Building in Nigeria - Setback Requirement

administrator

Planning is a system that orders the use and development of land for the benefit of our communities. The overall aim of planning is to ensure a balance between enabling development while at the same time conserving and protecting the environment and local amenities. The idea is to create better and balanced environment for people to live, work, play, pray, recreate and move around with utmost ease.

Why planning is very important?

It helps to ensure that structures get built in the right place.
It helps to balance the development between homes, factories, offices, schools, places of worship, health facilities, and transportation routes.

Technical Requirements for Setbacks

Setback for Residential Buildings
Standard – 6m
Substandard – Existing building line
Special Schemes and Private Estates – 9m
Others – As specified by approval order for such scheme or area.

Airspaces for Residential Buildings
Standard – 3m both sides.
Substandard – 1.5m one side
Others – 3m between main building & B/Q and 4.5m in special areas 6m between buildings of two (2) floors and above.

Rear Airspace for Residential Buildings
Standard – 3m
Substandard – 1.5m
Others – 4.5m if height is up to 4 floors

Required Setback from Highways and Roads

Primary Highway 90m Right of Way - 45 meters from the centre.
Secondary Highway 60m Right of Way - 30meters from the centre.
Road State 24m/18m/15m/12m wide – 12m, 9m, 7.5m, 6m respectively.
Access Road / Street 9 metres wide - 6metres from the edges.

Required setback from NNPC Pipeline

15m from the property line.

Horizontal Distance from NEPA High Tension

11KVA = 6m
33KVA = 9m
132KVA = 15m
330KVA = 22.5m
Substation = 12m

Required Setback from Different Water Bodies

Ocean / sea = 150m
Lagoon = 50m
River = 15m
Seasonal = 15m
Gorges (New Areas) = 10m
Gorge (B.U.A) = 10m

Distance to Rail Line

Minimum of 21m setback between property and railway line.
60m setbacks between the property and unmanned railway crossing level crossing.

Now that you know, check the land before you buy it! Observe the setback requirements before you build it!

@bds

mank1234

For emphasis, planning ensures:

It helps to ensure that structures get built in the right place.
It helps to balance the development between homes, factories, offices, schools, places of worship,

Rear Airspace for Residential Buildings
Standard – 3m
Substandard – 1.5m
Others – 4.5m if height is up to 4 floors

Required Setback from Highways and Roads

Primary Highway 90m Right of Way - 45 meters from the centre.
Secondary Highway 60m Right of Way - 30meters from the centre.
Road State 24m/18m/15m/12m wide – 12m, 9m, 7.5m, 6m respectively.
Access Road / Street 9 metres wide - 6metres from the edges.

Required setback from NNPC Pipeline

15m from the property line.

Horizontal Distance from NEPA High Tension

11KVA = 6m
33KVA = 9m
132KVA = 15m
330KVA = 22.5m
Substation = 12m

Required Setback from Different Water Bodies

Ocean / sea = 150m
Lagoon = 50m
River = 15m
Seasonal = 15m
Gorges (New Areas) = 10m
Gorge (B.U.A) = 10m

Distance to Rail Line

Minimum of 21m setback between property and railway line.
60m setbacks between the property and unmanned railway crossing level crossing.

Now that you know, check the land before you buy it! Observe the setback requirements before you build it!

gbengress

mank1234 For someone that bought an half plot of 9m by 30m, how will the person be able to achieve the side 3 m setback requirement

mank1234

gbengress From 9m, you’ll be left with 4.5m to work with after taking out 1.5 on one side and 3m on the other side. I’m not sure if a good floor plan can be achieved with a width of just 4.5m with walls inclusive.

However, if it’s in a location with no strict implementation of setback requirement, you can get a working plan with no setback constraint.
Note: I’m not a building expert.

brabus

gbengress if I have such plot, I’ll do 2 - 3 floors.

Ground Floor - Ante, office/study, service quarters, guest bedroom, laundry etc

First Floor - Main lounge, kitchen, 3 bedroom, terraces

Bonus Floor (Pent) - Master Suite, large terrace.

Front yard parking

brabus

mank1234

There’s absolutely nothing you can’t achieve on a land provided there’s no height restriction in the location where you’re building

Some few years ago, a client contacted me to design a semi-detached duplex for 2 friends on 588sqm land.

Setback Requirements within the Estate

3m setback on all sides and back
6m setback at the front

Client Request

4 Bedroom Semi-Detached Duplex
Maid Room
Large Kitchen
Ante
Dining
Very Large Living Room
Another Lounge on the Upper Floor
2 Terraces on each flat
All room en-suite including maid room
All rooms (bedroom/kitchen/lounge/dining) must be cross ventilated****

The project seems like an impossible mission because we are left with bare 250sqm to achieve all that the client wanted. The number of permissible floors is just two, so the option of a penthouse is ruled out.

By the time we remove 6m setback on both sides, we’re left with 15m to work with.

The estate design team were of the opinion we can only build a single dwelling on the land.

At the end, we achieved this 👇

mank1234

@gbengress with above post brabus, it means it is doable.

brabus

mank1234 Yes. All the setback palava ends on the ground floor. The building can be expanded on the upper floors

gbengress

Wao, thats fantastic. I never knew that archictectural work is this brain tasking. Thanks for your explanation

Stevo30

Most of these rules are unrealistic even on a plot of land. 3metres on both side is almost 20ft. If you remove 20fts from a standard plot width of 50fts, you are left with 30fts. 6mt set back in the front plus 3mt at the back is almost 30ft. If we remove 30fts from 100fts for a standard plot, it remains70ft. So basically the want us to us 30fts by 70ft to build on a standard plot.

brabus

Stevo30 Greetings sir!

Edited:

The essence of a 3m setback is to create ample space for parking of a car and also provide setback to aid free flow of traffic in the compound.

Edit:

3m on both side is 20ft. You can still achieve something great with the remaining 30ft and introduce cantilever on the upper floor.

Wingnut007

brabus

What do you think about structures like this that have disregarded all known setback rules?

brabus

Wingnut007 I see stuffs like this but the problem ain’t with those who do things like this. The problem is with those who are meant to regulate the industry.

Instead of doing their job, they’re busy chasing construction contracts.