You Can’t Customize These $195K ADUs—But That Means They’re Delivered That Much Faster
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Before starting Bequall in 2019, the company’s founders, Kevin and Jack Saba and Scott Bailey, had lived in housing markets with short supply. They wanted to address the issues they saw by "offering the opportunity for people to generate wealth, add value to existing assets, and contribute to solving their regional housing crises with a modular product," says Kevin. The team at Bequall interviewed residents living in micro lofts—290- to 425-square-foot spaces—that Kevin had previously built and used their findings to design their first ADU: the 390-square-foot Single Family Studio. Here, Kevin tells us about what informed the design of their prefabs and how they manage to deliver them in less than three months.
Bequall envisions its ADU design, the Single Family Studio, as a way to "address the gap in the housing market for singles or couples without children," says the company, by making the most of existing—but underused—backyard space.
What’s the most exciting project you’ve realize to date?
Bequall installed the first unit, meant as a showroom, in 2023 in Sacramento, California. We were able to permit the unit in 30 days, keep on-site work to about 20 days, and set the unit to its foundation the same day it was delivered fully furnished.
Visitors to our Single Family Studio liked the integrated living experience, making positive comments about how the space lives large and features lots of storage, large windows and ceilings, and quality appliances (including a washer and dryer). In Sacramento County, Bequall was able to reduce the time it takes to obtain a permit to almost 80 percent of that required for stick-built construction projects.
Our first clients were a group of investors that wanted to understand what it would be like to live in one as an ADU. They were also curious about how adding the studio would impact the existing resident, and how the two units would coexist.
A sliding glass door beside the kitchen provides an additional entry from a wraparound deck.
The living room comes fully furnished with a full-width sofa, a coffee table that doubles as an ottoman, a desk, a television, and an air conditioner.
What does your base model cost and what does that pricing include?
Our fully furnished 390-square-foot Single Family Studio starts at $150,000. The all-in costs typically range from $195,000 to $250,000. This figure depends on site-specific conditions, installation logistics, and the owner’s decisions about extras, such as decking and landscaping.
What qualities make your prefab stand apart from the rest?
Privacy and separation have been critical for the heightened resident experiences shared across all Bequall ADU properties. The Bequall Single Family Studio is standardized and purpose-built to streamline costs and simplify development while maximizing the resident experience: one that goes beyond the walls of our unit and is integrated with the property itself.
Bequall designed the ADU to bring the outdoors in by using large windows to bring in light while avoiding windows oriented toward the primary home for increased privacy. Bequall emphasizes a simplified process, a speedy build, and delivering an outstanding resident experience.
White oak cabinetry provides storage space across Bequall’s ADU.
A queen-sized Murphy bed folds out in the living area.
Where is the prefab currently available?
When we first started designing our ADU, we intended to build it in the Midwest and ship to both coasts. So shipping efficiently was a design constraint.
We are currently building in California and have the capacity to ship to the West Coast and Four Corners.
We are launching in Northern California as our first market, and moderately updating our design for entry into Southern California.
Is your design currently pre-permitted in any U.S. municipalities?
Our plans are approved in California. This saves significant time in the pre-development phase and reduces the amount someone needs to pay on architecture services prior to applying for a building permit.
Are there plans to expand to different parts of the country?
Our motto has always been "go where you are wanted." Today, that means California, where housing policy is supportive of building ADUs and our impact can be meaningful. As additional regions change their policies to allow for the construction of missing middle housing types like ADUs, Bequall stands ready to be part of the solution.
While it’s exciting to hear about startups and modular manufacturers seeking to expand into other states or even different parts of the world, development is always a local process.
With improved zoning policies, nuanced state modular certification programs, and variable climate and building codes, we are confident that our programmatic approach will help us achieve what we consider to be our core mission: to build more housing faster. While both our desire to help and our platform is rapidly scalable, expansion will be dictated by zoning policies that support ADUs.
Aiming to minimize energy consumption during production and regular use, Bequall outfitted the Single Family Studio with "sustainable materials, energy-efficient fixtures, and modern insulation," the company says.
Oak finishes across the unit are paired with white overhead cabinetry, engineered stone counters, and ceramic backsplashes in the kitchen.
How long can a client expect the process to take after they put down a deposit?
Time—or more accurately, the saving of time—is one of our favorite things to think about here at Bequall. In Sacramento County, Bequall was able to reduce the time it takes to obtain a permit by almost 80 percent compared to a stick-built construction project. From permit to occupancy, we reduced time by almost 60 percent when compared to a traditional ADU project. Once a construction permit is issued and the order is placed with the factory, we can drive the work to completion in about 60 days.
What aspects of an install do you manage?
Bequall serves as a homeowner’s representative and coordinates with third parties such as architects, manufacturers, engineers, and contractors to oversee the development process. Bequall can interface with governmental and quasi-governmental authorities to obtain building permits and other regulatory approvals, as well as provide additional services as desired.
The units come equipped with all-electric kitchen appliances, as well as a washer and dryer.
Situated behind a sliding glass door just past the main entry, the bathroom is furnished with water-saving fixtures.
What aspects of the design can a client customize?
Our customers can have any color they want, "so long as it is black," as the famous Henry Ford saying goes. Seriously, we have spent thousands of hours working with world-class architects and designers to develop the unit, with fit and finish included, so that we can capture the advantages that modular manufacturing provides. By removing optionality we reduce decisions, supply chain risk, and build time. We have selected high grade finishes so that we can deliver great quality in a cost effective way. At the end of the day there is no customization, which would increases costs and slow down the manufacturing process.
The Single Family Studio, meant as an ADU, costs $150,000. The extra $45,000 to $100,000 includes services like site preparation, permit fees, and utility connections. Bequall also offers to landscape the site, build a deck, and accommodate upgrades at additional costs.
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