Hayward | Lots and Subdivisions
Hayward Lot Size and Subdivisions: Lot Rules, Maps, SB 9 and SB 684
To subdivide is to divide one lot into two or more lots that can be sold apart. Hayward sets lot sizes in the Zoning Ordinance and the map process in the Subdivision Ordinance, Chapter 10, Article 3 of the Municipal Code. Two state laws add faster routes: SB 9 urban lot splits and SB 684 maps of up to 10 lots. This page gives the numbers for each. The Hayward overview has the whole guide.
Hayward lots and subdivisions in six facts
- The minimum lot is 20,000 square feet in RNP, 5,000 in RL and RM, and 7,500 in RH, with 35 feet of street frontage in each. Source: HMC 10-1.203
- A single flag lot may have 22 feet of frontage, with a 16 foot wide strip and a 12 foot paved drive. Source: HMC 10-1.2720
- A tentative map is required for every subdivision outside the Map Act exceptions, regardless of the number of parcels created. Source: HMC 10-3.205
- An approved tentative map expires 36 months after approval unless it is extended. Source: HMC 10-3.246
- An SB 9 urban lot split in RL gives two lots of at least 1,200 square feet, neither smaller than 40 percent of the original. Source: Gov. Code 66411.7
- A city must act on a complete urban lot split within 60 days, or the application is deemed approved. Source: Gov. Code 66411.7(b)
Lot Size, Width and Depth by District
| Standard | RNP | RL | RM | RH |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum lot size | 20,000 sq ft | 5,000 sq ft | 5,000 sq ft | 7,500 sq ft |
| Minimum lot frontage | 35 ft | 35 ft | 35 ft | 35 ft |
| Flag lot frontage, one flag lot | 22 ft | 22 ft | Not listed | Not listed |
| Flag lot frontage, two flag lots | 28 ft | 28 ft | Not listed | Not listed |
| Minimum average lot width | 100 ft | 50 ft | 60 ft | 60 ft |
| Minimum average lot depth | 100 ft | 80 ft | 80 ft | 80 ft |
| Maximum required rear yard coverage | 40% | 40% | Not listed | Not listed |
Source: Hayward Municipal Code Table 10-1.203, Supplement 28 Update 1.
Frontage is the length of the lot line along the street. The average lot width is the width measured across the lot, and the average depth runs from the street to the back line. A note on the table says the minimum lot size is "Not applicable to townhome subdivisions, which are permitted lots that are consistent with the townhome footprint and associated private outdoor areas." In a townhome project, each home can sit on its own small lot while the yards apply to the outer edge of the whole site.
A second note puts density first: "Where there is a conflict between applicable General Plan density and minimum lot size in this section, the General Plan density prevails." A lot that meets the 5,000 square foot minimum can still be held to one home by its General Plan designation. The zoning districts page explains that rule.
Section 10-1.2720 opens with the basic rule: "No parcel of land shall hereafter be reduced or divided so as to provide less than the minimum lot size or dimensions required in the district." It then sets the frontage at 35 feet for each lot and gives three exceptions for lots that are already smaller than the rule.
- The 80 percent rule. A lot "shown of record by the County Recorder as a lawfully created separate lot" may be built on if it is "not less than 80 percent of the size and average lot width requirements of the zoning district."
- No abutting land. A smaller lot also qualifies if "there was no land abutting the lot or parcel under the same ownership on the date the lot became substandard."
- Official plan lines. A lot made smaller by an official plan line, a recorded line for a future street widening, "shall be deemed to comply."
Flag Lots and the B Districts
A flag lot sits behind another lot and reaches the street by a narrow strip, shaped like a flag on a pole. Section 10-1.2720(b) allows one: "Frontage for one lot shall be 22 feet, with access via a 16-foot-wide strip of land that provides for a 12-foot-wide paved travelway." Two or more flag lots need 28 feet of frontage, "with access via a 24-foot-wide strip of land that provides for an 18-foot-wide paved travelway." Adjoining flag lots may share one access. The code adds a warning: flag lots "should generally be avoided where other lot designs are possible and they should not be used solely to increase the maximum number of lots." City Standard Detail SD-109 sets more criteria.
A B combining district is a suffix on the zoning map that changes the lot size of the base district. Its minimums are 4,000 square feet in (RL)B4, 8,000 in (RM)B4, 6,000 in B3.5 and B6, 7,500 in B7, 8,000 in B8, 10,000 in B10, 20,000 in B20 and 40,000 in B40, then 2.5 to 160 acres in the hill and farm districts. Average widths run from 50 feet in (RL)B4 to 400 feet. For homes the table adds: "The number of residential units shall be determined by the allowable density within the underlying General Plan land use designation." B7 lets one-story homes in new subdivisions of ten or more homes sit "as close as ten feet to front and rear property lines" with 1,000 square feet of usable rear yard.
Maps: Who Decides and How Long They Last
| Application | Decision | Time limit or cost |
|---|---|---|
| Tentative tract map (5 or more lots) | Planning Commission, or City Council on referral | Expires 36 months after approval |
| Tentative parcel map (4 or fewer lots) | Planning Director | Expires 36 months after approval |
| Lot line adjustment | Planning Director, or Planning Commission on referral | Planning deposit $4,000 (FY 2026-27) |
| Appeal of a map decision | Planning Commission, then City Council | File within 10 days; hearing within 30 days |
| Map extension | Planning Director first, then Planning Commission | Up to 36 months at first; six years in total |
| SB 9 urban lot split | Staff, ministerial | 60 days from a complete application |
| SB 684 / SB 1123 map | Staff, ministerial | 60 days from a complete application |
Source: Hayward Municipal Code 10-3.150, 10-3.235 and 10-3.246; Government Code 66411.7 and 66499.41. The four-lot line comes from Government Code 66426, which requires a tentative and final map for five or more parcels; the lot line adjustment deposit is from the FY 2026-27 fee schedule.
A tentative map is the first, detailed drawing of a proposed subdivision; a final map or parcel map is the recorded version filed after the conditions are met. Section 10-3.205 says "A tentative map is required for every subdivision with the exception of those subdivisions described in section 66426, of the Subdivision Map Act, regardless of the number of parcels created," prepared by "a registered civil engineer or licensed land surveyor."
Section 10-3.150 gives the Planning Director "final jurisdiction" over tentative parcel maps when the map does not conflict with the General Plan, meets the Zoning Ordinance and needs no variance; other parcel maps go to the Planning Commission. Tentative tract maps meeting the same tests go to the Planning Commission, and the City Council decides the rest. Section 10-3.245 still calls for a public hearing on "any tentative map," with notice at least 10 days ahead by newspaper and by mail to "all property owners within 300 feet."
An appeal "shall be filed with the City Clerk within 10 days after the date of action," and the hearing "shall be held within 30 days after the filing of the appeal" (Section 10-3.235). A tentative map "shall expire 36 months after its approval." The Planning Director may grant a first extension "not exceeding 36 months" if the request is filed "at least fifteen days before the approval or conditional approval is due to expire," and total extensions may not exceed "a total of six years." Section 10-3.255 lets the City waive the parcel map when the division "meets all City requirements as to area, improvement and design" and the survey data are sufficient.
Lot design has its own rules. Section 10-3.800 says subdivisions "should result in the creation of lots which are developable and capable of being built upon without variances" and that every lot "shall have access to a public street or an approved private street." Section 10-3.805 adds that lots "shall not be created with depths that exceed three times their widths," and that larger lots may be required beside freeways, creeks and nonresidential districts.
SB 9 Urban Lot Splits in Hayward
An urban lot split is the SB 9 right, in Government Code 66411.7, to divide a lot in a single-family zone into two lots with staff approval and no hearing. Hayward's code has no lot split section of its own; Table 10-1.202 permits a "Two-Unit Development" in RL "As provided in Government Code Sections 66411.7 and 65852.21." The City's SB 9 page says the right applies "on Single Family Residential (RS) zoned parcels," the old name for RL.
The SB 9 Eligibility and Checklist, updated March 2025, lists the City's tests. The lot must be in RL. "Each new lot shall be at least 1,200 square feet," with lots "of approximately equal size (or minimum 60/40 split of existing lot)." Each new lot "shall have access to a public street." The owner signs affidavits that the parcel was not created by an earlier SB 9 split, that no adjacent parcel was split by the same owner, and that the owner will "intend to occupy one of the housing units as their principal residence for a minimum of three (3) years." Homes on the new lots may not be short-term rentals of less than 30 days.
Under the statute, the City need not allow more than two homes on each new lot, counting ADUs, and it may not require street dedications or off-site improvements. SB 1426 added a deadline effective June 30, 2026: the City must approve or deny a complete application "within 60 days," and if it does not, "the application shall be deemed approved." The City's SB 9 page, updated June 17, 2026, says "SB 9 applications typically take three to five months to process" and lists a Tentative Parcel Map among the submittal items. For a complete application, the 60 day statute controls. The fee schedule sets the City's deposit for "Review of Ministerial Planning Applications" at $4,000 without a tentative map and $6,000 with one.
SB 684 and SB 1123 Small-Lot Maps
Government Code 66499.41 requires a city to "ministerially consider, without discretionary review or a hearing," a map of "10 or fewer parcels" for a project of 10 or fewer homes. The lot must be zoned for multifamily homes and "no larger than five acres," or be a vacant lot zoned for single-family homes "no larger than one and one-half acres." Housing occupied by tenants in the five years before the application does not count as vacant. New parcels must be at least 600 square feet, or 1,200 in a single-family zone, and the average home may not exceed 1,750 net habitable square feet. The City must decide within 60 days or the map "shall be deemed approved." These are the terms of the version in force in October 2026; SB 1090 sets new versions to start on January 1, 2027. The Hayward code has no section on these maps, so the statute applies directly. See the SB 684 and SB 1123 page.
Hill Lots and Fault Studies
Section 10-1.204(g) sets hillside standards for "parcels located in the Hayward Hills, defined as east of Mission Boulevard and south of "D" Street." Where the slope is 15 percent or more, the lowest floor may not sit more than "eight feet above the adjacent exterior finished grade," and grading flat yards is barred on lots steeper than 25 percent. Under Section 10-8.23, a grading permit for a site with an average slope "greater than 20 percent" goes to the City Council, with 10 days' notice to owners within 300 feet.
The grading article asks for a geology report showing "fault lines as located by the soils engineer" and a search for "fault creep." Where the site is in the "Alquist-Priolo Special Study Zone," the report must also meet the State Mining and Geology Board's criteria. Those zones come from Public Resources Code 2622, under which the State Geologist maps "earthquake fault zones" around active faults and names the "Hayward" fault among them. Section 10-3.450 requires a preliminary soils report for every subdivision that needs a tentative map.
Best For
- ✓ RL lots of 2,400 square feet or more, with no tenant in three years, for an SB 9 split into two lots of 1,200 square feet.
- ✓ Vacant RL lots of up to one and one-half acres, for an SB 684 map of up to 10 lots.
- ✓ Wide RL lots that can give each new lot 35 feet of frontage or a flag lot strip.
Usually Fails When
- ✕ A new lot falls below 1,200 square feet or 40 percent of the original lot in an SB 9 split.
- ✕ The plan uses a flag lot only to add lots where another layout works.
- ✕ The site slopes more than 20 percent and the schedule leaves no time for a Council grading decision.
What To Verify Before Spending Money
- → Whether a B suffix changes the minimum lot size.
- → The tenant history of the last three years (SB 9) or five years (SB 684).
- → Whether the lot is in the Hayward Hills or an earthquake fault zone.
Where to Go Next
Related on VanPlex: the Hayward overview, the SB 9 page and the SB 684 and SB 1123 page.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum lot size in Hayward?
Can I split my Hayward lot into two lots under SB 9?
How long does Hayward take to approve an SB 9 lot split?
Does Hayward allow flag lots?
Can I build on a Hayward lot smaller than the minimum?
Who approves a parcel map in Hayward?
How long is a Hayward tentative map valid?
Can I use SB 684 to subdivide a lot in Hayward?
Does Hayward require a soils report for a subdivision?
How deep can a new Hayward lot be compared to its width?
Official sources (checked October 2026)
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