Legal basement suites in Edmonton, zoning checked first

We check your zone before design starts. Zoning Bylaw 20001, in force since January 1, 2024, counts secondary suites as part of the Residential use, which is permitted in both the RS and RSF zones (Zoning Bylaw 20001). Most houses in older neighbourhoods, generally inside Anthony Henday Drive, are zoned RS. RSF is the flexible small-scale zone used in places such as new neighbourhoods.

The limits are few. A house can have one secondary suite, and suites are not allowed in apartments, supportive housing or lodging houses. The suite must have less floor area than the main home, and it cannot be split off by condominium conversion or subdivision, so it stays part of your property and adds a rentable unit rather than a second title. Edmonton has also removed minimum on-site parking requirements from its Zoning Bylaw.

We build secondary suites inside the house, permitted and inspected. If you want finished space without a second unit, that is our basement development work.

We start by confirming the zone and the one-suite limit, measuring ceiling heights under the ducts and beams, and finding a route for a separate entrance that does not pass through the main home, an attached garage or a service room such as the furnace room.

Then we lay the suite out around its exits, bedroom windows, the separation between units and the mechanical room. Within 48 hours of the visit you get a fixed-price quote.

We apply for the development and building permits. In 2026 the City charges $415 for a suite development permit, and the building permit fee runs from $120 to $2,100 by construction value, plus a 4% safety codes fee. From April to June 2026, regular home improvement permits, suites included, took 43 days on average against a 40-day target (City processing times).

A new side door or a larger bedroom window means cutting the foundation wall. The City says openings in foundation walls may need engineer-stamped drawings, and we bring in an engineer when they do.

We frame the walls, then run the plumbing, electrical and ventilation rough-ins. The City inspects the rough-ins, and a ready-to-cover inspection comes before any drywall goes on.

We give the suite its own heating and ventilation, as Alberta's building code requires: a separate furnace with its own ductwork, or baseboard or hydronic heat with its own ventilation, such as an HRV. None of it is shared with the main home, since the City's design guide says the suite's system may not be interconnected or ducted with the rest of the house.

We hang the drywall as a continuous smoke-tight barrier between the units, with sound insulation or a rated assembly at the shared walls and ceiling. Smoke alarms are hardwired and interconnected, and any carbon monoxide alarms are interconnected too. Then the kitchen, bathroom and flooring.

The electrical final, the HVAC final and the secondary suite final building inspection close out the permits. You keep the permit records and our invoices, which are part of what CMHC Refinance and the tax credit ask for.

If your basement already has a kitchen and its own door but no permits, it needs them: the City requires permits for every secondary suite. Our suite requirements guide covers how to make an existing suite legal. We start with our own walk-through against the City's design guide: the separation between units, alarm wiring, bedroom windows, ceiling heights, exits, heating and ventilation.

Then we price the gap, apply for the permits and do the work. Because the City inspects rough-ins before walls are covered, some finished drywall may have to come off so the inspector can see the wiring and plumbing.

Planning to rent it out? Insurance Bureau of Canada advises telling your insurer before you do. The City's design guide also notes that Alberta Health Services rules set requirements for actionable radon levels in rental premises.