Probably not.

But that's not stopping Clark County and Las Vegas from turning to guesthouses as one way to expand affordable housing opportunities for both renters and owners.

At the direction of the Board of Commissioners and Growth Task Force, Clark County's Comprehensive Planning Department has drafted an ordinance allowing guesthouses — also known as accessory apartments and granny flats — in most single-family zoning classifications. The looming change comes four months after Las Vegas revised its guesthouse ordinance to enable more of their construction.

The county adopted an ordinance in June 2005 that expanded the use of accessory apartments from rural districts to zoning districts that normally allow five units per acre.

The thought at the time was that by allowing accessory apartments, another attainable housing option would be available. Rental incomes could help pay the mortgage.

It would also give extended families such as parents with grown children who have trouble affording housing and adults with aging parents who require care the ability to live closer to each other.

But in a year since its adoption, the county received only 27 applications for accessory apartments. Five have been completed, 10 have been approved and are under construction and 12 are in plan check.

That has prompted county officials to propose an ordinance that allows guesthouses in residential zoning districts that allow up to eight homes per acre. In addition, the guesthouses could forgo a kitchen for the first time, said Clark County Planning Manager Chuck Pulsipher. That concept, referred to as a casita, will lower the construction costs, especially since guest houses without a kitchen aren't required to pay for water and sewer connections, he said.

"Sometimes it takes builders awhile to discover when we do something and hopefully they will take advantage," Pulsipher said. "I am hoping it will lead to more affordable housing options and keep the family together. They are for parents who have children but don't want them to live across town and for a couple with elderly parents who want to take better care of them. There are a lot of social advantages to having these."

Commissioners will vote on the ordinance Sept. 6, but not everyone supports the expansion. Members of the Clark County Steering Committee expressed concerns about density and the impact on neighborhoods even though county officials said there is no indication neighborhoods have been harmed.

The proposed ordinance requires a minimum lot size of 4,000 square feet.

And under the existing ordinance, one of the two homes on the property must be lived in by the owner, Pulsipher said.

Las Vegas officials hope an ordinance the City Council revised in April leads to the construction of more guesthouses. While Clark County is moving to allow units without kitchens, Las Vegas' new ordinance allows the guesthouses to be built with kitchens for the first time.

The units must be aesthetically compatible with the main house and are limited to half their size. They can take up no more than half of the rear yard and must include one additional on-site parking space.

Despite the movement by Las Vegas and Clark County, neither Henderson nor North Las Vegas is going in the same direction.

Both cities allow guesthouses but primarily in ranch estate-type of zoning. Neither allows the homes to have kitchens nor allows them to be rented out.

Henderson Planning Director Bristol Ellington said it's an issue his city would like to look at but questioned whether making it easier to build guesthouses will help with the problem of workforce housing.

"You have to be able to afford the house in the first place," Ellington said. "I don't know that the notion of allowing someone to rent out a unit will make it easier for them to afford their home."

Ellington said there are concerns about allowing the guesthouses in denser neighborhoods where streets are already narrow and parking is at a premium.

Brian Walsh, a vice president with Centex Homes, questioned whether making it easier to build guesthouses would have any effect on affordable housing. With land prices rising and densities increasing because of it, it will be impossible to build guesthouses on lots in the future, he said.

Walsh said he doesn't see the concept being used by first-time home buyers to make homes affordable to them. Instead, he said the option is more for existing homeowners who want to expand their home because they can't afford to buy a larger one. Maybe, they want more room or a place for their mother-in-law, he said.

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