Cities | Fort Worth

Fort Worth Multiplex Rules 2026: Duplexes, Guest Quarters, Townhouses, Apartments and the 2025 State Laws

Fort Worth zones the land inside its city limits, so the first question for any project is the lot's zoning district. Seven one-family districts allow one house, with guest quarters that have no kitchen. The B district allows a duplex. R1 and R2 allow small lots and townhouses, and CR, C, D and UR allow apartments. In 2026 the City wrote the state's small-lot law and its commercial-land housing law into its own code. This page gives the main numbers with their sources and links to seven detailed pages.

Fort Worth Guide Pages

Where the Rules Are Written

Fort Worth's zoning rules are Ordinance No. 21653, printed as Appendix A of the City Code, and its subdivision rules are Chapter 31. The City's Zoning Ordinance page says the ordinance "is available through American Legal Publishing." That publisher's site answered every VanPlex script with an access-denied error, and VanPlex did not try to get around it.

So this guide reads the rules from the City's own files. The district summary (Rev. 5/26/26) gives each district in a line. Adopted ordinances posted on the Zoning page give the full text of the sections they change, including the 2018 multifamily rules, the 2021 UR district and the 2026 state law changes. The City posts the Subdivision Ordinance as a September 2020 PDF, and the February 2026 infill amendments are attached to the Council record. Board of Adjustment agendas quote the exact standard each case asks to change, which supplies lot widths, yards and parking rules. Council records on Legistar run to June 2026; the City's newer agenda site is a JavaScript application that returned no agenda text to VanPlex scripts, so for later months VanPlex read the Zoning Commission minutes posted through August 12, 2026.

State Law in Fort Worth, in Brief

Fort Worth had 918,915 people in the 2020 Census and Tarrant County had 2,110,640, so it passes the size test in the 2025 laws, a city of more than 150,000 in a county of more than 300,000, by VanPlex count. The more Texas cities page lists it among the 19 covered cities. Fort Worth answered each law in its own code:

• SB 15: Ordinance No. 28525-05-2026 added "Small Lot Housing" in all one-family districts, Sec. 6.509, on unplatted tracts of five acres or more, at the statute's limits: 3,000 to 4,000 square feet, 30 feet wide, 75 feet deep, one parking space.
• SB 840 and SB 2477: Ordinance No. 28597-06-2026 permits multifamily and mixed-use residential in ER, E, FR, F, G and H with staff approval, unlimited density and one space per home, and allows office, retail and warehouse buildings of five years or older to convert.
• HB 24: Ordinance No. 28526-05-2026 added website notice and a sign of at least 24 by 48 inches, posted 10 days before the Zoning Commission hearing.

The protest rule is Local Government Code 211.0061. Under 211.0061(b)(1), owners of "at least 20 percent of the area of the lots or land covered by the proposed change" can still force a vote of "three-fourths of all members of the governing body," for any change. Under 211.0061(b)(3), for a change that "has the effect of allowing more residential development" and adds no commercial or industrial use beyond a limited first floor, a protest by owners of the adjoining land within 200 feet needs "at least 60 percent" of that land, and the change then needs "a majority of all members of the governing body." Fort Worth's Council has the Mayor and ten district members, so by VanPlex arithmetic three-fourths is 9 votes and a majority is 6. The City's August 2025 briefing summed up HB 24 as a change "from 20% to 60% within 200 feet," which leaves out the 20 percent protest the statute keeps.

How a Lot Reaches Two, Three or More Homes

Source: zoning district summary, ZC-22-088, Board of Adjustment agenda, July 15, 2026, Ordinance No. 23495-12-2018, UR text, Ordinance No. 28597-06-2026, Ordinance No. 28525-05-2026.

Zoning Districts

The one-family districts are A-2.5A, A-43, A-21, A-10, A-7.5, A-5 and AR, with minimum lots from 2.5 acres down to 5,000 square feet, and 3,500 square feet for AR zero lot line houses. B is the two-family district, R1 and R2 the small-lot and townhouse districts, and CR, C, D and UR the multifamily districts. The City calls its system "Partially Cumulative Zoning": lower-density homes are allowed in higher-density residential districts, but "Residential uses are not permitted in non- residential districts," the rule SB 840 now overrides on commercial land. A rezoning of less than one acre costs $1,418 and the City lists three months. The zoning districts page has the table and the hearing steps.

Guest Quarters and Duplexes

Fort Worth has no ADU permit. In a 2022 case on an A-10 lot, staff wrote that "Accessory dwellings are allowed in “A-10” if they do not contain a kitchen or 220 v plug," and the owners needed a Planned Development for a guest house with a kitchen. Sheds and workshops are capped by lot size, from 120 square feet on a lot of 5,000 square feet or less to 400 square feet on lots of 10,000 to 43,559. A duplex in B needs a 5,000 square foot lot for attached homes and 50 feet of width, and two 3-bedroom units need four spaces behind the front building wall. The Council approved A-5 to B rezonings for duplexes on Meriwether Avenue, W. Gambrell Street, McCart Avenue and Belzise Terrace in 2025 and 2026. See the ADU and duplex page.

Townhouses, Triplexes and Apartments

Three or more homes in a building is multifamily, and the City's permit form says "Apartments (3 or more dwelling units on a lot) are Considered Commercial Construction." R2 allows townhouses at 24 per acre on average. CR, C and D allow 16, 24 and 32 homes per acre with 36-foot buildings and a 30-foot or greater setback from house districts. UR allows manor houses of three to five units, garden apartments and cottage courts at 40 per acre. On commercial land, SB 840 projects follow R2, UR, MU-1 or MU-2 standards by site size and zone, with unlimited density. The multifamily page has the details.

Lots, Yards, Height and Parking

An A-5 lot needs 50 feet of width, 5-foot side and rear yards, a 10-foot side yard on a street side, and keeps lot coverage at 50 percent. The front yard is 20 feet on local streets, but Sec. 6.101(d) also makes it match "the setback of the nearest building on either side that is closest to the street," and Board cases show front yards of up to 50 feet set that way. A home of up to three bedrooms needs two spaces behind the front building wall, and driveways may cover no more than half the front yard. The lot size page and the parking and setbacks page cover these rules.

Historic, Conservation and Airport Areas

The City lists 14 local historic districts, where new construction and demolition need a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic and Cultural Landmarks Commission, and where SB 840 projects must follow the historic rules. The Como Neighborhood Conservation District, the City's first, was still a draft in April 2026. Around NAS JRB, new homes in the 65 dB and louder noise contours need sound-rated windows, walls and doors under Ordinances 17680-08-2007 and 17681-08-2007. The historic and overlay page covers each.

What the Numbers Show

Fort Worth had 1,028,117 people on July 1, 2025, by the Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimate, up from 918,915 in the 2020 Census. The estimate places 1,006,863 in Tarrant County, 19,577 in Denton County and 1,677 in Parker County. The Census Bureau's 2025 Building Permits Survey shows Fort Worth reported all 12 months, with these counts:

Source: Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, South Region places, 2025 annual, Fort Worth row (place code 27000), 12 months reported; Vintage 2025 city estimates.

By VanPlex arithmetic, buildings of two to four homes held 202 of the 9,437 homes permitted in 2025, or 2.1 percent. The file gives counts only and says nothing about where in the city the buildings are.

Plats, Permits and Fees

The City Plan Commission and its staff decide plats, within 30 days of filing under Local Government Code 212.009; the City targets 21 calendar days for a first review. From October 1, 2026, a minor plat or replat with no hearing costs $503 plus $29.53 per lot, a building permit for a 2,000 square foot house $1,171 by VanPlex arithmetic, and a house meter pays $2,990 in water and $2,838 in wastewater impact fees. Road impact fees run by service area, $0 in areas L and W and $4,920.25 for a house in area A by VanPlex arithmetic. The plats, permits and fees page has the full tables.

Where the City's Documents Disagree

VanPlex found these while reading the City's files:

• The Zoning Ordinance page lists the SB 15 ordinance as "22335" and dates the SB 840 ordinance May 12, 2026; the signed copies are No. 28525-05-2026 (effective May 22, 2026) and No. 28597-06-2026 (adopted June 9, effective June 24, 2026).
• The two 2026 ordinances cite the Council's August 26, 2025 resolution under two numbers, "25-5356" and "150-08-2025."
• The platting page says a replat that creates added one- or two-family lots needs a public hearing; the Subdivision Ordinance and Local Government Code 212.015 require one only when the replat needs a waiver. The statute controls.
• The City's August 2025 briefing listed the I Light Industrial district among the districts that must allow SB 840 housing; the adopted ordinance names only the commercial districts.
• The SB 840 table for G sites lists a 45-foot height, while Sec. 5.159(C)(2), which controls on conflict, allows the commercial height of the site if greater; G allows 120 feet.
• The infill Council communication says "Loop 820" and rail running "every thirty minutes"; the ordinance says Interstate 820 and Interstate 20 and "all passenger rail stations." The ordinance controls.
• The signed Board of Adjustment ordinance reads "ADOPTED: October 21, 2025," while the Council record shows adoption on November 11, 2025.
• Ordinance No. 23495-12-2018 heads the D district "Sec. 4.710," and a November 2025 Board agenda cites "4.713" for D; the D section is 4.712.
• The April 2026 Como draft refers to "A-2 or B-2" zoning, while the City's districts are A-5 and B.

Where a City text conflicts with state law, the statute controls. Where two City texts conflict, a signed ordinance controls over a web page or summary; ask Development Services in writing which one it applies to your lot.

Where to Go Next

Related on VanPlex: financing 2 to 4 units, Texas property tax and the Texas multiplex guide overview.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official sources (checked October 2026)