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RM-2 zoning in BC
RM-2 (also written RM2) means whatever the bylaw that zones the lot says: there is no provincial RM-2 zone. 11 bylaws we've summarised use it, from 11 local governments. It goes by 11 names: Low Density Multiple Housing, Multi-Family Residential (Low Density), Multi-Family Residential Two, Multi-Unit 2 - Low Density and 7 more. What it allows is below, bylaw by bylaw.
RM-2 in each bylaw
| Local government | Homes allowed | Smallest lot for a subdivision | Lot coverage | Height limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Shuswap Regional District Residential Town House · Anglemont Zoning Bylaw No. 650 | Row houses and multi-unit buildings, up to 77 homes per hectare | 1,000 m² with community sewer, 4,000 m² otherwise (20 m wide) | 30% | Main buildings 11.5 m, accessory buildings 6 m |
| Regional District of Nanaimo Resource Management 2 · Regional District of Nanaimo Zoning Bylaw No. 2500, 2024 | One home on a lot of 8 ha or less, two on a larger lot, and a secondary suite with each house up to two a lot (s. 4.31(c)) | Set by the lot's subdivision district on the RDN's map, from 400 m² to 50 ha by district and servicing (Part 5); a report on a lot names its district and size. | 10% | 9 m |
| Sunshine Coast Regional District Multi-Family Residential Two · Sunshine Coast Regional District Electoral Area A Zoning Bylaw No. 337 | Houses, duplexes and multi-family buildings (three or more homes), at least 640 m² of site area for each home; at most 30 homes in multi-family buildings in the whole zone (ss. 711.1 to 711.3, 404). Whether a secondary suite is allowed is unclear: s. 502(1)(g) allows one in any zone that allows a house, but s. 506(a) only where the zone lists just one house or just a duplex; ask the SCRD | Set by the lot's subdivision district, not its zone (ss. 401, 407): from 640 m² to 100 ha; a lot's report gives its district in "What you can build (zoning)", under "The record", as "Subdivision district (smallest new lot)". Lots on Ruby, Sakinaw, Hotel, Garden Bay and Mixal lakes in the larger districts need 60 m of lakeshore (s. 408); and at least 640 m² of site area for each home (s. 711.2) | 35%, public utility buildings on lots under 100 m² aside (s. 711.6) | 11 m (s. 512) |
| City of Coquitlam Three-Storey Medium Density Apartment Residential · City of Coquitlam Zoning Bylaw No. 3000, 1996 | Apartments and townhouses; the number of homes is set by the floor area ratio, not a count; one lock-off unit (a small suite inside a strata home, never titled on its own) per apartment or townhouse, only in the Evergreen Line core and shoulder station areas (Schedule O); one or more principal buildings per lot (ss. 1202(2), (7), (9), 508(6); Part 2) | 1,110 m² for apartments or townhouses; 555 m² for boarding (s. 1202(4)). Two or more neighbouring parcels (air space parcels too) may count as one lot when developed together under a covenant to the City (s. 1202(13)(c)) | 50% for all buildings and structures (s. 1202(6)); floor area at most 1.4 times the lot area (s. 1202(5)) | Three storeys for all buildings and structures (s. 1202(10)) |
| City of Fort St. John Multiple Dwelling Housing (High Density) · City of Fort St. John Zoning Bylaw No. 2470, 2019 | Apartments, townhouses, triplexes and fourplexes, at most 155 homes per hectare; a house on R-1's rules, or a duplex or semi-attached home on R-2's (ss. 15.2, 15.3). A secondary suite only with a house or duplex (s. 4.20); detached suites are listed, but the bylaw's cap of two names other zones (s. 4.21), so how many a lot here may have is unclear: ask the City | 900 m², 24.0 m wide for buildings up to 10.5 m (3 storeys); 1,670 m², 36.5 m wide for taller ones (s. 15.3) | 75% (s. 15.3) | The zone's table sets no height limit, though its lot sizes and setbacks step up past 10.5 m and 21 m, so the limit for a tall building is unclear: ask the City (s. 15.3). A fourplex is two storeys at most (its definition, s. 3); main building 6.4 m wide at least; accessory buildings two storeys and 7.0 m, or the main building's height if lower (s. 4.18) |
| City of Kamloops Multi-Unit 2 - Low Density · City of Kamloops Zoning Bylaw No. 55, 2021 | Multi-unit housing (apartments, townhouses, row houses, stratas of houses and duplexes), up to 33 homes per hectare and a floor area ratio of 0.55; no cap per hectare in a transit-oriented area | 910 m², 24 m wide | 40% of the parent parcel, accessory buildings included; on a bare land strata lot, accessory buildings 12% up to 80 m² | 3 storeys and 10 m; in a transit-oriented area 10 storeys within 200 m of a transit exchange, 6 storeys at 201 to 400 m; structures 15 m; accessory buildings 4 m (3 m under 10 m²) |
| District of Peachland Multi-Unit Infill Residential · Zoning Bylaw No. 2400, 2023 | Up to four homes a lot, counting suites (s. 7.9.6): houses, duplexes or townhousesExceptions (1)
Listed in s. 7.9.3(1) of the bylaw. | 800 m², 20 m wide and 35 m deep (ss. 7.9.4, 7.9.5); each side of a side-by-side duplex or townhouse subdivided on its own lot at least half that area and width (s. 7.9.14) | 40% with one house (55% counting parking and driveways); with more than one main home, 55% on a lot under 1,000 m² (70%) and 45% on a larger one (60%) | 10 m; accessory buildings 5 m |
| City of Penticton Low Density Multiple Housing · City of Penticton Zoning Bylaw No. 2024-22 | Apartments, townhouses and cluster housing up to 1.0 FAR; congregate housing; secondary suites | 540 m², 18 m wide (19.5 m on a corner) | 50% | Main buildings 12 m (3 storeys per the zone's purpose); accessory buildings 4.5 m |
| Town of Princeton Multi-Family Residential (Low Density) · Town of Princeton Zoning Bylaw No. 880, 2013 | Apartments, townhouses, duplexes and houses up to 50 two-bedroom homes a hectare (smaller homes count less, larger more, s. 15.6) and 0.45 floor area ratio; congregate care; a suite, or a carriage house beside a house | 669 m² fully serviced, 836 m² on community water alone; 18 m of frontage with a lane, 21.3 m without | 35% for one-storey buildings, 25% for taller ones | 10 m or 2 storeys; accessory buildings 7.5 m |
| Sun Peaks Mountain Resort Municipality Residential Multiple Two · Sun Peaks Resort Area Zoning Bylaw No. 1400 | Apartments and townhouses, homes of 50 m² or more with up to 3 bedrooms, at least 175 m² of usable lot per home; one auxiliary home (up to 100 m²) per 38 homes | 175 m² of usable area per home | 35% | 10.7 m |
| City of Vancouver Multiple Dwelling, 3-storey apartments · Zoning and Development By-law No. 3575 | Apartments and other multiple dwellings (conditional) on a lot of 550 m² to 3,000 m²; a single detached house or duplex (outright), a house with a secondary suite (conditional); a 2-home conversion of an existing building (outright, no additions), larger conversions of buildings that stood on June 18, 1956 (conditional); a rooming house (outright); a mixed-use building with a neighbourhood grocery store (conditional). No laneway houses or lock-off units are listed (ss. 1.1, 2.1, 2.2.2 to 2.2.4, 3.1.2.1, 3.1.2.2) | 550 m² to 3,000 m² for apartments, seniors housing and rooming houses (500 m² for a lot on title before September 7, 1965); none set for a house or duplex (ss. 3.1.2.1, 3.1.2.2, 3.1.2.7) | None set, but parking at most 30% of the lot. Floor space ratio 0.75 for apartments, seniors housing, rooming houses and other uses, plus 0.009 for each point of site coverage under 50%, up to 0.20 more on a lot over 837 m² with 22.8 m of frontage, and 0.15 with parking inside or under the building; 0.60 for a house or duplex (ss. 3.1.1.1, 3.2.1.1, 3.3.1.1, 4.2.1) | 10.7 m, up to 11.9 m with the Director of Planning's approval. Accessory buildings 3.7 m (4.6 m at the peak), in the rear yard, at most 48 m² or 35% of the required rear yard, whichever is more (ss. 2.2.8, 3.1.2.3, 3.1.2.8, 3.2.2.1, 3.2.2.5, 3.3.2.1, 3.3.2.5) |
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 RM-2 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.