California has passed dozens of laws that let owners build far more than before. Most owners, agents and even investors don't know what applies. We show you what you can build by right, what it's worth and the best strategy, then where that upside is hidden in distressed and off-market properties.
Your first look is free: send an address and we'll tell you within one business day whether it's worth a closer look. Snapshots start at $99, delivered in 48 hours.
No property in mind yet? See our off-market pipeline · See a real analysis
Most people price property on what it is. We price it on what the law now lets it become. Start with an address, find the opportunities, then get the people who make it happen.
Enter an address and see what you can build by right, which new laws apply, the hidden upside and an estimated value range.
A curated pipeline of distressed and off-market properties, each with the strategy and exit already worked out.
When it's time to act, we connect you with the builders, lenders, architects and land-use attorneys who get deals done.
Your listing might be worth more than your client thinks. Walk into the appointment with what the property can become, and send clients reports under your own brand.
ADUs, SB 9 splits and 2–10 unit projects. Fast, credible feasibility before you tie up a site, and a pipeline of sites that fit.
Distressed and off-market properties with the exit strategy already worked out, so you can move before the obvious buyers do.
Also for: homeowners curious about their own lot · lenders, appraisers and land-use attorneys who need a defensible read on what a property can become · family offices and capital partners evaluating projects · architects, ADU builders and prefab firms looking for qualified projects.
Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties, where the new rules, the fire maps and the coastal zone change the answer parcel by parcel. We go deep before we go wide.
ADUs, SB 9 splits and SB 1123 small-lot subdivisions.
Farmstays, ag worker housing, Williamson Act and ag enterprise rules.
Coastal zone, bluff setbacks and high-fire overlays on trophy parcels.
California has rewritten what a lot can hold. For many properties, the number of homes allowed has multiplied — and most owners, investors and even agents are still pricing land under the old rules.
Some vacant single-family lots of 1.5 acres or less can now be split into as many as 10 parcels with 10 homes — through a ministerial process, with no discretionary hearing and no CEQA review.
Existing multifamily properties can add up to 8 detached ADUs, up from 2 — capped at the number of existing units — plus conversions of unused space inside the building.
SB 9 already allowed up to four homes where one stood. Now a complete application must be approved or denied within 60 days — or it's deemed approved, and denials must explain how to fix them.
Cities and counties can now let an ADU be sold separately as a condo, in places including San Jose, San Diego and Santa Monica. The first one sold in San Jose in June 2026 for $530,000. The City of Santa Barbara hadn't opted in as of mid-2026 — one to watch.
Split one single-family lot into two, and each new lot can hold up to two homes. With SB 450's 60-day clock, the city has to answer in two months.
Illustrative. Owner-occupancy, minimum lot sizes, fire, coastal and historic limits apply.
Every one of these comes with conditions — lot size, location, fire zones, the coastal zone, owner occupancy. In Santa Barbara County each city writes its own rules, and unincorporated SB 9 splits apply only in urbanized areas. Two lots on the same street can get completely different answers. That's where most people get it wrong — and where the opportunity hides.
Most buyers underwrite an older apartment property on today's rents. Under SB 1211, an 8-unit property with an oversized surface lot may have room for up to 8 more homes — on land the buyer already owns, with no replacement parking required.
Construction cost, utility capacity and financing still decide whether it pencils. Illustrative, not advice.
By Right Capital has assembled a private pipeline of off-market acquisition opportunities positioned to benefit from these new laws — lots, small multifamily and land that most buyers are still pricing under the old rules. Tell us what you're looking for, and we'll show you what fits.
Opportunities are shared privately with qualified buyers. All information is illustrative and should be verified independently.
Summary as of October 2026; every report is date-stamped and laws are re-verified monthly. Eligibility depends on the specific property and local rules — not legal advice.
Not an algorithm. Not a Zestimate. Every analysis is done and signed by our founder — and every deal is personally vetted through her years in this market.
We use technology to move fast on the busywork. But a human decides what's actually possible on a parcel, and a human decides which deals are worth your time.
No portal to learn, no jargon to decode — three steps, and most of the work is on us.
Enter an address or APN you're weighing. That's all it takes to start — no property yet? We'll bring one.
Records, zoning, entitlements, comps and the numbers — pulled, read, and pressure-tested by a human, not a bot.
A plain-English analysis, the By Right Score, and a working financial model that's yours to keep and run your own way.
What used to take a planner, a zoning attorney, and six weeks. Here's a real one — a downtown-waterfront redevelopment lot in Santa Barbara (address and owner withheld) — scored 0–100 on how much a parcel is worth pursuing.
A real two-page By Right Snapshot on a downtown-waterfront redevelopment lot in Santa Barbara (address and owner withheld): what can be built and under which rule, the rough numbers, the red flags, and what to check next.
If your By Right Analysis shows a property can't do what you need, the search doesn't have to end there. Tell us what you're looking for, and we'll start scouting properties that fit.
You're paying for depth, so we give you all of it: the answer, the evidence behind it, and the tools to keep going on your own.
California quietly rewrote what you can build. We read the code for your exact parcel and tell you which doors are open — by right.
The fastest equity is often already on your lot — a second unit, a split, a duplex.
State law overrides local limits in ways cities rarely advertise. We find the bonus.
Offices, motels and odd lots can legally become housing — and pencil out.
Williamson Act, coastal zones, easements, tax traps — the reasons a "deal" isn't one.
Not a firehose of listings. A sample from our private pipeline of off-market and distressed parcels, each scored for what it can become under the new rules — not just what it is. Owners redacted until you're a member.
Trophy parcel with a legal second dwelling by right. Owner not listed.
Distressed timeline, real ownership confirmed by title before contact.
Density-bonus math works. Bigger than the zoning map suggests.
Start with a free first look. Go as deep as the deal needs. What you pay for a Snapshot counts toward a full Report on the same property.
Founding members: 40% off your first 12 months. Open to the first 50 members.
Claim a founding spotValue ranges are estimates, not appraisals. Reports are research and analysis, not brokerage, legal, tax or investment advice. Memberships renew automatically and can be canceled online anytime.
When the analysis says go, we help you take the next step: find the right person, present the opportunity well, and structure the deal so it works for everyone at the table. Deal structuring is our specialty.
Presentations, models and research are prepared for our clients to use. We don't market properties, solicit buyers or investors, or take a fee at closing. Value ranges are market analyses, not appraisals. Structure options are for discussion with your attorney and CPA, and are not legal, tax, securities or investment advice.
The best deals need a team. If you serve owners, investors or agents in our three counties, let's work together.
Host a free talk, “New California Laws That Add Value,” for your agents, or sponsor a co-branded version of our free property lookup.
Reach owners and investors at the moment they learn what they can build. Sponsor placements in our reports and newsletter from $500 to $2,500 a month, always labeled as sponsored.
Join the network we refer clients to when an analysis turns into a project.
By Right Capital was founded by Andi Hollingshead. The whole point is that a real person — with years of experience in this market — oversees the work and stands behind every analysis and every deal that reaches you. Software handles the busywork; judgment is human, and it's hers.
— Andi Hollingshead
Founder, By Right Capital
Enter the address or APN and we'll show you the doors that are open. No property yet? Ask about our pipeline.
Your first look is free · Snapshots from $99. Or read the By Right Brief, free.
