ADU bill was covered in the news as the "granny flats" bill. See the Florida page.

Utah: basement apartment

Utah's law covers ADUs inside the home, like a basement apartment, and a lot of people call it a mother in law apartment. See the Utah page.

What to do with this

Use both words. Put the local name on your website next to ADU. Say it in your ads. If a homeowner in Phoenix sees "casita" in your ad, it feels like you're from there. Because you are.

Want to know if your market is open?

We run Meta ads for one ADU builder per market. Our call rep screens every lead, and the homeowners with a budget and a plan land on your calendar. Book a 15 minute call and we'll tell you if there's room in your area. Book a call.