Berwick land-use by-law for backyard suites, tiny homes and bunkies

Town of Berwick, in Kings County. Population 2,455 (2021 census).

Backyard suite

A separate home in the yard of a house: garden suite, laneway suite or coach house, including prefab, modular or container units used this way.

Allowed with limits · Berwick’s term: “accessory dwelling unit, detached suite”

One accessory dwelling unit, which may be a detached suite, is permitted with a single unit or semi-detached dwelling in all residential zones on lots of at least 929 m². Converting an existing accessory structure waives the minimum zone requirements. [1]

Maximum size: Up to 60% of the gross floor area of the main unit, to 75 m² (807.3 sq ft); 1 bedroom [2]
Minimum lot size: 929 m² (10,000 sq ft) [2]
Maximum height: Equal to the main building, up to 10.66 m (35 ft) [2]
Setbacks: Side yards 3.65 m (12 ft); rear yard 3.05 m (10 ft); not closer to the front lot line than the main building [2]
Separation from house: 2 m from non-habitable structures; 3 m from all other structures [2]
Number allowed: One per lot [2]

Nova Scotia-wide rule

Outside Halifax, no Nova Scotia regulation requires municipalities to allow backyard suites or a set number of units per lot. Each municipality decides this in its land-use by-law. Province-wide, the Building Code applies to the suite, and a new on-site sewage system needs provincial notification or approval. [3][4][5][6][7][8]

Tiny home on a foundation

A small house as the main home on its own lot. The key rule is any minimum dwelling size.

Allowed · Berwick’s term: “single detached dwelling”

A single detached dwelling includes mobile and tiny homes, and the by-law sets no minimum dwelling floor area or width. [1]

Minimum dwelling size: None stated [2]
Mini homes: Single detached dwelling 'includes mobile and tiny homes'; manufactured homes include mini-homes [2]

Nova Scotia-wide rule

Nova Scotia sets no provincial minimum house size. Since April 1, 2025, the Building Code Regulations define a "tiny house" as a dwelling unit of 37 m² or less in building area and give it its own rules on ceiling heights and lofts. Certified factory-built homes are deemed to meet the Code. Municipal planning documents must provide for manufactured housing. [3][6][4][9]

Tiny home on wheels or park model

Living full-time in a tiny home on wheels or a park model home.

Allowed with limits · Berwick’s term: “recreational vehicle or camper”

Vehicles and trailers may not be used for human habitation, but recreational vehicles or campers may be lived in on a property with an established main dwelling if not connected to town services, not used for the travelling public and not in the minimum front or flankage yard. A mobile home, which may sit on wheels, counts as a single detached dwelling; land-lease communities are limited to existing ones in the R zone.

Servicing: RV must not be connected to town services (s. 4.19.2) [2]
Where allowed: Only on a property with an established main dwelling [2]

Nova Scotia-wide rule

The province's Building Code guidance says tiny homes on a permanent trailer chassis with wheels are outside the scope of the Nova Scotia Building Code Regulations. Whether you may live in one full-time is decided by the municipal land-use by-law. CSA Z240 manufactured (mini) homes are covered by the Building Code, and municipal plans must provide for manufactured housing. [9][6][4][5]

Bunkie or sleeping cabin

A small sleeping building with no kitchen, usually beside a cottage or house.

Not allowed · Berwick’s term: “accessory building”

Accessory buildings shall not be used for human habitation unless they meet all requirements for an Accessory Dwelling Unit, Detached Suite.

Maximum height: 6.1 m (20 ft) [2]
Number allowed: No more than 3 accessory structures in a residential zone, excluding detached suites [2]

Nova Scotia-wide rule

Unless a municipal by-law says otherwise, Nova Scotia does not require a building permit for an accessory building of 20 m² or less, but the Building Code still applies to it. Adding a washroom brings in the on-site sewage rules, unless the building connects to a municipal sewer. [6][7][10]

Official links

Last confirmed October 2026.

Notes and caveats

The Town's MPS and LUB documents page (https://www.berwick.ca/maps.html) links this 2026-06-11 consolidated file as the current Land Use Bylaw, and the by-law repeals the 2012 LUB (s. 2.7.1). Council gave second reading on July 8, 2025, and the Town's news post, seen only as a search snippet because the page now returns 404, says the Minister approved the MPS and LUB with amendments and that they took effect October 23, 2025. The list of ministerial amendments was not found online. The consolidated file still carries the April 2025 'Draft for Public Engagement' cover, but its text differs from the council-approved V2 (May 27, 2025) in the ways a post-approval version would: small option homes added to residential zones, the R4 zone renamed Residential Growth (RG), and the 2026 unique site amendments heard on May 12, 2026. The accessory dwelling, accessory building and vehicle habitation sections are the same in both versions.

Sources

Not legal advice

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