R5D Zoning in NYC: FAR, Height and Setbacks

R5D allows every residence type at 2.00 FAR up to 45 ft, so it fits small apartment buildings as well as houses.

Floor area (FAR)

• Standard maximum residential FAR: 2.00 (ZR 23-21).
• On a qualifying residential site: 2.00 FAR.
• Community facility FAR: 2.00, with lot coverage up to 80% on corner lots and 60% on interior or through lots (ZR 24-11). Some uses, such as non-profit institutions with sleeping accommodations, can have lower limits (ZR 24-111).
• FAR (floor area ratio) is total zoning floor area divided by lot area. On a 2,500 sq ft lot, 1.00 FAR means 2,500 sq ft of floor area.
• Maximum dwelling units: residential floor area divided by 680, the dwelling unit factor (no factor for qualifying senior housing) (ZR 23-52).

Height and setbacks

• Maximum building height is 45 ft (ZR 23-422).
• On qualifying residential sites (and for qualifying senior housing), the limits are a 45 ft maximum base height and a 55 ft maximum building height, with a setback above the base (ZR 23-424).

Yards, lot coverage and lot size

• Front yard: 5 ft deep (ZR 23-321). On a corner lot, one front yard can be 5 ft shallower, and you can match a shallower neighboring front yard, but never less than 5 ft.
• Side yards: Detached houses need two side yards, each at least 5 ft wide (ZR 23-332). Semi-detached and zero lot line houses need one 5 ft side yard, plus an 8 ft open area between buildings where the neighbor is a one- or two-family house. Other building types (like attached rowhouses or apartment buildings) need no side yard, but any open strip along a side lot line must be at least 5 ft wide.
• Rear yard: On interior lots, detached and zero lot line buildings need a 20 ft rear yard up to 75 ft high. Semi-detached and attached buildings need 30 ft on lots narrower than 40 ft, and 20 ft on lots 40 ft or wider. Where a building rises above 75 ft, that portion needs 30 ft (ZR 23-342). Shallow lots that existed in 1961 can get a reduced rear yard, never under 10 ft.
• Lot coverage: For one- and two-family homes: 60% on interior and through lots, 80% on corner lots (ZR 23-361). Apartment buildings, where permitted, can cover 80% of an interior lot and 100% of a corner lot.
• Minimum lot size: 2,375 sq ft and 25 ft wide for a detached or zero lot line one- or two-family house; 1,700 sq ft and 18 ft wide for other residences where they are permitted (ZR 23-11).

What you can build in R5D

Any type of residence is permitted, from detached houses to rowhouses and apartment buildings (ZR 22-121, 22-122).

City of Yes changes

• City of Yes for Housing Opportunity (adopted December 5, 2024) created qualifying residential sites. In R5D the FAR stays 2.00 on those sites, but any type of residence is allowed and the height limit is 55 ft with a 45 ft base (ZR 23-21, 23-424, 22-122).
• A qualifying residential site is, in short: a lot of at least 5,000 sq ft in the Greater Transit Zone with frontage on a wide street or the short end of a block (not in R1 or R2); or a lot with an existing community facility building (with conditions); or, in R3-2, R4, R5 and R5B, a lot with qualifying senior housing. Where residential floor area on such a site exceeds 50,000 sq ft, part of it must be affordable (ZR 12-10).
• It also allowed ancillary dwelling units (ADUs): one extra home of up to 800 sq ft per one- or two-family residence, with conditions (ZR 12-10).

R5D zoning FAQ

Nearby districts

• R5
• R5B
• R6