Philadelphia, PA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

Section 14-701(1)(a) makes every primary and accessory structure in Philadelphia subject to the dimensional standards in § 14-701, including the maximum occupied area (the code's term for lot coverage) set out in Table 14-701-1, Dimensional Standards for Lower Density Residential Districts. The table sets the limit by zoning district: R1/RSD-1 and R1A/RSD-2 cap occupied area at 35%; R2/RSD-3 and R3/RSA-1 at 30%; R4/RSA-2 at 40%; R5/RSA-3 and R6/7/RSA-4, the typical rowhouse districts, at 50%; R5A/RTA-1 at 50%; and the higher-density R9A/10A/RSA-5 and new RTA-2 districts at 75% on intermediate lots and 80% on corner lots.

The newest RSA-6 district also caps occupied area at 80%. Table note [3] carves out an exception: in the RSA-5 and RSA-6 districts, buildings on lots 45 feet deep or less are exempt from the maximum occupied area requirement entirely, recognizing that small urban lots cannot otherwise support a compliant building footprint. Section 14-701(1)(b) directs that basic dimensional standards for residential, commercial, and industrial districts run through four separate tables, Tables 14-701-1 through 14-701-4, so a property's actual coverage cap depends on which table matches its base zoning district; commercial and industrial parcels are not governed by Table 14-701-1's residential figures.

General measurement rules that determine how occupied area is calculated sit in § 14-202. Where a proposed building exceeds the applicable percentage, § 14-701(1)(e) explains the table's Y/N/S coding: an "N" means the structure type is flatly prohibited at that coverage, while an "S" means it can be allowed only through the special exception procedure in § 14-303(7), which requires review and approval before the Department of Licenses and Inspections can issue a zoning permit.