Build a Compound
For Your People
Custom 2-4 home compounds · Concept to construction
Limited to 10 projects per year.
Build a compound
for your people
Make your friends and family your neighbors.
Custom 2-4 home compounds · Concept to construction
Limited to 10 projects per year.
Popular with
New parents
Childcare is 30 steps away, not 30 minutes
Multigenerational families
Close enough to share dinner, private enough for space
Friends aging in place
Build your village before you need it
Turn a single lot into a shared life
For the first time, the friends and family you’d choose as neighbors can actually become them. New California housing laws now allow 2–4 private homes on a single residential lot — no rezoning required.
The Friend Compound Recipe
Before
One home, large lot
Enabled by SB 9 · SB 684 · SB 1123 · ADUs
After
2–4 private homes, shared yard
Why Now
New California housing laws (SB9, SB 684, SB 1123, and ADU regulations) make this newly possible in traditional residential neighborhoods with good schools — no rezoning required.
Learn more
SB 9
Allows homeowners to split a single-family lot into two parcels and build up to two units on each parcel. This enables up to four homes on what was previously a single-family lot.
SB 684
Streamlines approval for small housing projects of up to 10 units on infill sites. Removes discretionary review barriers, making multi-home projects faster to approve.
SB 1123
Expands SB 684 to allow up to 10 homes on vacant lots in single-family zones. Projects get streamlined ministerial approval within 60 days — no CEQA review, public hearings, or council votes required.
ADUs
An Accessory Dwelling Unit is a secondary home on a residential lot — like a backyard cottage or converted garage. California law allows 800–1,200 sq ft ADUs with streamlined permitting, and you can build multiple per lot.
The Friend Compound Field Guide
Get inspired with some example projects.
Oakland
Jayne Avenue Compound
New ADU with an Existing Primary Home
El Cerrito
Pomona Avenue Compound
A New Single-Family Home, a new ADU, and an Existing Primary Home
San Francisco
Fifteenth Avenue Compound
New Duplex
Mountain View
University Avenue Compound
Four New Single-Family Homes
See All Projects
Explore 14 more compounds with full details
Explore costs, timelines, renderings, and zoning details
Many teams build houses.
Almost none build compounds.
- Site planning for shared living
- Architecture for privacy + proximity
- Permits
- Construction
- Finance strategy
- Legal agreements
- Governance & decision frameworks
One integrated offering.
Working with Live Near Friends
From dream to keys, we manage every stage. Here's exactly who does what.
Find the right property
Identify lots with compound zoning potential in your target neighborhoods
Live Near Friends' role
- Send curated options for your group
- Assess zoning feasibility and costs
- Deep dive into specific properties
Your role
- • Tell us your target neighborhoods, budget, and group size
- • Review listings and pick favorites
$100/mo alerts · $1,000 single-property deep dive (refunded if you buy)
Sign up for alerts →Purchase property
Acquire the property with the right ownership and financial structure for your group
Live Near Friends' role
- Pair with licensed specialist agent to handle purchase
- Provide legal and financial structuring options
- 10 free hours: ownership + financial modeling
Your role
- • Align your group on budget and ownership splits
- • Secure financing
Standard 2.5% commission (sometimes reimbursed by seller)
Design + entitlements
We pair you with a specialized design-build partner. While they lead the architecture, we remain by your side as a strategic advisor to ensure the project aligns with your compound's goals.
Example Partner
Type Five
Bay Area design-build firm bringing together the best of modular design and advanced construction methods.
Learn more →Live Near Friends' role
- Match you with a hand-picked architect or design-build firm
- Ensure permitting and subdivision steps are handled end-to-end
- Stay involved as advisor throughout
Your role
- • Work directly with your design partner
- • Approve designs at milestones
- • Make key decisions on layout and finishes
$50–100k per home · 6–12 months · milestone-based
Build
Select a builder and construct the homes
Live Near Friends' role
- Introduce 3 vetted builders with standardized bids
- Contract review support as a consultant
Your role
- • Choose your builder
- • Manage the build relationship (with our advisory support)
Included in Stage 3 pricing
Total project cost: Expect $1–2m per home
This includes land, design, permits, and construction. Every compound is different.
We design the relationship, not just the buildings.
What happens when one family wants to sell in 5 years? How do you split shared spaces? Who decides on renovations? We plan for all of this on day one — so your compound is built on solid ground, socially and legally.
In your corner:
LNF founder Phil Levin
- Built 4 friend compounds
- Real estate developer (founding team of Culdesac — 780 home neighborhood in Arizona)
- Author of Supernuclear, the leading newsletter on living near friends
Hands-on advisor to every project
Phil works with <10 groups per year.
Phil built his own compound first.
Live Near Friends founder Phil built his friend-compound Radish in 2019. Home to 20 adults and 8 children, it's a living example of what compound life done right can look like.
14,000 sq ft
Single residential lot
6 homes
2 single-family, 2 duplexes, 1 fourplex
3 shared spaces
Garden, spa, communal kitchen + living room
Guest RV
For visiting friends and family
As Featured In
“They are experiencing what's becoming an aspirational lifestyle: living within walking distance of close friends.”
“No one's trying to create utopia here. What this is going to achieve is just making your life feel 30% easier and 30% more supported.”
“Now there are 20 adults, eight kids and six buildings at the Radish...where a communal meal is cooked almost every night, everyone helps with child care and the hot tub is always warm.”
Ready to build a compound
Limited to 10 projects per year. Typical timeline: ~2 years from search to move-in.