Do Covered Porches and Decks Count Toward Lot Coverage in Richmond?

In Richmond, covered porches and decks can count toward lot coverage calculations, but certain covered areas qualify for a partial exemption from floor area ratio calculations under specific conditions — and it is important to understand that lot coverage and FSR are two separate regulations that each constrain your addition independently. The distinction between what counts toward each calculation is one of the most commonly misunderstood aspects of Richmond's Zoning Bylaw 8500, and getting it wrong can derail your addition project.

Richmond's zoning bylaw sets the maximum lot coverage for buildings at 50% in most single-family residential zones, meaning that buildings (measured by their roofline or outermost structural projection) cannot cover more than half the lot area. There is also a broader site impermeability limit of 70%, meaning that no more than 70% of the lot may be occupied by buildings, structures, and non-porous surfaces combined. These are hard caps — your addition plus the existing building footprint must stay within both limits.

For lot coverage calculations, covered porches and covered decks generally do count because they are roofed structures attached to the building. The roof creates the footprint that defines lot coverage, regardless of whether the space beneath it has walls. A covered porch that extends 3 metres from the rear of your house across a 10-metre width adds 30 square metres to your building's lot coverage footprint, even though it has no walls and is open to the elements on three sides.

The FSR (floor area ratio) calculation is where Richmond offers a meaningful exemption for covered outdoor areas. Under Zoning Bylaw 8500, up to 10% of the total permitted floor area for the lot may be excluded from the FSR calculation if that floor area is used exclusively for covered areas of the principal building, provided those covered areas are open on two or more sides, are never enclosed, and are not located more than 0.6 metres above the lowest horizontal floor. This exemption is designed to encourage covered porches and ground-level verandas without penalizing homeowners in the FSR calculation.

To put this in practical terms, if your lot permits 300 square metres of total floor area, up to 30 square metres of covered porch area could be excluded from the FSR count. That is enough for a generous covered porch or veranda, and it means the covered area does not eat into the floor space you can use for enclosed rooms inside the house. However, the conditions are strict — the covered area must remain permanently open on at least two sides, cannot be enclosed with screens or glass panels (even retractable ones), and must be at or very near grade level.

Uncovered decks at grade level are generally treated differently from covered structures. An uncovered deck that sits less than 0.6 metres above grade typically does not count toward either lot coverage or FSR, since there is no roof and the structure is essentially at ground level. However, a raised deck — one that sits more than 0.6 metres above the surrounding grade — may be treated as a structure that contributes to lot coverage, particularly if it has railings and supporting posts that create a defined footprint.

The interaction between these rules matters enormously for addition design in Richmond. Many Richmond lots are relatively compact, and the 50% lot coverage limit can be the binding constraint even when you have FSR room to spare. A common scenario is a homeowner who wants to build a rear addition with a covered patio — the enclosed addition and the covered patio both count toward the 50% lot coverage, and on a smaller lot, this combination may push the total footprint past the limit even though the FSR calculation (with the 10% exemption for the patio) still shows available room.

Richmond also has specific rules about how overhanging eaves and roof projections are measured for lot coverage purposes. Eaves that project beyond the building wall are typically excluded from lot coverage calculations up to a specified distance, but beyond that threshold, they count. This can affect addition designs where a wide eave or covered walkway extends the effective footprint of the building.

Before finalizing your addition design, have your architect prepare a dual calculation showing both the lot coverage and FSR impacts of the proposed addition, including any covered porches or decks. Submit these calculations to Richmond's planning department for confirmation before proceeding to the building permit stage. Richmond's planning staff can be reached through the Zoning section at City Hall, and they routinely review these types of calculations as part of preliminary zoning inquiries.

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