PlaceDossier / Zoning / Zone codes
R7 zoning in BC
R7 (also written R-7, R.7) means whatever the bylaw that zones the lot says: there is no provincial R7 zone. 5 bylaws we've summarised use it, from 5 local governments. It goes by 4 names: Residential 7 (2 bylaws), Medium Density Residential, Mobile Home and Residential, Residential Dwelling and Recreational Vehicle. What it allows is below, bylaw by bylaw.
R7 in each bylaw
| Local government | Homes allowed | Smallest lot for a subdivision | Lot coverage | Height limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regional District of North Okanagan Residential Dwelling and Recreational Vehicle · Regional District of North Okanagan Zoning Bylaw No. 3000, 2023 | On a lot of 700 m² or more with community water and community sewer: one house with a secondary suite, or a duplex. Or, on a lot with no dwelling, one RV lived in seasonally | 700 m² with community water and community sewer (350 m² for each half of a duplex split along its party wall); 1 ha without them. Frontage 18 m for a house, 23 m for a duplex, 11.5 m for each half | 35% | Homes 10 m or two storeys, whichever is less; accessory buildings 4 m |
| City of Cranbrook Mobile Home and Residential · City of Cranbrook Zoning Bylaw No. 3977, 2019 | Up to 4 homes on a lot over 280 m², 3 on a smaller one (s. 7.12.4), in one main building: a house, a mobile home, a duplex, triplex or fourplex; at most one secondary suite per main home and one accessory dwelling per lot. An accessory dwelling counts toward the 3 or 4 (Part 4); whether a secondary suite does is unclear, so ask the City | 418 m²; the front lot line at least 1.0 m as the City's text reads (R-1 asks 10 m, so this may be a slip: unclear, ask the City), 8.5 m on a cul-de-sac bulbExceptions (1)
Listed in s. 7.12.3 of the bylaw. | 50% | House or mobile home 7.6 m; duplex 9.0 m; triplex or fourplex 11.0 m or 3 storeys, whichever is less; accessory dwelling 7.2 m; other accessory buildings 4.5 m |
| Salt Spring Island Local Trust Committee Residential 7 · Salt Spring Island Land Use Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 355) | One house (s. 9.9.2); a duplex only if built before July 31, 1990; a seasonal cottage on a lot of 1.2 ha or more (s. 3.14); a secondary suite where the lot is in the Schedule I area (s. 3.16) | 0.6 ha with a well and septic, 0.4 ha on community water; 1 ha on average either way (s. 9.9.3) | 33%; farm buildings up to 465 m² in all (s. 9.9.2) | 7.6 m and two storeys (s. 3.8.1); accessory buildings 6 m on a lot of 1.2 ha or less, 7 m on a larger one (s. 3.8.2); farm buildings 10.7 m where agriculture is a principal use (s. 3.8.3) |
| City of Kamloops Residential 7 · City of Kamloops Zoning Bylaw No. 55, 2021 | Up to 2 homes: a house and a residential suite; 1 in the Silt Bluff Red Zone or Foreset Area (s. 8.7.4) or the Rayleigh Waterworks District service area (s. 3.19) | 1,400 m², 18 m wide; frontage 18 m (15 m on a cul-de-sac)Exceptions (1)
| 35% of the lot for all buildings; accessory buildings and an accessory home together 12% of the lot up to 112 m²; hard (impermeable) surfaces 50% | Main buildings 2 storeys; structures 12 m; accessory buildings 5 m (3 m under 10 m²) |
| City of Merritt Medium Density Residential · City of Merritt Zoning Bylaw No. 2284, 2020 | Townhouses (3 to 8 homes a building) and apartments, up to 150 homes per hectare of usable site area; secondary suites in townhouses | 360 m², 18 m wide (400 m² and 20 m on a corner), 20 m deep | 80% | 18 m or 4 storeys |
Listed by local government, not ranked. "Not set" means the zone itself sets no figure; general rules elsewhere in its bylaw may still apply. Each zone's page has its uses, setbacks and the bylaw's sections.
Two lots both zoned R7 under different bylaws can allow quite different things, and provincial law sets a floor of homes on most house zones in towns (how many homes can I build?). Site-specific exceptions, development permit areas and the ALR apply on top. Find the lot's own zone with the search above, then confirm with the local government before you buy or build.
Sources: each zone's bylaw, linked from its page, summarised in our words. Other councils' zones aren't here: the zoning we cover.