Builders in North Carolina's bigger cities are about to get a little more room to work, and Gov. Josh Stein went to Southeast Raleigh to show what that can look like on the ground.
On Tuesday, Oct. 6, Stein toured part of Southeast Raleigh Promise's 25-unit affordable housing project to highlight housing laws he signed in July and August, according to a release from the governor's office.
"You cannot create more land, but you can create more units per lot," Stein said during the visit, WRAL reported.
Stein saw the first three completed homes in the 25-unit development along Rock Quarry Road, part of the nonprofit's "Promise of Home" initiative, according to WRAL. Crews broke ground in April 2026, and the project is expected to be complete by summer 2027.
The city of Raleigh contributed $3 million in gap financing. Rents will range from $580 to just over $1,650 a month, serving households at 30%, 60% and 80% of the area median income, WRAL reported.
Yvette Holmes, chief executive of Southeast Raleigh Promise, said the project focuses on density and variety. "That's what this development represents: homes that are thoughtfully designed to fit within existing neighborhoods and make full use of smaller parcels of land," she said. "Where one house once stood, there will now be two homes, and in some cases, with an accessory dwelling unit, there will be three."
Raleigh has already made some of these changes on its own. The city removed its minimum parking requirement in 2022 and expanded the use of accessory dwelling units in 2020, WRAL reported.
"I'm proud to say Raleigh has been ahead of the curve on many of these strategies, and it's exciting to see these approaches reflected at the state level," said Emila Sutton, Raleigh's director of housing and community development, in the governor's release.
What the new laws do
The governor's office points to two bills. According to the session laws posted by the N.C. General Assembly, here's what they say:
- House Bill 162 (Session Law 2026-39): Signed July 6, 2026. Starting Jan. 1, 2027, a local zoning or development rule can't require an off-street parking lot to have a minimum number of spaces per development or structure, regardless of occupancy or use. Local governments in the state's coastal area are exempt, except for certain historic properties. The law also limits when local governments can require new stormwater controls on redeveloped property, applying them only to impervious surface beyond what was already there.
- Senate Bill 445 (Session Law 2026-59): Signed Aug. 11, 2026. Among many changes, it requires cities of 50,000 or more outside the coastal area to allow at least one accessory dwelling unit with each single-family detached home in areas zoned for single-family homes. Those cities can't require parking for the ADU, can't put it in a conditional zoning district, and can't charge more in fees than for a similar single-family permit. They can't set a maximum ADU size below 800 square feet or above 1,000 square feet. The ADU rule takes effect Jan. 15, 2027, and cities must adopt regulations by July 1, 2027.
The governor's office says the parking law will lower rents. Stein also signed legislation allowing mixed-use zoning, but lawmakers limited it to a few communities, including Raleigh, WRAL reported. Stein said he hopes builders' use of it will make the case for expanding it statewide.
The governor's office says North Carolina is projected to be more than 750,000 homes short through 2029, including 110,000 in Wake County alone. It also says about half of all renters in the state spend more than 30% of their income on housing.
Why it matters for Contractors
These laws change the math on small lots. Once the ADU rule kicks in on Jan. 15, 2027, homeowners in North Carolina's larger inland cities will have a guaranteed path to add a backyard cottage or attached unit without extra parking or special zoning, and cities can't cap that unit below 800 square feet. That's work for residential builders, remodelers, foundation and utility crews, and every trade that goes into a small home. Dropping parking minimums on Jan. 1, 2027, could free up land on infill and commercial sites, and the stormwater change can lower the cost of redeveloping already-paved property. Contractors should watch how their city rewrites its rules before the July 1, 2027, deadline, and check whether they work in a coastal area, where the parking and ADU rules don't apply the same way.