| Max size | 750 sq ftconfirmed with the town |
|---|---|
| Min size | 500 sq ftconfirmed with the town |
| Bedrooms | Up to 2confirmed with the town |
| Type | Attached or detachedby right |
| Parking | 1 Spot for DUconfirmed with the town |
| Owner-occupancy | Requiredin either the ADU or the primary home |
| Short-term rental | Not statedrentals contemplated, no term rules |
| Utility connection | Tie into the existing electrical connection or choose a separate metersame statewide |
The July 2025 state law (RSA 674:71–73) overrides local ordinance language that conflicts with it — even language a town still has posted. Here's what that means in Raymond:
If you wanted a compact 400 sq ft studio ADU, Raymond's ordinance says no — 500 sq ft is the floor. The state law that created your ADU right only talks about capping the maximum; whether a town-imposed minimum survives the 2025 law is a genuine open question worth an attorney's read before you accept it.
The one-space count is within what state law allows, but the law gives YOU the choice of where that space goes — on your lot or at a legally dedicated off-site spot. Raymond's text doesn't offer that choice, and the single-driveway rule is an extra control the state law doesn't contemplate. Worth raising if parking layout becomes a sticking point on your permit.
Even if your ADU has its own front door, Raymond still requires a connecting door punched through the shared wall. Towns often defend this as a fire-safety measure, and life-safety codes are a separate lane from zoning — but as a zoning requirement layered on top of your independent-living-space right, it's a gray area an attorney (or the state fire marshal's guidance) should weigh in on before you redesign a floor plan around it.
Your addition's doors, windows, siding, trim, and roofing must match the house — down to color — and the town reviews the design before you get a permit. A regular home addition faces no such matching test in Raymond, which is exactly the kind of extra-requirement the 2025 state law was written to prevent. Expect the town to enforce it as written, but know it's contestable.
Ordinary Raymond houses are governed by the district's general height limit, but the ADU gets its own special 2-story cap — an extra control the ordinance's own no-extra-requirements clause (and the state law it mirrors) arguably forbids. For most ADU designs this never matters; if yours is above-garage or on a slope, it might.
Building a new house and an ADU at the same time is your right under state law, and Raymond's own definitions section agrees ('existing or proposed') — but the operative requirement contradicts them by demanding the house already exist. State law and the definitions win; if a permit reviewer quotes §6.10.4.1's 'already exists' language at you, point to §6.10.3.2 and RSA 674:72.
CONFIRMED WITH THE TOWN (September 3, 2026) — ADUs allowed: 1; maximum size 750 sq ft; minimum size 500 sq ft; up to 2 bedrooms; impact fees: School Impact Fee, $0.92 per SF; parking: 1 Spot for DU; detached-unit distance rule: No; setbacks: Zone A Residential. 25’ Front, 10’ Side/Rear. Town contact: James McLeod - Planning.
The height of the ADU shall not exceed 2 stories.
Pat called town hall on August 20 and left a voicemail with the planning department. Called and emailed the planning department on August 27, 2026. Waiting for response. Updated September 3, 2026
Raymond allows one accessory dwelling unit by right — no special exception, no zoning board hearing — in every district that permits a single-family home, and the town updated its ADU ordinance at the March 2026 town meeting to align with the 2025 state law (RSA 674:71-73). The basics: your ADU can be within your home, attached to it, or fully detached; it can range from 500 sq ft up to the larger of 750 sq ft or one-third of the combined living area of both units, capped at 1,000 sq ft; it can have up to two bedrooms; and converting an existing detached garage is allowed even if the garage doesn't meet today's setbacks. You (or a future owner) must live in one of the two units — your choice which — and prove residence to the Assessor's Office by January 1st each year. One additional parking space is required, only one driveway may serve both units, and you'll need a state-approved septic plan (with your existing system inspected first) before the Code Enforcement Officer signs off. The ADU can never be sold separately from the house. Where Raymond still collides with state law: the 500 sq ft MINIMUM effectively bans compact ADUs even though the state statute only regulates maximums; the parking mandate offers none of the on-site-or-off-site choice state law gives you; attached ADUs must have an interior fire-rated connecting door even when they have their own entrance; the exterior must aesthetically match your house down to trim color, with the town reviewing the design before your permit issues; ADUs get a special two-story height cap no ordinary house faces; and the operative text demands the main house 'already exist' even though state law (and Raymond's own definitions) let you build house and ADU together. None of these extras block a typical ADU project, but each is a place where the state law arguably overrides the town text — worth knowing before you redesign around them.
Get a free personalized report for your address in Raymond — including where the 2025 law works in your favor.
Get My Free Raymond ADU Report →House Bill 577 (2025) amended RSA 674:72, effective July 1, 2025. Wherever Raymond's ordinance is stricter than this floor, the state law controls. Read the full NH ADU law explainer →
Yes — Raymond allows one accessory dwelling unit by right in every district that allows a single-family home, attached or detached. Under RSA 674:72 (as amended effective July 1, 2025), one accessory dwelling unit — attached or detached — is allowed by right on single-family lots statewide.
750 sq ft — confirmed with the town. State law doesn't let any town cap ADU size below 750 sq ft.
Attached or detached (by right). Since July 1, 2025, state law allows detached ADUs by right statewide — town provisions that prohibited them are superseded.
1 Spot for DU — confirmed with the town. State law caps what any town can require at one additional space, located on- or off-site at the owner's choice.
Required — in either the ADU or the primary home. Where owner-occupancy is required, state law lets the owner choose which unit to live in.