Orlando publishes a detailed ADU pathway for eligible residential properties. A city ADU must be a permanent structure on a permanent foundation and meet residential building-code requirements; the city explicitly says a recreational vehicle or mobile home may not be used as an ADU.
Start with the legal form of the unit and the parcel—not the marketing term “tiny house.”
Orlando allows detached ADUs on qualifying properties when zoning, lot-size, building and site-development standards are satisfied. Eligible zoning categories include several R, MXD, O and PD categories depending on the property.
The city recognizes attached ADUs, converted garages, above-garage units and separated units within the main dwelling, subject to the same zoning and building requirements.
A small cottage can potentially function as an ADU if it satisfies the city’s ADU and residential building requirements. Orlando does not establish a special tiny-house exemption from those standards.
Orlando explicitly states that a structure meeting the city definition of a recreational vehicle or mobile home may not be used as an ADU.
Tiny Town Orlando / Orlando Lakefront is a separate THOW community pathway. Its acceptance of registered tiny houses on wheels does not mean a THOW can be used as an ADU on an ordinary City of Orlando residential parcel.
This page is research and planning information, not legal advice, zoning verification or a permit determination. Local rules and property conditions change; the relevant government offices determine how the rules apply to a specific parcel and project.