Multiplex Development in Vancouver: How Many Units R1-1 Allows
Vancouver's R1-1 allows up to 6 strata units on a standard lot — or up to 8 if they're secured rental. How the unit count works by lot size, and the strata-versus-rental trade-off that decides it.
Vancouver’s R1-1 zoning allows a multiplex of several units on a single lot — up to six strata (ownership) units on a wider lot, or up to eight if the extra units are secured rental. The exact number depends on your lot’s size and on whether you’re building for sale or for rent.
HouseLyft helps homeowners in Vancouver work out how many units their lot supports, whether strata or rental makes more sense, what it costs, and what it should earn — then connects them with a vetted builder.
Vancouver’s R1-1 zoning turned the standard single-family lot into a multiplex site — but “how many units” has two answers, and which one applies to you depends on a decision you make up front: are you building to sell, or to rent?
How the unit count works
R1-1 (in force since October 17, 2023) scales the number of units with the lot, and splits it by tenure:
| Lot (frontage / area) | Strata (for sale) | Secured rental |
|---|---|---|
| ~10 m / 306 m² | 3–4 units | 3–4 units |
| ~13.4 m / 464 m² | 4–5 units | 4–5 units |
| ~15.1 m / 557 m² | 4–6 units | up to 8 units |
The headline is the bottom row: on a wider standard lot, you can build up to six units to sell (strata), or up to eight if the additional units are secured rental. The catch is fixed in the rules — the seventh and eighth units must be non-strata secured rental, meaning they stay rentals and can’t be sold off individually. So eight units is a rental play, not a sale play.
Up to 6Strata units
Up to 8Secured rental units
About 557 m²Lot size for the maximum
The trade-off that decides your project
This is the real Vancouver multiplex decision, and it’s worth making before you design:
Strata (for sale)
Read why →Strata (for sale)
up to six units, at a base floor-space ratio of 0.70. You can sell each unit.
← BackSecured rental
Read why →Secured rental
up to eight units, at a floor-space ratio of 1.00 — more building on the same lot — but the units stay rental.
← BackRental gets you more density and more building area; strata gets you saleable units. Which one wins depends on your goal, your financing and the lot — and running both scenarios before committing is exactly the kind of thing that changes the outcome of a project. It’s the first thing we’d model.
The provincial floor underneath
Beneath Vancouver’s own R1-1 rules sits BC’s small-scale housing floor, which guarantees a baseline regardless: three units on lots up to 280 m², four on larger lots, and six on larger lots near frequent (15-minute) transit — and note that’s frequent bus service, not only SkyTrain, which many summaries get wrong. On most Vancouver lots, R1-1 meets or exceeds that floor, but it’s the backstop that defines your minimum permissions.
Vancouver also has one structural advantage for this kind of density: a functioning back-lane network across most of the city, which is why laneway and rear-unit configurations that failed elsewhere actually work here.
What we do — and what we don’t
HouseLyft establishes whether a multiplex stands up before anyone spends money on drawings: how many units your lot supports, whether strata or secured rental makes more sense for your goals, what it costs to build, and what it should earn. Where it works, we hand you to a vetted builder and stay involved. Where it doesn’t, we say so.
We are not a lender and we do not sell mortgages.
Two corrections worth carrying, because both are still advertised in BC: the federal $80,000 Secondary Suite Loan was cancelled in Budget 2025 and never launched, and the provincial BC Secondary Suite Incentive Program closed on March 31, 2025. Our financing guide sets out what is actually live.
Serving Vancouver and Metro Vancouver
We work across Vancouver and the wider region, including Burnaby, Surrey and Richmond — where the unit rules and density provisions differ materially from Vancouver’s. The full list is on our service areas page.
We also handle secondary suites and laneway homes and planning and permits in Vancouver.
Common questions about Vancouver multiplexes
It depends on lot size and tenure. A wider standard lot (around 557 m²) supports up to six strata units, or up to eight if the extra units are secured rental. Smaller lots support three to five.
Strata units can be sold individually (up to six); secured rental units stay rentals but let you build up to eight, at a higher floor-space ratio (1.00 versus 0.70). The seventh and eighth units must be secured rental.
Secured rental allows more units and more building area on the same lot. Strata lets you sell each unit. Which is better depends on your financing and goals — it’s worth modelling both.
Yes. BC guarantees three to six units by lot size and transit underneath Vancouver’s R1-1 — including six units on larger lots near frequent bus service, not just SkyTrain.
Only up to six, as strata. If you build seven or eight units, the additional ones must be non-strata secured rental and can’t be sold individually.
How this page was checked
Verified 20 July 2026, claim by claim — every figure above traced to the instrument it comes from.
City sources were not directly reachable for this research — confirm current figures with the City of Vancouver before committing to a project.
Find out how many units your Vancouver lot supports
Enter your address and we’ll come back with what your property permits under R1-1, whether strata or secured rental fits better, what it would cost, and what it should earn.
- What your lot allows
- What it should earn
- Which programmes apply
Illustrative — your report is built from your own address.