Basement Suites in Burnaby, BC
Kyrax Developments builds and legalizes basement suites in Burnaby as a licensed general contractor. Burnaby's new Zoning Bylaw, in effect since July 1, 2026, allows one secondary suite in a home, with a minimum size of 32.52 square metres, and the City issues the building, plumbing, electrical and gas permits for single-family and duplex homes itself.
A legal suite, permit to final.
Feasibility & zoning
Whether the home qualifies under Burnaby's new bylaw: one suite per primary dwelling, at least 32.52 m², never in a stacked duplex, and no boarding or on-site-client business in the same home.
Design & permits
Suite layout, fire separation and egress planned to Part 9 of the BC Building Code, and the alteration permit applied for online through the City's My Permits Portal.
Asbestos survey & demolition
The materials being disturbed are tested for asbestos first, as WorkSafeBC directs, before any wall or ceiling comes down.
Separation, alarms & sound
The rated separation between suite and home, interconnected smoke alarms and sound insulation between the two, to one of the options Burnaby's suite guide sets out.
Kitchen, bath & systems
The suite kitchen and bathroom, heating and ventilation, with licensed electrical, plumbing and gas trades pulling their own permits once the building permit is issued.
Inspections to final
Trade rough-ins accepted before the framing inspection, and every trade final accepted before the building final, so the suite is legal rather than just finished.
What Burnaby's new bylaw allows.
Burnaby replaced its 1965 zoning bylaw on July 1, 2026. These are the suite rules in the new bylaw, and the permit and rental rules on the City's own pages.
| Rule | What Burnaby requires | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Where | An accessory use to a primary dwelling unit in small-scale multi-unit housing, a rowhouse or a townhouse dwelling; listed in the R1, R2 and A1 districts | Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6-3.1 |
| How many | One per primary dwelling unit, fully contained within it | Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6-3.1 |
| Minimum size | 32.52 m² (350 sq ft) gross floor area | Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 4-3.2.2 |
| Title | Suite and home stay one parcel under one title; no strata or air-space subdivision | Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6-3.1 |
| Not in the same home | Boarding, a child care facility (a home-based one may run in the suite if there is no internal access), or a home occupation with on-site clients | Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6-3.1 |
| Short-term rental | Not in the suite; in the main home only as the owner's principal residence, while the suite has a long-term tenant | Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6-3.3 |
| Permits | Building permit, then plumbing, electrical and gas permits pulled by licensed trades; homeowners may not do the trade work | Secondary Suite information guide |
| If rented | Supplementary utility fees declaration within 30 days of a change; a business licence if the owner doesn't live there | Secondary Suite Program |
Sources: City of Burnaby, Zoning Bylaw No. 14815 (the City's unofficial consolidation; Part 4, section 3.2.2 and Part 6, sections 3.1 and 3.3), Secondary Suite Program, Secondary Suite information guide (revised November 15, 2024), Home Improvement Permits and Residential Trade Permits.
From feasibility to final inspection.
Feasibility
We check the home against the bylaw's suite conditions and the lot's district, and whether any existing suite was ever permitted.
Design & building permit
Suite drawings to Part 9 of the BC Building Code, then the alteration permit application through the City's My Permits Portal, where Burnaby processes it digitally.
Survey, demolition & framing
Asbestos survey of the materials coming out, then demolition, framing and the fire separation between suite and home.
Trade rough-ins
Licensed electrical, plumbing and gas contractors pull their trade permits and get their rough-ins accepted before the framing inspection.
Final inspection
Trade finals accepted, then the building final. If the suite will be rented, the utility fees declaration goes in within 30 days.
What decides a Burnaby suite.
Zoning Bylaw No. 14815 replaced the 1965 bylaw on July 1, 2026. Older City material still circulates: the suite guide dates from November 2024, and the Secondary Suite Program page still lists zones from the former bylaw, so we work from the bylaw text.
The BC Building Code doesn't permit a suite in a duplex where one unit sits on top of the other. Side-by-side and front-to-back duplexes, and rowhouses with a vertical fire separation, can have one.
The City holds a homeowner responsible for unpermitted work on the property, even work done before they owned it, and notes that it is generally not covered by home insurance. An existing suite built without a permit needs one to be legal.
Removing a suite runs through permits too: the City's guide calls for a licensed electrical contractor to remove the range receptacle and breaker, a gas contractor to remove the stove's gas supply, an access door reinstated between suite and home, and final inspections.
No two suites price the same.
We don't publish a flat price for a Burnaby suite, because the basement you start with varies too much for a single number to be honest. These are the factors that move the estimate.
What's there now
An unfinished basement and a previously finished one are different starting points, and older finished space may hide work that has to be opened up.
Separation & alarms
Which of the guide's three fire-separation options fits the house changes how much rated wall and ceiling is needed and how many alarms are interconnected.
Windows & exits
A bedroom without a compliant egress window may need an opening enlarged or a window well added.
Heating & ventilation
A forced-air system shared by suite and home needs duct-type smoke detectors and fire dampers where ducts cross the separation, per the City's guide; separate systems avoid that.
Building & trade permits
A building permit fee based on construction value, plus plumbing, electrical and gas permits for the licensed trades.
Survey & abatement
If the survey finds asbestos in the materials being disturbed, licensed abatement comes before demolition — a separate contractor and a separate line item.
Answers before you ask.
Yes, if the home qualifies. Burnaby's Zoning Bylaw permits a secondary suite as an accessory use to a primary dwelling unit in small-scale multi-unit housing, a rowhouse or a townhouse dwelling: one suite per primary dwelling, fully contained within it. The City's Secondary Suite Program page confirms a suite may go in a basement where the lot is eligible for a single-family home, duplex, multiplex or rowhouse with suites. Sources: City of Burnaby, Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6, section 3.1, and Secondary Suite Program, verified September 2026.
Yes. The City says a suite originally built without a building permit needs one, to make sure it meets building code standards, and its home improvement page classes adding a secondary suite as an alteration that requires a permit. It also holds a homeowner responsible for unpermitted work on the property, even work done before they owned it. Sources: City of Burnaby, Secondary Suite Program and Home Improvement Permits, verified September 2026.
At least 32.52 square metres (350 square feet) of gross floor area, under Part 4 of Burnaby's Zoning Bylaw. The suite must be fully contained within the primary dwelling unit, a primary dwelling can contain only one, and the suite and the home must stay a single parcel under a single title, so the suite can't be split off by strata plan or otherwise. Source: City of Burnaby, Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 4, section 3.2.2, and Part 6, section 3.1, verified September 2026.
In a side-by-side or front-to-back duplex, yes; in a stacked duplex, no. The City explains that the BC Building Code does not permit secondary suites in duplexes where one unit is on top of the other, and that the key requirement is that both units are accessed from ground level. Source: City of Burnaby, Secondary Suite Program, verified September 2026.
The conditions Burnaby's Zoning Bylaw sets for secondary suites don't include living on the property. The City does require a business licence if you rent but don't live on the property, and every owner must file a supplementary utility fees declaration saying whether any part of the home is rented, within 30 days of a change; renting an unregistered suite can bring a $1,000 fine under the City's waterworks and sewer bylaws. Sources: City of Burnaby, Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6, section 3.1, and Secondary Suite Program, verified September 2026.
No. Burnaby's secondary suite guide says homeowners are not permitted to carry out sub-trade work in a dwelling with a secondary suite. After the building permit is issued, licensed electrical, plumbing and gas contractors obtain their own trade permits, and their rough-in work has to be accepted before the framing inspection. Source: City of Burnaby, Secondary Suite information guide (revised November 15, 2024), verified September 2026.
Not in the suite itself. Burnaby's Zoning Bylaw doesn't permit short-term rental in a secondary suite, and allows it in the main home only as a registered owner's principal residence, and only while the suite is rented to a long-term tenant for 30 consecutive days or more. Source: City of Burnaby, Zoning Bylaw No. 14815, Part 6, section 3.3, verified September 2026.
Burnaby's suite guide sets out three options under Part 9 of the BC Building Code: a 45-minute fire-resistance rating for the walls and ceilings between suite and home; 30 minutes if an additional interconnected photoelectric smoke alarm is installed in each unit; or 15 minutes if every smoke alarm in the house is photoelectric and interconnected. It also asks for sound insulation between the two, such as an STC rating of at least 43 or an ASTC rating of at least 40. Bedroom egress windows are the other code item that most often decides a basement layout; the figures are in our answer on egress window sizes. Source: City of Burnaby, Secondary Suite information guide (revised November 15, 2024), verified September 2026.
On our projects, a basement suite takes 3 to 5 months to occupancy, depending mostly on what the basement starts as and on permit review. That is our own clock; the Burnaby suite pages we read give no processing time for suite permits.
Yes. Kyrax Developments Ltd. holds BC Housing Residential Builder Licence #57802, in good standing, as a General Contractor and Developer, and suite work is pulled under permit and inspected the same as any other licensed scope of work. Verify the licence on the BC Housing Licence Registry.
Yes. We have a page for basement suites in Langley, where the Township and the City set different rules, and one for basement renovations in Vancouver, which builds to its own Building By-law.
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