A second dwelling needs both land-use permission and compliant construction. Those are related, but not interchangeable, approvals. New Westminster requires secondary-suite plans to be approved before the building permit is issued.
Select a B.C. property to check the parcel, available zoning and suite-planning data.
The automated checker cannot confirm all zoning amendments, overlays, lot restrictions, servicing or building permits. Free human property-review requests are currently paused.
See the official verification steps →Start with the municipality and parcel area. The manual check stays open here, but the questions are split into 4 short steps so you do not have to scroll through everything at once.
Four short steps. Answer what you know and choose “Not sure” for anything you have not checked.
New Westminster adopted new infill zoning on June 8, 2026. The adopted RGO-A (up to four units) and RGO-B (up to six units) districts govern designated lots, but they do not cover every parcel. The official map, site-development report and applicable overlays control property-level answers.
Yes. A new secondary suite or detached dwelling needs the applicable New Westminster approvals and building permit before construction/occupancy. Existing work may require a legalization or existing-building review rather than simply a new-build permit.
Residential infill units can be rented long term. The 2026 Infill Housing FAQ says RGO-A/RGO-B infill units may be stratified, subject to the governing approvals; fee-simple rowhouses require rezoning. Do not apply older laneway-only tenure restrictions to every 2026 infill project.
No. Age or long-standing occupancy does not by itself prove municipal approval. Check New Westminster permit/property records and, where relevant, whether a lawful non-conforming status actually exists before describing a suite as “grandfathered.”
Yes in some RGO-A/RGO-B configurations, subject to total unit count and 2026 infill development standards. Confirm the current district rather than using the pre-2026 laneway program alone.
These are the adopted district ceilings, not guarantees of a building permit or available servicing.
The 2026 zoning district permits single detached homes, duplexes, multiplexes and secondary suites. The total four-unit limit counts principal homes and secondary suites. A development permit and building approvals still apply.
RGO-B generally applies RGO-A rules with a six-unit ceiling and a particular off-street-parking map exception. Do not infer RGO-B from a SkyTrain distance alone; the zoning designation must be confirmed.
Queensborough was not rezoned under the June 2026 mainland infill program. The City received an SSMUH compliance extension until May 4, 2029. Existing property zoning still governs suites and other allowed uses; the extension is not a blanket ban.
Heritage protections, heritage alteration permits and registered agreements may affect building changes, additions or demolition. The City says heritage agreements cannot reduce density below provincial statutory minimums. A zoning allowance is not a heritage alteration approval.
Official property verification: use the City's Property Information Portal and CityViews Site Development Report for zoning and title-related follow-up. A property result must not be treated as fully verified until parcel identity, active zone, heritage, servicing and permitted development form are checked.
Use these tools only after confirming the municipal path. Cost planning and contractor matching do not establish zoning, code compliance or permit approval.
Guide verification: Official-source research summary. This guide provides linked municipal research; a complete enacted-bylaw, zoning-map and amendment cross-check has not been documented for this municipality.
Property confidence: Not assessed. City-wide guidance does not confirm permission for a particular parcel. Check official zoning, overlays and permits. How verification works →
Reviewed October 16, 2026 against official 2026 zoning and infill guidance. This is a planning summary, not a permit decision. Confirm the current zoning, registered title constraints, servicing and permit requirements for the specific property before design or construction.
V69.125 primary-source update · October 16, 2026: The City says its Infill Housing Program was adopted June 2026 on eligible mainland properties; the zoning designation controls the RGO-A/RGO-B maximum, and Queensborough needs separate infrastructure/rezoning review. Official municipal record ↗ Not yet verified: Full PID-to-legal-parcel/GIS join, up-to-date neighbourhood and heritage polygon coverage, and an independent 100-property hosted lookup audit. This city is not parcel-complete. No comprehensive current-by-law signoff or parcel approval is claimed.