If you live in the District of North Vancouver (DNV) and have ever considered building a coach house then you’ll be happy to know that after several years of thoughtful consideration the District has now followed other neighbouring cities in allowing the construction of backyard homes, beginning in the fall/winter of 2014.

Here’s a brief comparison of several Vancouver area coach house programs:

* The program allows the increase of property Floor Space Ratio (FSR) if building a coach house
(sometimes also called a laneway house).

Vancouver’s program is popular as it permits a secondary suite and a coach house, as well as an increase in the property’s allowable building square footage. The City of North Vancouver (CNV) has had a number of coach houses built but not to the same degree as Vancouver given the comparatively tighter CNV controls. The District of North Vancouver’s structure is closer to the City of North Vancouver’s program and so while there will be coach houses built the growth won’t likely be as explosive as that seen in Vancouver.

Despite the new programs more conservative requirements there are still excellent benefits especially in communities like the District of North Vancouver where land costs are high compared to other cities.

• Permits extra privacy for owners who want to have a secondary suite without having to live in
  the same building.

 

• Creates multi-generational living prospects for either aging parents or grown children.

 

• Land owners can downsize into a smaller living space while staying on their current property.

 

But living with less space doesn’t mean that you can’t live well. Depending on lot size, the District of North Vancouver will allow a coach house between 736 and
968 square feet (plus a 232 sq. ft. garage).

 

This is significantly more space than the micro-loft apartments in Vancouver that are as small as 226 sq. ft. in size.

Any good builder knows that organizing the space in a coach house isn’t the same as a regularly sized home due to the need for maximizing the use of space in a well thought out multi-functional way. We appreciate this fact and have worked in the past with the expert knowledge of our good friend Greg Cormier, who designed and built the first coach house in the City of North Vancouver (and he also designed the one above).

So if you’re considering a coach house on the Vancouver North Shore, why not give us a shout. We would love to hear about your project.

More District of North Vancouver coach house information can be found here.