Cambridge: questions buyers ask
What records explain basement apartments and backyard units at a Cambridge home?
Section 4.19 of Zoning By-law 26-007 and Additional Residential Unit By-law 23-077, as explained on the City's additional residential units page.
Sources checked October 28, 2026
The rule in Cambridge
Up to 3 homes on a lot
Cambridge zoning by-law 26-007: permits three units: up to three in the house, or two in the house and one in a detached building (section 4.19; additional residential unit by-law 23-077).
From Cambridge by-law 26-007, checked 5 Oct 2026
- The recordAdditional residential units
- Where to read itAdditional Residential Units
- The free check reads itPick “Extra units allowed”
What the record shows
The City's page says any lot containing a single detached house, semi-detached house or townhouse may contain up to two additional residential units, for a total of three units: up to two units in the main building and one in a detached accessory structure, or up to three units in the main building. A unit may come from converting space in the house, an addition, converting an existing accessory structure, or a new one.
Each unit needs a building permit under the Ontario Building Code, the City's Building Services Division must approve its occupancy, and it must meet section 4.19 of Zoning By-law 26-007 on setbacks, parking, access and the location of entrances. The page says the City and the Region don't collect development charges for additional units, while the school boards do in some cases. A permitted use does not make an existing unit lawful.
Where to read it yourself
- Additional Residential Units: the City's page: where units are permitted, permits, the by-law sections and charges
What OfferDue covers in Cambridge
Extra units allowed is in the free check as a summary of the City's rule, from our hand-kept table of city rules, and the full report reads the lot's zone where the City's zoning map is open data we can use; where it isn't, the report's line says where the City publishes it. Neither is confirmation that a particular unit holds a permit or may be occupied.
Free check: pick “Extra units allowed” See the sample report
Public-record information, not legal, financial, insurance or inspection advice. Records change and can be incomplete, and this page describes the records, not any particular home. What we cover, city by city.