Arlington | Parking, Setbacks and Height
Arlington Parking, Setbacks and Height: Garages, Yards and Building Limits
Once a lot allows the homes you want, three sets of numbers decide how much fits: the parking the City requires, the setbacks (the strips along each lot line where no building may stand), and the height and coverage limits. In Arlington the Unified Development Code (UDC) also requires a two-car garage for most new homes and sets design rules for houses and duplexes. This page gives the numbers, with the section for each. The Arlington overview gives the short version.
Arlington parking and building limits in six facts
- A detached house, a duplex unit and a townhouse each need 2 off-street parking spaces; a garage apartment needs 1. Source: Arlington UDC, Table 5.4-1
- An enclosed two-car garage of at least 390 square feet is required for single-family detached, townhouse and duplex homes, except homes built before January 31, 1984. Source: Arlington UDC, Sec. 5.4.9.B.2
- Every residential district from RE to RM-12 sets a front setback of 20 feet on a local street and 40 feet on an arterial or collector. Source: Arlington UDC, Sections 2.2.2 to 2.2.7
- Interior side and rear setbacks are 5 feet in RS-7.2 and RS-5, and 10 feet in RE, RS-20 and RS-15. Source: Arlington UDC, Sections 2.2.2 to 2.2.6
- Buildings may be 40 feet tall in RE to RM-12 and VG, measured to the midpoint between eaves and ridge on a pitched roof. Source: Arlington UDC, Sec. 2.2 and 4.1.7.A
- The UDC requires houses and duplexes to be 100 percent masonry, while Government Code 3000.002 voids city rules that limit building materials approved by a national model code. Source: Arlington UDC, Sec. 5.5.3.C.5; Gov. Code 3000.002
Parking for Each Home Type
Table 5.4-1, Off-Street Parking Schedule A, sets the number of spaces. Off-street means on private land beside the home. The residential rows are:
| Use | Spaces required |
|---|---|
| Single-family detached house | 2 per dwelling unit |
| Duplex | 2 per dwelling unit |
| Townhouse | 2 per dwelling unit |
| Garage apartment | 1 per dwelling unit |
| Small-lot house or townhouse, lot under 4,000 sq ft | 1 per unit |
| Small-lot house, lot of 4,000 to 5,000 sq ft | 1 garage plus 1 driveway space |
| Apartments in RMF-22 | 1 per studio, 1.5 per 1 bedroom, 2.0 per 2 bedroom, 2.5 per 3 bedroom, plus 0.5 per bedroom above 3 |
| Apartments or mixed use in a non-residential district | 1 per unit, plus 5 staff spaces and 1 visitor space per 10,000 sq ft of residential floor area |
| Secondary living unit | Exempt (Section 3.3.6.L) |
Source: Arlington UDC, Table 5.4-1, Sections 3.3.6.L and 5.5.6.D.3, PDF amended by Ordinance No. 25-059.
Section 5.4.2 says required spaces "shall be located on the same lot as the principal use," and Section 5.4.9.B bars parking "in a public street or sidewalk, parkway, alley, or other public right-of-way." A standard space is at least 18 feet long and nine feet wide. The two small-lot rows come from Ordinance No. 25-059, which wrote SB 15 into the code; Section 5.5.6 states the first one as lots "between 3,000 square feet and 4,000 square feet." The secondary living unit, a family-only second home, is exempt from "the off-street parking requirements" under Section 3.3.6.L.
The Two-Car Garage Rule
Section 5.4.9.B.2 is one of the rules that shapes Arlington homes most. It reads: "An enclosed two-car garage is required for all single-family detached, townhouse, and duplex dwellings. The garage must be a minimum of 390 square feet in area." So a duplex needs garage space for each unit, and a small house on a narrow lot must find room for 390 square feet of garage. Three exceptions and limits follow:
- Older homes. "A garage is not required for dwellings constructed prior to January 31, 1984."
- Conversions. "A garage may not be converted to living space unless another two-car garage is constructed on the same lot." Homes built before January 31, 1984 may convert a garage if "a driveway of at least 20 feet in length, as measured from the front property line, is constructed to accommodate the same number of vehicles as the garage."
- Tandem parking. One car behind another is "permitted only for residential townhouses with a single-car garage," with a driveway of at least 20 feet.
The small-lot standards in Section 5.5.6, which "shall control" over other UDC sections, ask for only one space on lots of 3,000 to 4,000 square feet and require garages to be "only alley-loaded." Section 5.5.3 adds design limits for the garage on a house or duplex: a front-loading garage "shall not project out from the front façade," and "no more than two car bays may share a common garage door."
Setbacks by District
Each district page in Section 2.2 lists four kinds of setback. A street front setback is along the street the house faces. A street side setback is along a side street on a corner lot, and a street rear setback is along a street behind the lot. Interior setbacks are along lot lines shared with neighbors. The table lists feet, with the front setback shown for a local street and, after the slash, for an arterial or collector.
| District | Street front (ft) | Street side, roadway (ft) | Street rear, roadway (ft) | Interior (ft) | Height, max. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RE, RS-20 | 20 / 40 | 15 | 20 | 10 side, 10 rear | 40 ft |
| RS-15 | 20 / 40 | 15 | 20 | 10 side (or 5 and 15), 10 rear | 40 ft |
| RS-7.2, RS-5 | 20 / 40 | 15 | 20 | 5 side, 5 rear | 40 ft |
| RM-12 | 20 / 40 | 20 | 20 | 5 side, 10 rear | 40 ft |
| RMF-22 | 20 / 25 collector / 40 arterial | 20 | 20 | 10 side, 10 rear; 40 for apartments next to single-family | Section 5.5.4 |
| VG | 20 | 5 | 5 | 5 side, 5 rear | 40 ft |
Source: Arlington UDC, Sections 2.2.2 to 2.2.9. Along an alley or private access easement, street side setbacks drop to 10 feet (20 in RM-12, 5 in VG) and street rear setbacks to 5 feet (10 in RMF-22).
Section 4.1.6.C measures a street setback from the right-of-way line, and for arterials and collectors from the line "shown on the Thoroughfare Development Plan," which may be wider than the street today. On a corner lot "only one lot line shall be considered the front lot line." Section 4.1.6.D requires street setbacks "on all frontages of double-frontage lots," lots with a street on two opposite sides, except in mixed-use districts. Next to a single-family lot, a non-residential use must stay 20 feet back in RE to RM-12 and 30 feet in VG, and in RMF-22 apartments and non-residential uses must stay 40 feet back.
What May Sit Inside a Setback
Setbacks are to be "unoccupied and unobstructed by any building, structure, or portion of a structure from 30 inches above grade upward," but Sections 4.1.6.G and H allow these reductions and projections:
- Porches and J-swing garages. In RE to RS-5, VG and RM-12, "covered front porches and j-swing garages may encroach up to five feet into the 20-foot setback" from a local street. A J-swing garage faces sideways so its door does not face the street. The reduction does not apply to front-entry garages.
- Townhouses and duplexes with rear access. The front setback "may be reduced to fifteen feet when access is provided by a private access easement at the rear."
- Interior townhouses. The side setback may be zero, and end units keep five feet.
- Double-frontage lots with a fence. When the rear lot line is on a minor arterial or local street, the rear setback for a house or townhouse may drop to five feet once a fence is installed under Section 5.3.4.
- Projections. Uncovered patios up to 12 inches tall may go anywhere; unroofed decks and stairs up to five feet; eaves, chimneys and similar features up to two feet; and porch roofs up to five feet into a front setback.
Older neighborhoods have one more option. Section 5.5.2.A allows a "contextual front setback" for infill in NMU, RMU, DNO or LPO districts or "any residential use district platted prior to January 31, 1984," on a lot that "abuts existing structures on at least three sides." The new building is set "no further from the primary street than the furthest front façade" and "no closer to the primary street than the closest front façade" of the two neighboring houses. The same section requires the new home to match at least three of seven features, such as roof material or porches, of most buildings on the block.
Height and Lot Coverage
RE, RS-20, RS-15, RS-7.2, RS-5, RM-12 and VG each set a maximum building height of 40 feet. Section 4.1.7.A measures it "from the average elevation of the finished grade along the front of the building" to the top of a flat roof, the deck line of a mansard roof, or "the mean height level between eaves and ridge for a gable, hip, or gambrel roof." Chimneys, vents and similar parts may rise five feet above the limit. Accessory structures are limited to 24 feet, measured as "the height of the tallest wall." RMF-22 points to Section 5.5.4, which limits any part of an apartment building within 50 feet of single-family property to 40 feet and sets no limit farther away.
Lot coverage, the share of the lot under buildings, is 50 percent in RE to RS-7.2, 60 percent in RS-5 and for houses and duplexes in RM-12, 75 percent for RM-12 townhouses, and 80 to 90 percent in RMF-22. For single-family homes, Section 4.1.4 leaves out paving, pools, decks and uncovered patios. Height in the airport area may be lower: Section 4.1.7.D says "building height may be further limited within the APO overlay district." The trees, airport and historic page covers that overlay.
Design Rules for Houses and Duplexes
Section 5.5.3 applies to new single-family and two-family homes in all districts, except planned developments and conservation districts with their own design rules and the Landmark Preservation Overlay. Its main requirements:
- Entrance. The main entrance faces the front; each home needs a porch, stoop or courtyard of at least 20 square feet.
- Windows. "Windows are required on all elevations," and on street or park facades "windows and doors shall cover a minimum of 20 percent of the elevation."
- Roof. A minimum pitch of 6:12 for houses (Subsection D) and 4:12 for two-family and attached homes (Subsection E).
- Front yard paving. All pavement in the required front setback, driveway included, "shall not exceed one-half of the area of such setback, or 600 square feet, whichever is less."
- Mix of models. "A development of 20 units or more shall include a minimum housing mix of at least three models" (Section 5.5.2.B).
Subsections D and E overlap. Subsection D covers "Two-Family and Detached Single-Family Residential" and limits front-facing garages to "55 percent of the total width of the dwelling." Subsection E covers "All Two-Family and Attached Single-Family Residential" and allows "60 percent." A duplex falls under both headings, and the code does not say which controls. Design to the stricter 55 percent unless the City tells you in writing that 60 applies.
The Masonry Rule and State Law
Section 5.5.3.C.5 says "one hundred percent of the primary residential structure shall consist of the following masonry materials": brick or stone set in mortar, cultured stone, three-coat stucco, or "an equivalent, permanent architecturally finished material with a minimum 30-year warranty period." The subsection is headed "Preferred Materials," but the text uses "shall."
State law limits rules of this kind. Government Code 3000.002, in force since 2019, says a governmental entity "may not adopt or enforce" a rule that "prohibits or limits, directly or indirectly, the use or installation of a building product or material" approved by "a national model code published within the last three code cycles," and that a conflicting rule "is void." It lists exceptions, among them buildings in some historic districts and landmarks. The UDC text read for this guide still carries the 100 percent masonry sentence. VanPlex did not find a City statement on how it applies Section 5.5.3.C.5 today, so ask the building official before you price a brick exterior or another material.
Ways to Reduce Parking
Section 5.4.7 lets the Zoning Administrator approve alternatives. Off-premise parking must be "within 600 feet from an entrance," but "residential parking or accessible parking may not be provided in off-premise facilities." On-street spaces next to a building may count, but "credit may not be given for parking spaces located in a residential zoning district." Spaces in public garages within 1,000 feet may count, and a further cut is possible with "a parking demand analysis" by "a qualified parking or traffic consultant." Section 5.4.8 allows deferring "up to 20 percent of the required number of parking spaces" with a reserve parking plan. These options serve apartments and mixed-use projects.
Best For
- ✓ A home built before January 31, 1984, where no garage is required and a conversion is possible with a 20-foot driveway.
- ✓ An RS-7.2 or RS-5 lot, where interior setbacks are 5 feet on the sides and rear.
- ✓ An infill lot in an older subdivision that can use the contextual front setback.
Usually Fails When
- ✕ A new duplex plan leaves no room for two-car garages of 390 sq ft.
- ✕ The front-facing garage takes more than 55 percent of a house or duplex width.
- ✕ The design relies on an arterial setback measured from today's curb instead of the planned right-of-way line.
What To Verify Before Spending Money
- → The right-of-way width on the Thoroughfare Development Plan for the street in front.
- → How the City applies the masonry rule after Government Code 3000.002.
- → Whether the lot is inside the Airport Overlay, where height may be lower.
Where to Go Next
Related on VanPlex: the Arlington overview, building codes for duplexes to fourplexes, and other 2025 Texas housing laws.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many parking spaces does a duplex need in Arlington?
Can I convert my garage to a bedroom in Arlington?
What are the setbacks in Arlington RS-7.2?
How tall can a house be in Arlington?
Can a porch extend into the front setback in Arlington?
Does Arlington require brick on new houses?
How much of my front yard can I pave in Arlington?
Can Arlington reduce my required parking?
What is the contextual front setback in Arlington?
How wide can a front garage be on an Arlington duplex?
Official sources (checked October 2026)
Planning a multiplex in Arlington?
VanPlex builds multiplexes in British Columbia, Canada. For a lot in Arlington, our team makes a custom proforma by hand and emails it to you in 24 to 48 hours.
Get a proforma for your address