Small Spaces Are Your Showcase
An ADU is 400 to 1,200 square feet where every inch has to earn its place — and that makes ADUs the best small-space design showcases in California housing. Homeowners moving through the ADU Cities funnel need designers for kitchens, baths, space planning, and finishes that make a compact home live large.
Approved Designers in the ADU Cities network are the design professionals we connect those homeowners with — backed by a builder who brings the design to life: Mars Construction Industries Corp, CSLB #1138550.
What Partners Get
- Homeowners mid-project, not browsers. Our guides, rent tools, and directory bring in Californians actively planning ADUs — people choosing kitchens, baths, and finishes right now.
- Work that gets built. Your selections and layouts go into real projects built by a licensed design-build firm — finished rooms you can photograph, not mood boards that go nowhere.
- An Approved Designer listing. Approved Designers are featured in the ADU Cities network as the professionals we refer homeowners to for interiors. Apply here.
- One pipeline. Homeowner → design → plans → permits → build. Your interior work is coordinated with the plan set and the build, not bolted on at the end.
What We Look For
- A portfolio of residential work — small-space projects especially. ADUs reward designers who think in inches.
- Kitchen & bath competence. Most ADU interior work is a compact kitchen and one or two baths done exceptionally well.
- California business basics — an operating business, references we can check, and the professionalism to work inside a project team. (Interior designers are not state-licensed the way architects are — approval is based on portfolio and references, which we review.)
How It Works
- Apply. Tell us about your services, your area, and your portfolio.
- Portfolio review. We review your work and references.
- Get matched. When a project in your area needs interior design, we connect you with the homeowner.
- Your work, your terms. You set your fees and terms directly with the client. ADU Cities does not mark up design fees.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a license to join?
No state license is required for interior designers in California. Approval is based on your portfolio, your kitchen & bath experience, and references — all reviewed before listing.
Do I have to be exclusive to ADU Cities?
No. Keep your own practice and clients. The network adds ADU interior projects on top.
What areas do you cover?
All of California. We match designers to projects in their service area.
What kinds of work will I see?
ADU kitchens and baths, whole-unit space planning, finish and fixture selections, and furnishing layouts for garage conversions, attached and detached ADUs, and JADUs.
How do I get paid?
Directly by the client, on the terms you set. ADU Cities does not mark up design fees.
Ready to Join the Network?
Approval is based on portfolio and references. The application takes a few minutes.
Apply to Become an Approved Designer →
Call ADU Cities: 888.627.1131
Business: ADU Cities — Mars Construction Industries Corp, CSLB #1138550. Questions about a project? Call for a free consultation: 888.627.1131.
