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Standard plan profileA6b

Backyard quad behind house

5 homes, existing house kept

The existing house stays as-is, with four compact townhomes placed in the rear yard.

Urban Acupuncture modeled standard plan

Repeatable program, parcel screening, schematic placement, and economics model — not City-pre-approved construction drawings.

Homes
5
Building type
Four three-story townhomes behind a retained house
Existing house
Keep as-is
Typical new footprint
39 × 39 ft
New-building height
3 stories
New-home bedrooms
3 bedrooms

Representative site plan

Existing house — retainedABCDSTREETREAR / ALLEYLot 52' (representative)N020 ftSchematic · not for permit

New: 4 homes in a 39×39 ft pack. Drawn on a typical lot — every real lot differs, so this is illustrative, not a site-specific layout.

The program

5 homes — 4 market townhomes in a 39x39 backyard quad.

+4 net new homes per lot (market-rate).

Workbook-baseline economics

You keep the existing home; the rear project could produce $345K–$368K in gross modeled owner value before mortgage payoff and taxes.

Gross modeled rear-project owner value
$345K–$368K

Across conservative and base selling-cost cases, before mortgage payoff and taxes.

All-in project cost
$1.98M

$495K per home

Does it pencil?
Tight

A 10% market-home price drop erases the profit under conservative selling costs.

What to check first
Parcel-specific inputs

Representative workbook baseline — not adjusted for a specific parcel.

Illustrative workbook baseline — a real packet adjusts these with the parcel's own assessor, market, and rent data.

Where it fits

Neighborhood-residential lots near major transit with at least 49 ft of usable rear width, roughly 100 ft of lot depth, and a clear back yard deep enough for a 39 ft by 39 ft quad behind the existing house.

What must be true

  • A transit-served neighborhood-residential lot with a clear rear yard
  • At least about 49 feet of usable rear width and 39 feet of clear depth
  • A continuous access path to the rear homes

Verify before relying on it

  • Surveyed rear-yard clearances and existing-building location
  • Trees, access, utilities, drainage, and emergency response
  • Townhome sale prices and construction access

Check Backyard quad behind house at a Seattle address

Choose a parcel to open this exact model in the feasibility packet. We will test its screening match, place the program schematically, and adjust the economics with parcel data.

If the plan does not pass this parcel's screening, the packet will say so and offer other paths.

Funding and programs that may apply

Programs that may pair with this plan

Matched from plan facts only. Parcel geography, income, utility territory, and owner facts can change the final list.

Browse all programs

Home Improvement Property Tax Exemption

King County Assessor / RCW 84.36.400

Plan trigger

Temporary property-tax exemption on qualifying added improvement value.

Exempts added value up to 30% of original structure value

Washington HEAR Home Electrification Rebates

Washington Department of Commerce / local HEAR administrators

May apply

Point-of-sale rebates for heat pumps, heat-pump water heaters, electrical panels, and related electrification work.

Up to $14,000 / household