New Construction - One and Two Family Dwellings - Conditional
Pre-Application - Preparing Plans for a New House
The following information outlines the steps we require or recommend you follow when preparing plans for a new house, prior to submitting a Development Application package for review. If you have questions at any point during the pre-application process, please call the Phone Centre at 604.873.7611 for assistance or visit the Enquiry Centre in the East Wing of City Hall.
1. Zoning Regulations
If you are considering building a new house in Vancouver, it is important to check the zoning regulations (and design guidelines where applicable) that apply to your property to ensure that the house you design will be approved for construction. The information can be found online by using VanMap, viewing the Zoning Map, or you can call the Phone Centre, at 604.873.7611, for assistance.
2. Preliminary Design Review
A preliminary design review of your initial or conceptual house plans may be suggested or required depending on the zone in which you are building, the design guidelines for your area and the scope of your project. A Development Planner will look at your plans to provide comment and direction on overall urban design issues and, more specifically, whether your proposal meets the Official Design Guidelines for your zoning district. Information and advice received at this step in the pre-application process will assist you in navigating the Development Permit approval process and reduce the risk of your application being: refused, significantly delayed for major redesign on your part or a having a rigorous set of prior-to conditions attached to your development approval.
3. Property Survey
You will require eight copies of a survey of your property prepared by a BC Registered Land Surveyor within the past six months. (RS-1, RS-6 and RS-7 require only five copies)
4. Building Grades
All Development Applications require either Official Established Building Grades provided by the City’s Engineering Services, which must be submitted in addition to your property survey or existing building grades provided by a registered Land Surveyor and included in your property survey. Building Grades are necessary to ensure:
- buildings do not exceed the height limits of zoning regulations,
- stairs, walkways and driveways safely meet City property, and
- water drains from the site without causing damage.
For outright and conditional one-family dwellings in RS-1, RS-1S, RS-3, RS-3A, RS-5, RS-5S and RS-6 Districts, existing grades provided by a registered Land Surveyor will be accepted. Building Grade requirements for all other one and two-family dwelling districts can be obtained from the Phone Centre at 604.873.7611.
If your project requires an Official Established Building Grade, it must ordered from Engineering Services. It typically takes 6-8 weeks for a Building Grade Application to be processed, so it should be ordered well in advance of your Development Application. For additional information visit the Engineering Services Building Grades page or call 604.873.7316.
5. Sewer and Water Service Connections
We highly recommend you obtain your public sewer and water service connection information from Engineering Services staff, Main Floor, City Hall, before you finalize your house plans and submit them for review. This step will ensure your planned connections are compatible with existing City utilities. Incorrectly designed service connections will result in significant delays in the approval of your plans. It typically takes 10 days for Engineering Services to process sewer and water service requests. More information on sewer and water connections is available here 
(40kb).
6. Application Form and Checklist
Both an Application Form and a Checklist for Plan Requirements must be completed as part of your application package. The Application, Checklist and other related documents are listed below or can be picked up at the Enquiry Centre.
Required Documents and Information
- Development and/or Building Application Form (589kb)
- Checklists:
Other Documents and Information
- Pre-Application – Building Grades, Engineering Services (103kb)
- Pre-Application – Sewer and Water Connections, Engineering Services (122kb) and process steps for applying for one and two family dwelling permits (40kb)
- Design Guidelines
- Demolition of One & Two Family Dwellings (40kb)
- Hazardous Materials Report Form (61kb)
- Overheight Fences, Arbours, etc., in Residential Zones (27kb)
- Request for Change of Building Address (25kb)
- Tree Removal Permit (47kb)
- Dedications for Road or Lane
Application – Submitting Plans for Review and Approval
The Conditional Review Process is outlined below or can be viewed as a Flow Chart (24kb).
1. Intake Appointment – Development Application
Intake Appointments for Conditional One and Two Family Dwelling Applications are done on a walk-in basis in the Enquiry Centre, 2nd floor East Wing. An Enquiry Centre Officer (ECO) will check your application package with you to ensure it is complete and there are no obvious design elements that would lead to a refusal. Incomplete applications without the required number of plan sets or supporting documents will not be accepted. The appointment will take from ½ to 1 hour and you will be required to pay the Development Application fee and Building Grade fee, if applicable, at this time.
2. Project Assignment
Your application will be assigned to a project team, including a Project Coordinator (PC) who will be your main point of contact throughout the review process. Other project team members may include staff from Engineering, Landscape, Planning or Fire - to name a few. The PC will make contact within 1-2 days of your application to allow for introductions and for any initial questions regarding your project or the City’s development review process.
3. Early Review
Within 2-3 weeks of your application, the project team will have an early review meeting to identify: additional information that may be required, issues that need further review or research, possible neighbourhood concerns or whether, in the worst circumstance, the proposal is not supported. Any issues or decisions that come out of the early review meeting will be communicated to you by the PC.
4. Neighbourhood Notification
Many conditional development applications require neighbourhood notification. Property owners in the area receive written notice of the proposed development from the City and the developer may be required to erect a site sign detailing key elements of the proposal. At the end of the 2-3 week response period, the PC will share the comments with the appropriate project team members and the developer.
5. Final Review and Submission to Approval Authority
The project team will conduct a final technical review, taking the notification comments into account, and make recommendation to approve or to refuse the application.
6. Decision and Prior-to Conditions
The decision to approve, approve with conditions or refuse a Development Permit Application rests with the Director of Planning or his delegate.
Recommendations to approve will almost always have prior-to conditions attached. The prior-to conditions will be detailed in a letter indicating what must be completed prior to permit issuance. Even if your application is approved, unless all of the conditions in the prior-to letter are met within a specified time limit, your permit will not be issued. After your Development Permit is issued, you must make application for a related Building Permit.
7. Building Permit Approval
In order to initiate the Building Permit Review Process, you will be asked to complete a new application form and pay the required fee. The independent Structural Engineer’s report, required in pre-application for Outright reviews, also needs to be submitted at this time.
Building staff review plans to ensure compliance with the Vancouver Building By-law, and to ensure that buildings have been designed to acceptable community standards. These standards are based on established safety, health and environmental considerations intended to protect the integrity of the buildings and the safety of the public. Once the plans and any supporting documentation have been approved, such as independent geotechnical or structural reports, your Building Permit will be issued.
8. Construction – Trades Permits and Inspections
After your Development and Building Permits have been issued, you may begin construction in accordance with your approved plans and the Vancouver Building Bylaw. As construction progresses, you will need additional Trade Permits, issued through the Enquiry Centre, and regular Inspections of the work.
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