Zoning · Oakville · Residential
RL3 zone, Oakville: Residential Low 3
Part 6: Table 6.2.1, Table 6.3.1; s.6.4-6.10 of the Town of Oakville Zoning By-law 2014-014, as amended by 2016-013, 2017-025, 2021-068, 2023-024, 2024-111, 2015-079.
A low-density residential zone for detached houses on lots of at least 557.5 m² with 18 m of frontage, with a 12 m height limit and 35% lot coverage, plus stricter rules where the -0 suffix applies.
Is a property in the RL3 zone? Enter its address and the lookup returns the zone and these standards, including any site-specific exception.
Check an addressWhat the RL3 zone permits
- Attached or detached additional residential unit
- Bed and breakfast establishment (footnote 1: max one such use per lot)
- Conservation use
- Day care (footnote 1; see s.6.7)
- Detached dwelling
- Emergency service facility
- Home occupation
- Lodging house (footnotes 1, 2: max 3 lodging units)
- Park, public
- Private home day care (footnote 1)
- Short-term accommodation (footnote 1)
- Stormwater management facility
Standards
| Requirement | By-law |
|---|---|
| Minimum lot area (interior lot) | 557.5 m²557.5 m2. Footnote 2: within Plans of Subdivision registered after Nov 1, 1965, may be proportionately reduced (with a 4.5 m frontage reduction) provided the subdivision-wide averages meet the minimum. |
| Minimum lot width (interior lot) | 18 m18.0 m. Footnote 2: within Plans of Subdivision registered after Nov 1, 1965, may be reduced by 4.5 m provided the average lot frontage throughout the Plan is not less than the minimum. |
| Minimum front yard | 7.5 m7.5 m. In the -0 Suffix Zone s.6.4.3 applies instead: existing front yard less 1.0 m (vacant/new lots: parent zone minimum), and a maximum front yard of minimum + 5.5 m. Also s.6.6 averaging where neighbouring legally existing dwellings have smaller front yards. |
| Minimum interior side yard | 2.4 m2.4 m on one side and 1.2 m on the other. Footnote 5: reduced to 1.2 m on both sides where an attached private garage meeting s.5.2.3(b) dimensions is provided. |
| Minimum exterior side yard | 3.5 m |
| Minimum rear yard | 7.5 m7.5 m. Footnote 6: reduced to 3.5 m on a corner lot where an interior side yard of 3.0 m is provided. |
| Maximum building height | 12 m12.0 m; maximum number of storeys n/a. In the -0 Suffix Zone (s.6.4.6): max 9.0 m, max 2 storeys, no floor area above the second storey. |
| Maximum lot coverage | 35 %35% for the dwelling. In the -0 Suffix Zone (Table 6.4.2, RL3 row): '-' (no figure) for a detached dwelling 7.0 m or less in height, 35% for a detached dwelling greater than 7.0 m in height; and no additional coverage for accessory buildings (s.6.4.2(b)). |
| Maximum floor space index | See noteMaximum residential floor area ratio n/a in the parent zone. In the -0 Suffix Zone, Table 6.4.1 applies by lot area: <557.5 m2 43%; 557.5-649.99 42%; 650-742.99 41%; 743-835.99 40%; 836-928.99 39%; 929-1,021.99 38%; 1,022-1,114.99 37%; 1,115-1,207.99 35%; 1,208-1,300.99 32%; 1,301+ 29%. |
Other provisions in this section
- Maximum dwelling depth: n/a (Table 6.3.1).
- Table 6.2.1 footnote 1: only one of bed and breakfast, day care, lodging house, private home day care or short-term accommodation is permitted on a lot; footnote 2: lodging house max 3 lodging units.
- -0 Suffix Zone (s.6.4): where Part 19 Maps show the -0 suffix, s.6.4 overrides for front yard, height/storeys, lot coverage and residential floor area ratio.
- s.6.4.1 (-0 suffix): attic and attached garage floor area counted toward residential floor area in specified cases (attic headroom over 1.8 m; garage 6.0 m or taller with less than 25% of its area as floor area above).
- s.6.4.4 (-0 suffix): at least 50% of the length of main walls facing the front lot line must sit between the minimum and maximum front yards (new buildings only).
- s.6.4.5 (-0 suffix): balconies and uncovered platforms prohibited above the first-storey floor level.
- Accessory buildings (s.6.5.2): same yards as the dwelling, except 0.6 m from any lot line when in a flankage or rear yard and at least 2.0 m from the dwelling; max height 4.0 m from grade, reduced to 2.5 m if less than 3.5 m from a flankage lot line; additional lot coverage of the greater of 5% of lot area or 42.0 m2 (not in -0 suffix zones); no human habitation.
- s.6.6: minimum front yard may be reduced to the average of the front yards of the nearest legally existing dwelling on each side in the same block, where that average is below the zone minimum (2015-079).
- Day care (s.6.7): only on a lot whose front or flankage lot line abuts an arterial or major collector road; min interior side yard 4.2 m; driveway max 6.0 m wide plus 5.7 m of additional continuous hard surface; playground equipment 1.8 m or taller set back 5.0 m from all lot lines, shorter equipment 2.0 m.
- Parking structures (s.6.9): no vehicle repair storage; no setback required for portions no more than 1.37 m above the nearest lot line, except 1.0 m where abutting a Residential Zone and 3.5 m for ventilator shafts.
- Table 6.3.1 footnotes 1, 3, 4, 7 and 8 (single-storey rear extension, corner-lot 285 m2/12.5 m, one-side 1.2 m reduction, 355 m2/75% floor area cap, 0.7 m daylight-triangle setback) are printed under the shared table but are not referenced in the RL3 column.
- s.6.10: separation of dwelling units rules for semi-detached/townhouse blocks and common element condominiums (not applicable to RL3 permitted uses in practice).
Source: Part 6: Table 6.2.1, Table 6.3.1; s.6.4-6.10, By-law 2014-014 (Town of Oakville), 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 Oakville: RH, RL1, RL10, RL11, RL2, RL4, RL5, RL6, RL7, RL8, RL9, RM1, RM2, RM3, RM4, RUC