Service

Casitas and guest houses

Nevada B‑2 Residential & Small Commercial · #0091645

A casita often gets designed before anybody checks what the lot allows. Setbacks, lot coverage, height, size and separation from the main house come from your parcel and the authority over it, not from what a neighbor built.

Start a conversation (702) 913‑7007
  1. 01 The parcel

    Check the parcel
    before the plan.

    Setbacks, lot coverage, height and the distance from the main house all come from your address and the authority over it. NXG confirms them before design starts.

  2. 02 Utilities

    Everything crosses
    the yard.

    Water, sewer, gas and power each run from the house to the casita in a trench, and across much of the Las Vegas valley that trench meets caliche.

  3. 03 The panel

    Ask the panel
    first.

    A casita with its own cooling, kitchen and water heating adds load to a service sized for one house, so NXG has the main panel checked before the casita gets drawn.

  4. 04 Belongs

    Built to look
    like it was always there.

    Roof pitch, materials and plaster texture are matched to the main house. That is what an architectural committee looks for, and what makes a casita read as original.

    Start a conversation (702) 913‑7007
What It Involves

Whether you can
comes before what.

Your authority, and a 2025 state law

The City of Las Vegas, the City of Henderson, the City of North Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County each set their own rules on casitas, and Boulder City runs its own department. A 2025 state law, AB 396, requires the county and those three cities to allow an accessory dwelling unit on single-family lots from July 1, 2026. Their rules cannot ban a kitchen in it or ban renting it out (they may ban transient lodging), and cannot set stricter side or rear setbacks than the house has.

NXG confirms the current position for your address before design starts. Rules that were true for a neighbor three years ago are not a plan.

What makes it a second dwelling

A guest room inside the house is one thing. In unincorporated Clark County, a separate building with somewhere to sleep and a bathroom counts as accessory living quarters with or without a kitchen, and that brings rules on size, parking and design. The cities write their own definitions.

Decide what the building is for first, because the answer changes what can be drawn.

Utilities and the ground between

Water, sewer, gas and power all have to reach the new structure, and the trench between the house and the casita often meets caliche, as digging does across much of the Las Vegas valley.

The main panel is the other common constraint. A detached building with its own HVAC, kitchen and water heating adds load to a service sized for one house.

It still has to look like it belongs

Unincorporated Clark County’s code asks for a similar roof line and complementary colors and materials, and any community with architectural review judges a casita against the main house on the same points, massing included. Matching plaster texture across two structures built thirty years apart is finish work, and it is where a casita either reads as original or reads as added.

Scope

What this covers.

  • 01Setbacks, lot coverage, height and separation confirmed per parcel
  • 02Second-dwelling rules checked with the governing authority
  • 03Water, sewer, gas and power routed to the structure
  • 04Main panel and service capacity reviewed
  • 05Architectural review submittal where a committee applies
  • 06Plaster and roof detail matched to the main house
Common Questions

What owners ask
about a casita.

Am I allowed a casita on my lot?

On a lot zoned single-family in Clark County, Las Vegas, Henderson or North Las Vegas, the answer is now usually yes: from July 1, 2026, a 2025 state law (AB 396) requires those authorities to allow an accessory dwelling unit. Setbacks, lot coverage, height, size and separation from the main house still come from your parcel and the authority over it, an association can have its own design review, and Boulder City is outside that law. NXG confirms the current position before design starts.

What makes it a second dwelling rather than a guest room?

That depends on the authority. Unincorporated Clark County treats a separate building with sleeping space and a bathroom as accessory living quarters, kitchen or not. The 2025 state law calls any independent living space on the same lot an accessory dwelling unit. Tell NXG what the building is for first, because the answer changes what can be drawn.

Which authority decides?

In the valley, one of four, depending on your address: the City of Las Vegas, the City of Henderson, the City of North Las Vegas or unincorporated Clark County. Boulder City runs its own department. Each sets its own rules on casitas, and a 2025 state law (AB 396) changed what the four valley authorities may require from July 1, 2026. Rules that were true for a neighbor three years ago are not a plan.

Can the house handle another building?

The main panel is the usual constraint. A detached building with its own HVAC, kitchen and water heating adds load to a service sized for one house. Every utility has to reach the casita as well, and the trench between it and the house often meets caliche, as digging does across much of the Las Vegas valley.

At a Glance

The casita, in brief.

First question
What your parcel allows, not what the neighborhood has
Authorities
Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas or Clark County; Boulder City separately
Utilities
Trenching through caliche, plus service capacity at the panel
Review
Judged against the main house where a committee applies
Licenses
NV B‑2 #0091645
NV C‑17 #0092664
NV C‑3 #0092662

Related

Luxury additions & ADUs
Custom build construction
Remodeling and additions in Spring Valley

Talk to us

Tell us what you are building. We will tell you what it involves and where the money usually goes.

Start a conversation

Or call (702) 913‑7007 · info@nxgbuilds.com

Get In Touch

Tell us what
you’re building.

Send the details below or call. We reply within one business day.

Phone
(702) 913‑7007
Email
info@nxgbuilds.com
Office
3277 E Warm Springs Rd, Ste 200
Las Vegas, NV 89120
Hours
Monday–Friday, 8:00am–5:00pm
Saturday, 10:00am–3:00pm
Licenses
NV B‑2 #0091645
NV C‑17 #0092664
NV C‑3 #0092662

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