Hayward | Three or More Homes
Hayward Three or More Homes: Triplexes, Apartments, Affordable Housing and SB 79
Hayward allows a triplex in its main house district and apartments in its medium and high density districts, along two form-based codes and in most commercial zones. Three rules shape every such project: the General Plan density for the lot, the City's affordable housing ordinance, which starts at two homes, and the design point systems adopted in 2024. Near BART, the state's SB 79 now sets higher floors. This page covers each in turn. See the Hayward overview for the whole guide.
Three or more homes in Hayward in six facts
- A duplex or triplex is permitted in RL, RM and RH; buildings of 4 or more homes are permitted in RM and RH. Source: HMC 10-1.202
- Duplexes and triplexes may be 30 feet and 2 stories in RL and 40 feet and 3 stories in RM and RH; 4+ unit buildings may be 50 feet in RM and 60 feet in RH. Source: HMC 10-1.203
- The affordable housing rules apply to every project of two or more homes or lots. Source: HMC 10-17.205
- A rental project that builds its affordable homes on site sets aside 6 percent of its homes for low and very low income households. Source: HMC 10-17.215
- The Mission Boulevard Code sets no minimum parking for homes and allows at most one space per home within one-half mile of the Hayward and South Hayward BART stations. Source: HMC 10-24.3.2.050
- SB 79 took effect on July 1, 2026 in Alameda County, and HCD classifies BART stations other than two eBART stops as heavy rail. Source: HCD SB 79 advisory
Triplexes in RL, Apartments in RM and RH
Table 10-1.202 permits a "Duplex/Triplex" in RL, RM and RH and "Multi-unit residential (4+ attached units)" in RM and RH, all with no use permit. Each row is "Subject to density limitations in the General Plan." The General Plan sets 4.3 to 8.7 homes per net acre for Low Density land, 8.7 to 12.0 for Limited Medium, 8.7 to 17.4 for Medium and 17.4 to 34.8 for High Density.
By VanPlex arithmetic at 43,560 square feet per acre, a triplex needs 15,021 square feet of net lot area on Low Density land, 10,890 on Limited Medium land and 7,511 on Medium land. A fourplex needs 5,007 square feet on High Density land, and a sixplex 7,511. Net area leaves out land for streets and parks. In practice, a triplex in RL needs a large lot, and most plans for four or more homes start on RM or RH land.
| Standard | RL | RM | RH |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duplex or triplex | 30 ft, 2 stories | 40 ft, 3 stories | 40 ft, 3 stories |
| Multi-unit (4+ homes) | Not allowed | 50 ft, 4 stories | 60 ft, 5 stories |
| Front yard | 15 ft (20 ft to an attached garage) | 10 ft | 10 ft |
| Rear yard | 20 ft | 10 ft | 10 ft |
| Facade design points | 50 | 50 (2 to 3 homes); 100 or 125 (4+ homes) | 50 (2 to 3 homes); 100 or 125 (4+ homes) |
| Open space | None for 3 or fewer homes | 150 sq ft per home for 4+ homes | 150 sq ft per home for 4+ homes |
Source: Hayward Municipal Code Table 10-1.203 and Sections 10-1.204, 10-1.205 and 10-1.206.
Design Points and Open Space
Hayward scores building fronts with points. A duplex or triplex must "achieve a minimum of 50 points" from Table 10-1.205.1. A building of 4 or more homes needs "a minimum of 100 points for developments up to 10 dwelling units or a minimum of 125 points for developments with 11 or more dwelling units" from Table 10-1.206.1. Balconies on half the street-facing homes earn 50 points, a covered porch for each ground floor home 50, and windows covering 20 percent of the front 35.
Massing rules limit upper floors. In RM and RH, the third floor of a duplex or triplex "shall not exceed 80 percent of the gross floor area of the first floor." In a 4+ unit building the fourth and fifth stories "each shall not exceed 85 percent" of the first floor. Fronts between 75 and 125 feet long need a recess or projection at least 8 feet wide and 2 feet deep.
Section 10-1.204(l) sets open space: "For developments with four or more residential units, a minimum of 150 square feet of open space is required per dwelling unit." Private space must be "at least 50 square feet in size and shall have no dimension less than 5 feet." Projects of 4 to 10 homes must also earn 50 amenity points, for items such as a courtyard with seating for 4 people (15 points) or a pergola (15 points). Other rules: a 12 foot landscape buffer when the new building is 15 feet taller than its neighbors, mailboxes "within one or more secured area(s)," and, under Section 10-2.504, parking for multi-unit homes "located behind the primary structure(s)."
Affordable Housing From Two Homes Up
Section 10-17.205 says "All Residential Development Projects consisting of two (2) or more Dwelling Units or lots shall be subject to the affordable housing requirements of this Article." The owner picks one option: pay an in-lieu fee, build affordable homes on site, build them off site with City approval, or propose another alternative. An in-lieu fee is a payment made instead of building the affordable homes.
- Rentals built on site. "Six percent (6%) of the Dwelling Units shall be rental Affordable Units," half for low income and half for very low income households, with the first one very low income, restricted "in perpetuity."
- Ownership built on site. Twelve percent of the homes, half for moderate and half for low income households. High-density condominium projects at 35 or more homes per acre set aside 7.5 percent for moderate income households.
- Fractions. Where the count "results in a fraction of a unit, the Applicant may provide one additional Affordable Unit or pay affordable housing in-lieu fees for the fractional unit."
- Timing. The fee is paid "either prior to issuance of a building permit for a Dwelling Unit or prior to approval of a final inspection or issuance of an occupancy permit."
| Affordable housing in-lieu fee | FY 2026-27 amount |
|---|---|
| High-density condominiums (35 homes per acre or more) | $19.22 per sq ft of habitable space |
| Lower density ownership housing (under 35 per acre) | $25.82 per sq ft of habitable space |
| All other dwelling unit types (by its wording, rentals) | $23.30 per sq ft of habitable space |
| Projects of fewer than 10 homes | 50% of the fee above |
| Paid at occupancy instead of at building permit | Fee increased by 10% |
Source: City of Hayward, Adopted Master Fee Schedule FY 2026-2027, item 44, effective July 1, 2026.
"Habitable Space" in the fee schedule means floor area "designed, used, or intended to be used exclusively for living and sleeping purposes," leaving out parking and similar areas. On a rental fourplex of four 900 square foot homes, VanPlex arithmetic gives 3,600 times $23.30, or $83,880, halved to $41,940 for a project under 10 homes. A 6 percent on-site share of four homes is 0.24 of a home, a fraction the owner may meet with one added affordable home or a fee for the fraction.
Parking and Replacing Existing Homes
Outside the form-based codes, Section 10-2.310 sets parking for duplexes, triplexes and larger buildings at 1.0 covered space per home plus 0.50 uncovered for a studio, 0.70 for one bedroom and 1.10 for two or more bedrooms. Section 10-2.203 says "Any required fractional parking space shall be considered a required whole space." By VanPlex arithmetic, a triplex of two-bedroom homes needs 3 covered spaces and 3.3 uncovered, rounded to 4, for 7 in all. Near a major transit stop, Section 10-2.420 sets these minimums aside. The parking page has the full table.
A project that replaces older homes must keep the count. Section 10-1.2737 says a housing project "shall not require the demolition of residential dwelling units unless the project creates at least as many residential dwelling units as will be demolished," and adds replacement and relocation duties for protected homes, such as homes under rent control in the past five years. The rent and tenant rules page explains those duties.
Density Bonus and the Streamlined Overlay
Hayward's density bonus article, Article 19, carries out the state density bonus law, which gives extra homes and relaxed standards to projects that include affordable homes. Section 10-19.120 says it applies to "Residential Development Projects consisting of either five (5) or more general Dwelling Units." Section 10-19.125 rounds every fraction up, base density included, and affordable homes built under Article 17 "may be counted toward the requirements of this Article." See the duplex to fourplex guide for how the state bonus works.
On sites listed in the Housing Element, the Streamlined Affordable Housing Overlay of Section 10-1.2660 gives ministerial site plan and map review when "at least 20% of the proposed housing units developed on the subject site shall be deed restricted" for extremely low, very low or low income households, for 55 years for rentals and 45 for ownership homes.
Mission Boulevard and Downtown
The Mission Boulevard Code sets densities by zone: MB-CN and MB-NN require 17.5 and allow 35 homes per acre, with 55 south of A Street (MB-CN) or 65 (MB-NN) by major site plan review. MB-CC requires 35 and allows 55, or 75 with major site plan review; its TOD Overlay 1 requires 75 and allows 100. Heights reach "68' max., 79' max. with Major Site Plan Review" in MB-CC. Section 10-24.3.2.050 says "There is no requirement for a minimum number of off-street automobile parking spaces," and caps parking at two spaces per home, or one "within one-half mile radius of the Hayward and South Hayward BART Stations."
The Downtown Development Code lists building types instead of densities. In Neighborhood Edge, the allowed types are a detached house, a duplex (lots 40 to 75 feet wide), a cottage court (75 to 150 feet) and a small multiplex (50 to 100 feet), each on a lot at least 100 feet deep except the house. A "Multiplex: Small" is "a medium-sized structure that consists of 3 to 6 side-by-side and/or stacked dwellings," and a cottage court may hold "up to nine individual Cottages." Neighborhood General adds rowhouses and courtyard buildings. Homes there need "1 per unit, or 1/500 sf, whichever is less" in parking.
SB 79 Near BART
SB 79 allows taller and denser housing near rail stations in an "urban transit county." HCD's advisory says its rules "will take effect on July 1, 2026, in Alameda" and six other counties. A Tier 1 stop, under Government Code 65912.156, is a stop "served by heavy rail transit or very high frequency commuter rail," and HCD's table of rail types lists Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) as heavy rail at every station except the eBART Pittsburg Center and Antioch stations. The Hayward code names two BART stations, Hayward and South Hayward.
Under Government Code 65912.157, a project of "at least five dwelling units" at 30 or more homes per acre, with an average home size of no more than 1,750 net habitable square feet, gets these floors. Within one-quarter mile of a Tier 1 stop, a city may not set "any height limit less than 75 feet" or a density cap below 120 homes per acre, and must allow a floor area ratio of 3.5. From one-quarter to one-half mile, in a city of at least 35,000 people, the floors are 65 feet, 100 homes per acre and a floor area ratio of 3. Hayward has 157,113 people in the Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimate. The Hayward code has no SB 79 section, and no City Council matter titled SB 79 or Senate Bill 79 appears in the Legistar records since January 2025, so the statute applies directly.
Best For
- ✓ RM or RH lots on Medium or High Density land, where a fourplex needs 5,007 square feet on High Density land.
- ✓ Lots in the Mission Boulevard MB-CC zone, with no parking minimum and up to 100 homes per acre in the TOD Overlay 1.
- ✓ Sites within one-half mile of the Hayward or South Hayward BART stations, for SB 79.
Usually Fails When
- ✕ The budget leaves out the affordable housing fee, which starts at two homes.
- ✕ A triplex is drawn on an RL lot too small for its General Plan density.
- ✕ A 4+ unit building is planned in RL, where the use table does not allow it.
What To Verify Before Spending Money
- → The lot's General Plan designation and net area.
- → Whether the lot is in the Mission Boulevard or Downtown code area.
- → The walking and straight-line distance to the nearest BART entrance.
Where to Go Next
Related on VanPlex: the Hayward overview, the SB 79 page and the California impact fees page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to include affordable homes in a Hayward triplex?
How much is the Hayward affordable housing fee on a small project?
How tall can a fourplex be in Hayward?
Does SB 79 apply in Hayward?
What does SB 79 allow near a BART station in Hayward?
What is the Mission Boulevard Code in Hayward?
What building types does the Hayward Downtown code allow?
Does Hayward give a density bonus for small projects?
How much open space does a Hayward fourplex need?
Can I build an apartment building on a Hayward commercial lot?
Official sources (checked October 2026)
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