Zoning · Burlington · Residential
R3.3 zone, Burlington: Low Density Residential R3.3
By-law 2020 Part 2 (Residential Zones), Sections 1-4; Table 2.3.1 (permitted uses), Table 2.4.1 (lot width, area, yards), Table 2.4.2 (other yards), Table 2.4.3 (lot coverage); building height per Part 1, Subsection 2.31 (Table 2.31.1 A) of the City of Burlington Zoning By-law 09-2026 / 2020, as amended by 2020.374.
A low-density residential zone for detached houses on lots at least 13 m wide and 400 m² in area, with a 6 m front yard, 12 m rear yard and side yards of 1.2 m to 3 m depending on storeys and whether there is an attached garage.
Is a property in the R3.3 zone? Enter its address and the lookup returns the zone and these standards, including any site-specific exception.
Check an addressWhat the R3.3 zone permits
- Detached Dwelling
- Additional Residential Units (footnote (a) to Table 2.3.1)
Standards
| Requirement | By-law |
|---|---|
| Minimum lot area (interior lot) | 400 m² |
| Minimum lot width (interior lot) | 13 m |
| Minimum front yard | 6 m |
| Minimum interior side yard | 1.2 mTable 2.4.1 footnote (b). With attached garage or carport: 1.2 m on a one or one-and-a-half storey side, 1.8 m on a two-or-more storey side. Without attached garage or carport: 1.2 m (one/one-and-a-half storey side) or 1.8 m (two-or-more storey side), with 3 m on the other side. Part 2 s.1(g): an 'L'-shaped detached dwelling without garage that forms one side and one end of a 4.5 m x 6.5 m parking space uses the with-garage side yards. |
| Minimum exterior side yard | 4.5 m |
| Minimum rear yard | 12 m12 m (Table 2.4.1); footnote (c): on a corner lot the rear yard may be 4.5 m |
| Maximum building height | 10 mPart 2 s.4.4 refers to Part 1, Subsection 2.31, Table 2.31.1 A) (R1-R4 zones): peaked roof detached dwelling 1 storey to 7.5 m, 1.5 storey to 8.5 m, 2 storey to 10 m, 2.5 storey N/A; flat roof 1 storey to 4.5 m, 2 storey to 7 m. Additions alternatively limited to max two storeys measured from the 1st floor ceiling of the existing dwelling: 6 m peak / 3 m flat for two-storey or second-storey additions, 4.5 m peak / 2.25 m flat for one and one-and-a-half storey additions. Footnote (a): properties with a front or street side yard abutting Lakeshore Road / North Shore Boulevard and all properties south of them (excluding Indian Point) may go to 2.5 storeys per Table 2.31.1 B) (2.5 storey peaked to 13 m). |
| Maximum lot coverage | 40 %Table 2.4.3. Dwelling with attached garage (including accessory buildings): one storey 40%; one-and-a-half storey 37.5%; two or more storeys 40% in R3.3 (35% in other zones). Dwelling without attached garage (plus 8% for accessory buildings): one storey 32%; one-and-a-half storey 29.5%; two or more storeys 32% in R3.3 (27% in other zones). Designated Areas (shaded on Part 15 zoning maps): with garage 35% / 30% / 25% including accessory buildings; without garage 27% / 22% / 17% plus 8%. Footnote (a): one accessory building under 10 m² and under 2.5 m high is exempt. Footnote (c): properties with a front or street side yard abutting Lakeshore Road / North Shore Boulevard and all properties south of them (excluding Indian Point Character Area) are exempt from lot coverage. |
| Maximum floor space index | See notePart 2 s.4.5(a): maximum floor area ratio 0.45:1 applies only to properties in Designated Areas for Lot Coverage; s.4.5(b): 0.4:1 in the Shoreacres Character Area (mapped in s.4.9). No FAR stated for other R3.3 lots. |
Other provisions in this section
- Semi-detached dwellings and cluster homes are not permitted in R3.3 (Table 2.3.1).
- Table 2.4.2 other yards: building setback abutting a creek block 7.5 m (4.5 m if the block includes a 3 m buffer); yard abutting a pipeline easement 7 m; yard abutting a railway right-of-way 30 m.
- Maximum dwelling depth 18 m, measured from the building wall closest to the front lot line to the wall closest to the rear lot line (s.4.6); exempt for properties with a front or street side yard abutting Lakeshore Road / North Shore Boulevard and all properties south of them, excluding Indian Point Character Area; for through lots the front building elevation determines the front.
- Garages (s.4.8): width of a front-loading attached garage shall not exceed 50% of the width of its building elevation; an attached garage with a door facing a street may not project beyond the longest portion of a street-facing wall containing residential floor area on the first storey. Dwellings legally existing at the enactment of By-law 2020.374 (December 19, 2016) are deemed to conform for the life of the dwelling.
- Architectural features (s.4.7): on street-facing elevations, first-storey columns shall not exceed the height of the first-storey ceiling.
- Parking per Part 1, Subsection 2.25 Off-Street Parking and Loading Requirements (s.4.3); parking lots set back 4.5 m from a street line (s.1(h)).
- Parking spaces and driveways (s.1(i)): for townhouses, back-to-back/stacked townhouses, cluster homes and apartments up to 3 storeys, driveways and parking lots set back 3 m from a building wall containing habitable-room windows (not applicable where the space and driveway are for the exclusive use of the unit occupant), and parking spaces set back at least 6 m from an R1, R2, R3, LN3, LN4, LN5 or LN6 zone; for apartments 4 storeys or more, driveways set back 9 m and parking spaces 6 m from a ground-floor or basement habitable-room window, and both set back 6 m from those zones.
- Enclosed parking structures more than 1.6 m above finished grade are subject to the same yard requirements as the principal building; below grade and up to 1.6 m above grade, set back 3 m from a street line; may not encroach into a required landscape buffer abutting a residential zone (s.1(j)).
- Accessory buildings and structures per Part 1 s.2.2; patios and decks per Part 1 s.2.3; fencing and privacy screens per Part 1 s.2.4; swimming pools per Part 1 s.2.5; lands adjacent to Lake Ontario and Burlington Bay per Part 1 s.2.30 (s.1(b)-(f)).
- Holding 'H' prefix: uses per Part 11 s.1.1; development deemed premature until the H is removed per Part 11 s.1.2 (s.1(a)).
- Prohibited (s.2, plus Part 1 s.2.22): parking/storing a motor vehicle (other than a recreational vehicle) over 3000 kg registered GVW, over 6 m long or over 2.6 m high; any motor vehicle with a stake body; a recreational vehicle on or off a trailer, or a utility trailer including its load, exceeding 3.6 m combined height; and parking/storing any motor vehicle, motorcycle, snowmobile, jetski, trailer, recreational vehicle, boat or similar conveyance within a landscaped open space area.
- Exceptions to zone designations are in Part 14.
Source: By-law 2020 Part 2 (Residential Zones), Sections 1-4; Table 2.3.1 (permitted uses), Table 2.4.1 (lot width, area, yards), Table 2.4.2 (other yards), Table 2.4.3 (lot coverage); building height per Part 1, Subsection 2.31 (Table 2.31.1 A), By-law 09-2026 / 2020 (City of Burlington), checked 2026-09-12. General provisions elsewhere in the by-law (parking, driveways, accessory buildings) also apply, and a numbered exception on the parcel can change any value here. Treat this as a pre-check, not a sign-off.
Other residential zones in Burlington: DRH, DRL, DRM, HN, LN1, LN2, LN3, LN4, LN5, LN6, LN7, LN8, R1.1, R1.2, R2.1, R2.2, R2.3, R2.4, R3.1, R3.2, R3.4, R4, R5, RAL1, RAL2, RAL3, RAL4, REV1, REV2, REV3, RH1, RH2, RH3, RH4, RH5, RM1, RM2, RM3, RM4, RM5, RNA1, RNA2, RNA3, RO1, RO2, RO3, RO4, SNA, URH, URM