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Check my propertyIllustrative scenario · Bellevue
Bellevue rebuild example: the garage counts toward FAR
Follow a hypothetical Bellevue SR-4 rebuild through floor area, garage space, coverage, and setbacks before paying for plans.
Start with explicit assumptions.
- Assumed zone
- SR-4 (formerly R-5)
- Assumed lot area
- 12,000 sq ft
- Ordinary interior lot
- 80 × 150 ft
- Desired living area
- 4,600 sq ft
- Assumed enclosed garage
- 600 sq ft
- FAR-counted dwelling count
- One
This first pass assumes no special allowance. It has not screened the lot for trees, easements, critical areas, shoreline rules, or private restrictions.
Keep floor area, coverage, and setbacks separate.
| Check | Calculation | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Base FAR ceiling | 10,000 × 0.50 + 2,000 × 0.30 = 5,600 sq ft | A ceiling on counted floor area. The garage is counted in this screen. |
| Desired counted floor area | 4,600 + 600 = 5,200 sq ft | 400 sq ft below the base FAR ceiling. Other counted areas may affect the final result. |
| Building coverage ceiling | 4,800 sq ft | Limits building coverage. Impervious and hard-surface limits are separate. |
| Rectangle after base setbacks | (80 − 15) × (150 − 20 − 20) = 7,150 sq ft | A geometric screen. This area does not override FAR, coverage, or site constraints. |
What this first pass changes
The assumed floor area is below the base FAR ceiling. A site plan still has to show that the design fits.
A 4,600 sq ft home plus a 600 sq ft enclosed garage uses 5,200 sq ft in this conservative one-dwelling FAR screen. That leaves 400 sq ft below the base ceiling. It does not establish an approved house size or an available footprint. A DADU, an attached ADU, or qualifying middle housing needs its own calculation.
What to confirm before design
- Verify SR-4 on the current city zoning map. This example assumes one FAR-counted dwelling and an ordinary interior lot.
- Have a surveyor locate boundaries, grade, easements, and access. A corner lot or access route changes the setback test.
- Have the designer calculate the actual building footprint. A two-story home’s total floor area is different from its coverage area.
- Check significant trees, critical areas, drainage, and recorded private restrictions before fixing the house location.
- Include applicable driveways and other surfaces in the separate impervious and hard-surface calculations. Building coverage is not the whole site calculation.
Check the source rules for your own property.
Example published . Confirm the current code and any project-specific conditions with the City.
- Bellevue LUC 20.20.390
One-dwelling FAR tiers and the treatment of ADUs, parking, and middle housing.
- Bellevue LUC 20.20.010
SR-4 base setbacks and separate building, impervious, and hard-surface limits.
- Bellevue zoning and property viewer
Use the actual property to confirm its mapped zone and site context.
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