Zoning Variance
A zoning variance allows deviation from zoning requirements. Learn how to request a variance and criteria zoning boards consider.
Definition
A zoning variance is permission granted by a local zoning board to deviate from zoning regulations when strict enforcement would cause unnecessary hardship. Variances may allow building on smaller lots, reduced setbacks, or taller structures than otherwise permitted. Applicants must demonstrate that the variance will not adversely affect the neighborhood, that the hardship is unique to the property, and that the variance is the minimum necessary. Variances differ from rezonings, which change the zoning classification itself. Approval processes include public hearings, notifications to neighbors, and adherence to statutory criteria.
Why It Matters
A variance is not a favor, it is a legal finding, and the standard is hardship caused by the land itself rather than by what you would like to build. Boards routinely deny applications where the difficulty is self created or purely financial. Plan on three to six months and a public hearing where neighbors get mailed notice, and never buy a property on the assumption that one will be granted.
Examples
An owner of a pie shaped cul-de-sac lot wins a setback reduction from 20 feet to 14 because the lot geometry, not the design, creates the problem.
A board denies a third story request where the applicant's stated reason is resale value, which does not satisfy the unnecessary hardship test.
A homeowner who already built a deck four feet into the side setback applies after the fact, pays a double permit fee, and is still ordered to cut it back.
Tips
Book a pre-application meeting with planning staff before filing; they will tell you which criterion your case fails and often point you toward an administrative adjustment that skips the hearing entirely.
If a purchase only works with a variance, make the offer contingent on obtaining it and give that contingency a realistic date rather than the standard 30 days.
Walk the block and talk with the neighbors who will receive the hearing notice before it lands in their mailbox, since organized opposition at the hearing is the most common reason a technically sound application fails.
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