Families with children are an important part of a vibrant and inclusive city. Making sure Vancouver has enough suitable housing for families contributes to the success of our community. More families are choosing to live in apartments, increasing from 25% in 2001 to 39% in 2021. Apartments are also home to many other types of households and are the fastest-growing form of housing in Vancouver.
To support this shift, we have tools in place to make sure new apartments include larger, family-friendly homes with functional and livable layouts. These requirements are now being reviewed as part of a broader update to apartment design regulations.
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Proposed updates to apartment design requirements
On December 10, 2025, Council directed staff to bring forward zoning bylaw changes for new apartments in Vancouver. These changes make it easier to build and support development success, while maintaining livability standards.
This includes modernizing and streamlining our zoning rules and guidelines by:
- Improving livability by allowing larger balconies and residential amenity spaces.
- Maintaining family-sized housing by making sure 2 and 3-bedroom units continue to be included in most new apartment buildings across all neighbourhoods.
- Improving functionality of apartments with a minimum amount of bulk storage for each unit, while giving architects more flexibility in how they design and integrate storage.
- Diversify apartment layouts through greater design flexibility, including better use of interior rooms without windows.
This work is being coordinated with several other initiatives, including improvements to the permitting process and the upcoming City-wide Design and Development Guide.
Updated zoning bylaw and guideline changes will be brought to Council for approval in July 2026.
Family Room: Housing mix policy for rezoning projects
The Family Room: Housing Mix Policy for Rezoning Projects (2016) PDF file (300 KB) provides the requirements and targets for family units in rezoning projects for residential strata housing and secured market rental housing.
This policy raised the targets for family units (units with two or more bedrooms) in rezoning projects from 25 to 35% to ensure Vancouver’s housing stock makes room for families.
High-density housing for families with children
The High-Density Housing for Families with Children Guidelines PDF file (308 KB), published in 1992, provide direction on project planning, project design, unit design, and amenity areas to improve the livability of high density housing for families with children.
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