Bloomington, IN Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Front setback (R1/R2/R4)
- 15 feet
- Front setback (R3)
- 15-foot build-to line
- Rear setback (R1-R4)
- 25 feet
- Side setback (R1/R2)
- 8 ft ground floor, 10 ft above
- Governing table
- UDO Table 04-2, BMC § 20.04.020
- First-offense fine
- $100 under Table 06-3
Summary
The City of Bloomington's Unified Development Ordinance sets minimum yard setbacks by zoning district in Table 04-2 under Bloomington Municipal Code § 20.04.020. In the core single-family districts, front setbacks run 15 feet and rear setbacks 25 feet, with R3 using a build-to line instead of a plain front setback.
Dimensional Standards R1 R2 R3 R4 RM [1] RH [1] RMH [1] ... Building Setbacks (minimum) Entire Development Dwelling Site ... Front ... 15 feet 15 feet [3] None 15 feet [3] 15 feet 15 feet 25 feet 10 feet ... Rear 25 feet [2] 25 feet [2] 25 feet [2] 25 feet 15 feet [6] 15 feet [6] 20 feet
Full Breakdown
020 figures govern. For the four single-family districts, R1 (Residential Large Lot) and R2 (Residential Medium Lot) both carry a 15-foot front setback, and R4 (Residential Urban) also uses 15 feet; R3 (Residential Small Lot) instead uses a 15-foot front build-to line rather than a plain setback, meaning the primary structure has to sit near that line rather than simply behind it. An attached front-loading garage or carport needs 25 feet of setback in R1, R2, and R4, or the same setback as the primary structure if that is greater, while R3 only requires the garage to sit 10 feet behind the front building wall.
Every single-family district shares the same 25-foot rear setback. Side setbacks step up by story: R1 and R2 require 8 feet on the ground floor and 10 feet on each floor above it, while R3 drops to 6 feet on the ground floor and 10 feet above. Multifamily districts (RM, RH) and the manufactured/mobile home district (RMH) carry their own setback figures in the same table, with RMH split between an Entire Development standard and a smaller Dwelling Site standard for individual manufactured-home lots. 070(d)(5).
Violations & Fines
Building without meeting the required setback is a UDO violation under BMC § 20.06.100: the Planning and Transportation Director can issue a notice of violation, and Table 06-3 sets a $100 fine for failure to comply with development standards on the first offense, doubling to $200 for a second violation of the same standard within three years, up to the ordinance's $2,500 first-offense and $7,500 repeat civil penalty ceiling.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the front-yard setback for a house in Bloomington?
How far does my house have to be from the rear property line in Bloomington?
What happens if I build too close to my property line in Bloomington?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bloomington
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