Lot coverage is the share of a lot that a building's footprint may occupy, stated as a percentage. It governs the ground floor rather than the whole building, so it decides how much of the site is built on and how much has to stay open.
- It is a ground-floor rule with an upstairs consequence: a smaller footprint has to be made up in height, or the floor area is simply lost.
- Parking, terraces and covered areas may or may not count. The definition decides the number more often than the percentage does.
- Read it together with setbacks and open-space requirements. Whichever is strictest is the one drawing the plan.
- It is the rule most often discovered at design, after the land is bought. It belongs in the underwriting instead.
Related terms
All termsSetback
A setback is the mandatory distance a building must keep from its lot lines: front, sides, and rear.
DevelopmentDevelopment Envelope
The development envelope is the three-dimensional shape a parcel's rules allow: the volume left after height limits, setbacks, density caps, parking requirements, and lot coverage have each taken their bite.
DevelopmentFLR (Floor Lot Ratio)
Floor lot ratio caps how much building area a parcel can carry: lot size multiplied by the ratio equals maximum buildable area.
Terms arrive with the writing.
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