Iroquois Falls zoning for small homes

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 · Iroquois Falls’s term: “additional dwelling unit / garden suite”

In residential zones, one residential unit is permitted in a building or structure accessory to a detached house, semi-detached house or rowhouse, subject to the general accessory building limits; garden suites are also a listed permitted use in the Rural Residential (RR) zone. The by-law sets no specific maximum floor area for these units. [1][2]

Number allowed: Two residential units in the house plus one residential unit in an accessory building or structure (s.3.1.1) [3]
Where allowed: Residential zones (R1, R2, R3 and RR list additional dwelling units per s.3.1.1); garden suites listed as a permitted use in the RR zone [4]
Maximum height: No accessory building shall exceed 5.0 m (16.4 ft) in height (s.3.1 e) [3]
Separation from house: Accessory buildings not within 1.8 m (5.9 ft) of the main building (s.3.1 e) [3]
Setbacks: At least 1.2 m (3.9 ft) to interior side or rear lot line; not in front or exterior side yards except a detached garage in RU/RR; total accessory lot coverage max 10%; garden suites must meet accessory building setbacks (s.3.1, 3.1.1 c) [3]
Parking: 1 parking space per dwelling unit for a secondary unit, additional residential unit or garden suite; tandem parking in the existing driveway permitted (s.3.1.1 a, parking table) [5]
Servicing: On private individual systems, it must be demonstrated that the private sewage disposal system can accommodate the change in use (s.3.1.1 b) [6]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario law stops municipalities from banning one residential unit in a building ancillary to a detached house, semi-detached house or rowhouse on a parcel of urban residential land, as long as the lot has no more than three units in total. Municipalities still set most other zoning rules, but provincial law limits parking requirements, minimum unit size, lot coverage and separation distances. These units are also exempt from development charges and parkland dedication. [7][8][9]

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 · Iroquois Falls’s term: “tiny home / single detached dwelling”

The by-law defines a tiny home as a self-contained dwelling unit of 17.5 m² to 37 m² that complies with the Ontario Building Code and treats it as a single detached dwelling unless on wheels. The R1, RR and RR1 zone provisions set no minimum dwelling floor area. [1][10]

Minimum dwelling size: No minimum dwelling floor area in the R1 zone provisions (s.5); RR and RR1 zones likewise set none [4]
Approvals: Tiny Home: a small, private, self-contained dwelling unit between 17.5 m² (188 sq ft) and 37 m² (400 sq ft) complying with the Ontario Building Code; considered a single detached dwelling unless on wheels (Definitions) [2]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario law sets no minimum total size for a house that is the main dwelling. The Building Code sets minimum room areas, so the smallest compliant dwelling is roughly 17.5 m² by the Province's own estimate. Municipalities may still set minimum floor areas for main dwellings in their zoning by-laws. The provincial ban on minimum sizes covers only additional residential units. [7][11][12][13][14][15][16]

Tiny home on wheels or park model

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

Allowed with limits · Iroquois Falls’s term: “tiny home on wheels (mobile home) / recreational vehicle”

A tiny home on wheels is considered a mobile home, and mobile home dwellings are a permitted use only in the Mobile Home Residential (RMH) zone. Trailers and recreational vehicles may not be used for human habitation, and a tourist trailer may be used for living accommodation for no more than 14 days a year outside a recognized tourist trailer park. [17][18]

Where allowed: Mobile home dwellings and mobile home parks permitted in the RMH zone; mobile home site min 400 m² (4,306 sq ft), 15 m frontage, max height 5.0 m (16 ft), on a foundation or concrete/gravel pad (s.22) [19]
Temporary garden suite: No temporary-use garden suite provision; garden suite definition excludes a trailer. A recreational vehicle may be used as temporary accommodation for up to two years only while a damaged dwelling is being rebuilt; tourist trailers limited to 14 days per year outside a tourist trailer park [20]
Approvals: A tiny home on wheels shall be considered a mobile home; 'Mobile Home' excludes recreational vehicles, travel trailers and tent trailers (Definitions) [2]
Approvals: No human habitation in any truck, bus, coach or streetcar body, or any trailer or recreational vehicle, unless specifically permitted (Occupancy Restrictions) [21]

Ontario-wide rule

Ontario has no single rule for living full-time in a tiny home on wheels. A unit on wheels can count as a 'building' that needs a permit and must meet the Building Code once it stays in one place, is hooked up to services or is anchored. Park model trailers are recognized only as seasonal recreational buildings. Municipalities may allow a portable garden suite under a temporary-use by-law for up to 20 years, with extensions of up to 3 years each. [16][11][7][13][12]

Bunkie or sleeping cabin

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

We haven’t researched Iroquois Falls’s by-law for this yet.

What applies everywhere in Ontario

Ontario law has no rule written specifically for bunkies or sleeping cabins. Whether one needs a building permit depends on the Building Code Act's definition of 'building' and the Code's shed exemption. That exemption covers only storage-use sheds, so it does not cover a structure used for sleeping. Municipal zoning rules for accessory buildings still apply. [13][11][22][7]

Permit threshold (Building Code Act): A 'building' includes any structure occupying more than 10 m², and any structure of 10 m² or less that contains plumbing. No one may build a building without a permit. (Building Code Act s. 1(1), definition of 'building'; s. 8(1)) [13]
15 m² shed exemption: A shed is exempt from a permit and from the Code if it is 15 m² or less in gross area, one storey, detached from any other structure, used only for storage ancillary to a principal building on the lot, and has no plumbing. Because of the storage-only condition, the exemption does not cover a bunkie used for sleeping. In effect April 29, 2022 (O. Reg. 451/22) and carried into the 2024 Code. (2024 Building Code, Div. C, Sentence 1.3.1.1.(6)) [11]
Plumbing: A structure of any size that contains plumbing is a 'building' and needs a permit. (Building Code Act s. 1(1), definition of 'building', clause (b)) [13]
Provincial accessory sleeping-structure rule: No provincial statute or regulation specifically regulates bunkies or accessory sleeping cabins. Whether they are allowed is up to the municipal zoning by-law. (Planning Act s. 34(1)) [7]

Official links

Last confirmed October 2026.

Notes and caveats

By-law 3710/23 was passed January 16, 2023; the posted PDF (J.L. Richards) states it 'comes into force and takes effect on February 9, 2024' and each page footer reads 'In effect February 9, 2024'. It is not labelled an office consolidation, so bylawConsolidation is null; whether amendments have been passed since February 2024 is unconfirmed (the Town's zoning page lists no amendments or dates). Much of the general provisions' lettered list text is missing from the PDF text layer and was read from page images. Bunkie omitted: 'Sleep Cabin' is defined (sleeping only, no cooking or sanitary facilities) and the RR1/RC1 shoreline provisions set a 7 m setback for 'sleep camps' and ban plumbing/cooking in accessory buildings, but no zone lists sleep cabins as a permitted use and s.3.1 b) bars human habitation in accessory buildings except where a dwelling or guest cabin is a permitted accessory use, so the answer is unclear. Schedules A-C not reviewed.

Sources

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Iroquois Falls zoning for small homes

Backyard suite

Ontario-wide rule

Tiny home on a foundation

Ontario-wide rule

Tiny home on wheels or park model

Ontario-wide rule

Bunkie or sleeping cabin

What applies everywhere in Ontario

Official links

Sources

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