PlaceDossier / Zoning / Zone codes
RS3 zoning in BC
RS3 (also written RS-3) means whatever the bylaw that zones the lot says: there is no provincial RS3 zone. 9 bylaws we've summarised use it, from 9 local governments. It goes by 9 names: Low Density Residential Three, North Shore Single Detached Residential, One-Family Residential, Residential 3 and 5 more. What it allows is below, bylaw by bylaw.
RS3 in each bylaw
| Local government | Homes allowed | Smallest lot for a subdivision | Lot coverage | Height limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Shuswap Regional District Residential 3 · Electoral Area 'B' Zoning Bylaw No. 851 | One house, plus secondary dwelling units under s. 3.15 | 0.2 ha (20 m wide), on community water and sewer | 25% | Main buildings 11.5 m; on lots under 2 ha, accessory buildings 10 m with a dwelling in them and 8.5 m otherwise; 10 m on 2 ha or more |
| Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen Low Density Residential Three · Okanagan Valley Zoning Bylaw No. 2800, 2022 | One house, and one secondary suite or one accessory dwelling (s. 16.3.4) | 1,000 m² on community water and sewer, otherwise 1 ha (s. 8.1.4) | 35% | 10 m; accessory buildings 4.5 m |
| City of Abbotsford Urban Residential · City of Abbotsford Zoning Bylaw No. 2400-2014 | One house, plus a secondary suite | 540 m², 15.0 m wide, 25.0 m deep (corner lot 610 m², 18.0 m, 25.0 m; through lots 30.0 m deep; panhandle lot 750 m², 18.0 m, 30.0 m) | 40% | House 9.5 m or three storeys, whichever is less; accessory buildings 4.5 m |
| City of Coquitlam One-Family Residential · City of Coquitlam Zoning Bylaw No. 3000, 1996 | One house with one secondary suite inside it; one principal building per lot (s. 2202(2)); at most 18 homes per hectare, suites not counted (ss. 2204(5), (7)) | 555 m², 13.5 m wide, 22.7 m deep (s. 2204(4)) | 45% (s. 2204(6)) | House 7.3 m, or 11.0 m where at least 80% of the roof is pitched 3 in 12 or steeper; detached accessory buildings 3.7 m, 4.6 m with a roof of 4 in 12 or steeper (s. 2204(10)) |
| Township of Esquimalt Single Family Waterfront Residential · Zoning Bylaw, 1992, No. 2050 | Two homes: a house with one secondary suite, as s. 30.6 allows (s. 36(1))Exceptions (1)
Listed in s. 30.10, 40.2, 40.3 of the bylaw. | 530 m², 16 m wide at the front building line, for a new lot (s. 36(2), (3)) | 30%; accessory buildings and structures together 10%; floor area up to 0.35 times the lot area (s. 36(4), (8)) | House 7.3 m; accessory buildings 3.6 m (s. 36(6)) |
| City of Maple Ridge Single Detached Rural Residential · City of Maple Ridge Zoning Bylaw No. 7600-2019 | One house with a secondary suite and a detached garden suite: 3 homes. The zone is for lots outside the urban area (s. 611.1), where urban infill allows no more (s. 402.29(3)). A farm worker's home only on a farm of 1.7 ha or more designated Rural Residential (2 ha Agricultural), with the Agricultural Land Commission's approval, an agrologist's report and a covenant (s. 402.2) | 0.8 ha where a community water system is available, else 2.0 ha; 60 m wide, 75 m deep (s. 611.4, Schedule B)Exceptions (1)
Listed in s. 611.4(4) of the bylaw. | 40%, all buildings together; farm buildings 10% (greenhouses 20%) | House 9.5 m; accessory buildings 6.0 m; farm buildings and cannabis production 15.0 m; garden suite 6.0 m, one storey (7.5 m above an accessory use on a lot in the ALR) |
| City of Port Coquitlam Residential Small-Scale 3 · City of Port Coquitlam Zoning Bylaw, 2008, No. 3630 | Up to 4 homes on a lot over 280 m² and under 4,050 m², or 6 within 400 m of a prescribed bus stop (Schedule D); up to 3 on a lot of 280 m² or less (s. 2.5). The forms: a house with a secondary suite and an accessory dwelling unit (a detached home); a duplex; a triplex only within 400 m of a prescribed bus stop; each home of a duplex or triplex may have a secondary suite. Accessory dwelling units, duplexes and triplexes aren't allowed on lots exempt under s. 481.4 of the Local Government Act or inside a transit-oriented area (Table 2.3, Notes 2 to 4). On 4,050 m² or more the bylaw sets no count, so how many homes a larger lot may have is unclear: ask the CityExceptions (1)
Listed in Table 2.3, Notes 2 to 4 of the bylaw. | 4,000 m², 30 m wide, frontage a tenth of the lot's perimeter, 28 m deep (Table 2.2) | 50%; impervious surfaces at most 65% (Table 2.4) | 10.5 m and 3 storeys, basements counted (Table 2.4, Note 1); an accessory dwelling unit 7.5 m to the top of the roof, 8.5 m with a roof of 9 in 12 or steeper (Section III, s. 13-5); accessory buildings 3 m to 4.8 m by roof slope (Section III, s. 2-7) |
| City of Port Moody North Shore Single Detached Residential · City of Port Moody Zoning Bylaw, 2018, No. 2937 | A house with a secondary suite and an additional dwelling unit (a home of its own, detached or attached, which may be stratified) (s. 8.7.2; s. 4). Or small-scale multi-unit housing, only on a lot in the SSMUH Areas of the bylaw's Map 3: up to 3 homes on a lot of 280 m² or less; up to 4 on a lot over 280 m² and up to 4,050 m²; up to 6 on such a lot inside the map's Prescribed Bus Stop 400 m Radius; as a house, semi-detached homes, additional dwelling units, townhouses, apartments or secondary suites, counted together (ss. 5.5.1 to 5.5.4). Which part of the map a lot is on we don't check: ask the City | 375 m², 12.0 m wide (s. 3.2) | House: 45% for all buildings, accessory buildings (additional dwelling unit included) at most 65 m²; small-scale housing 45% with up to 4 homes, 50% with 5 or 6 (ss. 8.7.3, 8.7.4) | House: 8.0 m and 3 storeys; accessory buildings 4.0 m; additional dwelling unit 6.71 m; small-scale housing 10.5 m with up to 4 homes, 11.5 m with 5 or 6, accessory buildings 4.0 m (ss. 8.7.3, 8.7.4) |
| City of Prince George Single Residential · City of Prince George Zoning Bylaw No. 7850, 2007 | Where the Province's small-scale multi-unit housing rules apply (a lot under 4,050 m² on City water and sewer, inside Schedule K, not heritage-protected; s. 5.18), up to 4 homes (3 on a lot of 280 m² or less) as a house, duplex, fourplex, row houses or a small apartment building; elsewhere one house with a secondary suite or a secondary dwelling (s. 10.3.5). No manufactured homes | 400 m², 12.0 m wide; at most 845 m² (s. 10.3.4) | 45% (s. 10.3.5) | 11.0 m and 3 storeys; accessory buildings 7.0 m, secondary dwelling 8.0 m (ss. 10.3.5, 10.3.6) |
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 RS3 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.