NES-DMRU

Start with a real site plan

The NES-DMRU can make one qualifying detached minor residential unit per site a permitted activity. The proposal must be assessed against its zone, legal boundaries, the principal home, existing buildings, internal floor area, building coverage and setbacks.

In a residential zone the national standards include a maximum 70 m² internal floor area, no more than 50% building coverage and minimum 2 m setbacks from the principal home and site boundaries. Rural and other eligible zones use different combinations of national and district-plan standards.

National does not mean every local rule disappears

Rules for subdivision, matters of national importance, papakāinga, earthworks, natural hazards, other health-and-safety effects, site-specific infrastructure and applicable regional-plan matters can remain relevant. A district plan can also be more lenient than a national standard in specified circumstances.

Recheck whenever the design moves

A small shift can solve a boundary problem while creating a hazard, services or principal-home setback problem. Keep the site plan, measurements, map sources and assumptions together, and update the assessment when the footprint changes.