Sammamish residential zoning
Sammamish zoning map and residential setbacks
Start with the city's Sammamish Property Tool to find the parcel's mapped zone and sensitive-area layers. Then use the current zone table below: R-4 and R-6 setbacks change with building floor area, so a generic setback polygon is misleading unless its size tier is stated.
On this page5 sections
Official starting point: Sammamish Property Tool and zoning map. Verify the parcel zone, current code, and every applicable footnote before fixing the design.
Sammamish residential zoning by zone
| Zone | Minimum lot | Front / street | Rear | Side / interior | Height | Size limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 / R-1 | Project-specific | 20 ft | 30 ft | 25 ft | 35 ft | 30% hard surface; 50% FAR; Legacy R-1 lots under 15,000 sq ft may use a 5-ft interior setback. |
| R4 / R-4 | Project-specific | 25 ft | 25 ft | 10 ft | 35 ft | 40% hard surface; 50% FAR; Conservative >4,000-sq-ft building setbacks are shown; smaller buildings can qualify for smaller yards. |
| R6 / R-6 | Project-specific | 20 ft | 25 ft | 10 ft | 35 ft | 50% hard surface; 50% FAR; Conservative >4,000-sq-ft building setbacks are shown; smaller buildings can qualify for smaller yards. |
| R8 / R-8 | Project-specific | 10 ft | 20 ft | 10 ft | 35 ft | 75% hard surface; 50% FAR |
| R12 / R-12 | Project-specific | 10 ft | 20 ft | 5 ft | 60 ft | 85% hard surface |
| R18 / R-18 | Project-specific | 10 ft | 20 ft | 5 ft | 60 ft | 85% hard surface |
Other rules to check
Other rules that can change the answer
These items link to the city rules behind the guide. They are useful starting points, but they do not replace a property-specific review or a search for private covenants and easements.
| Topic | What it means | Official source |
|---|---|---|
| FAR | R-1 through R-8 list 50% single-family FAR. ADUs and detached alley-accessed garages can be exempt; the preliminary screen counts garage area because that design is not established. | SDC 21.04.030 ↗ |
| Setbacks | R-4/R-6 yards change at 2,500 and 4,000 sq ft of building area. The map uses the conservative over-4,000-sq-ft row; R-1, R-8, R-12, and R-18 use their current base rows. | SDC 21.04.030 ↗ |
| Lot coverage | The table does not provide a separate single-family building-coverage ratio, so hardscape is not misrepresented as a house-footprint cap. | SDC 21.04.030 ↗ |
| Impervious / hard surface | Hardscape caps range from 30% in R-1 to 85% in R-12/R-18 and include more than the building footprint. | SDC 21.04.030 ↗ |
| Height | R-1 through R-8 are 35 ft; R-12/R-18 are 60 ft. Steep sites use the code's segmented grade method. | SDC 21.04.030 ↗ |
| Trees | Tree-retention plans, significant/landmark-tree protection, replacement, and critical-area rules require a site-specific calculation. | SDC 21.03.060 ↗ |
| Existing private views | No general private-building-view right was identified. Height, transitions, critical areas, and covenants remain separate controls. | SDC 21.04.030 ↗ |
| Wetlands, slopes, and critical areas | Sammamish's base FAR and hardscape standards do not establish the usable building area on a constrained lot. Wetlands, streams, erosion and landslide hazards, steep slopes, buffers, and special drainage limits must be applied to the surveyed site. A critical-area map hit should be followed by the applicable wetland, habitat, or geotechnical report. Some landslide-hazard drainage areas also have a 35 percent impervious-surface limit, so both the protected envelope and the drainage rules need confirmation. | Sammamish critical-area regulations ↗ |
Practical worksheet
Put this guide to work
Worksheet updated . This is a planning example. Regulatory sources and data have their own dates.
Use three separate drawings and calculations
Illustration only: a 10,000-square-foot qualifying lot with a 0.50 FAR would permit 5,000 square feet of counted floor area. A hypothetical 35% building-coverage cap would allow a 3,500-square-foot footprint. Those are different ceilings, not two allowances to add together. This example does not assign either ratio to your city or parcel.
- Floor-area schedule
- List each level, garage, ADU, basement and other space. Cite the local inclusion or exclusion rule beside any area you do not count.
- Coverage and surface schedule
- Calculate the footprint separately from all regulated hard or impervious surfaces. Include existing retained improvements and use the correct eligible lot area for each ratio.
- Usable site plan
- Place the building inside the actual yards, easements, critical areas, tree protections and access requirements. Show room for construction as well as the finished building.
A house can pass FAR and fail coverage. It can pass both and still have no workable driveway or excavation area. Review the three documents together. Pervious paving, basements and garages do not receive the same treatment in every jurisdiction.
Property-specific checks
What can change the table
- Use the interactive Sammamish Property Tool to identify the mapped zone and sensitive-area layers, then verify material constraints against current City records before design.
- The R-4/R-6 rows shown use the conservative over-4,000-sq-ft setbacks. Smaller buildings can qualify for smaller yards after the size tier is confirmed.
- R-1 through R-8 list 50% single-family FAR. ADUs and detached alley-accessed garages can be exempt; the preliminary report counts garage area unless that design is established.
- Hardscape includes more than the house and is not treated as an invented building-footprint cap.
How to use this guide
How to use the zoning table for a real property
- 1
Find the parcel on the city's current zoning map and copy the complete zone name.
- 2
Read the full row, table footnotes, and definitions. Do not use only the front setback.
- 3
Check corner-lot yards, access easements, critical areas, shorelines, trees, overlays, and recorded restrictions.
- 4
Use a boundary and topographic survey to place the setbacks against the actual lot.
- 5
Have the city or project team confirm any uncertainty before the design is fixed.
Official resources