Multifamily and Duplex Properties for Sale in Brisbane: Zoning and Rent Rules

What multifamily in Brisbane looks like

Brisbane’s housing is concentrated in the small central neighborhoods around downtown and on the hillsides above, with a mix of single-family homes, duplexes and small apartment buildings on narrow lots, units above storefronts on Visitacion and San Bruno Avenues, and a mobile home park district. Large apartment complexes are rare today, but that could change: the city’s Baylands Specific Plan is the main vehicle for meeting its Housing Element targets. For two to four units, read financing 2-4 unit properties; for five or more, see apartment building loans.

Where the zoning allows it

Brisbane’s Title 17 sets the residential districts.

R-3. Under Chapter 17.10, R-3 permits multiple-family, duplex and single-family dwellings, dwelling groups, ADUs and JADUs.

• Density. One unit per 1,500 square feet of lot, so a lot of 4,950 square feet is conforming for three units. Minimum lot size is 5,000 square feet, with exceptions for three-unit projects on existing legal lots.
• Floor area. FAR is 1.0 for three to seven units and 1.25 for eight to ten units, but drops back to 0.72 at eleven units or more, the same as for a duplex.
• Height. 36 feet, or 20 feet within 15 feet of the front lot line.
• Coverage. 60%, with an exception for three- to ten-unit projects that need more to reach their FAR.

The chapter was last amended by Ordinance 695 on April 17, 2025, and since 2022 projects need housing development and design permits.

Two-unit overlay (SB 9). Chapter 17.05, adopted by Ordinance 693 on December 5, 2024, implements the state’s two-unit and lot split laws in R-1 and the mapped part of R-BA.

• Units. Up to four units per lot, combining primary units with ADUs and JADUs.
• Lot splits. Ministerial splits create no more than two lots, each at least 1,200 square feet and 40% of the original.
• Owner occupancy. A split requires an owner affidavit to live in one unit for three years.
• Rental limits. Units on split lots cannot be rented for 30 days or less.
• Exclusions. Lots with Ellis Act withdrawals in the past 15 years, historic properties, and units occupied by tenants within the last three years.

See our SB 9 lot split guide and ADU investment guide; ADU rules are in Chapter 17.43, and inclusionary rules in Chapter 17.31.

Rent rules: state law only

The Attorney General’s rent cap page, updated July 16, 2026, places San Mateo County in the San Francisco Area, allowing covered units up to 8.8% for increases from August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027, and lists East Palo Alto as the only San Mateo County city with local rent stabilization. Brisbane rentals follow AB 1482’s cap and just-cause rules for covered units. Mobile home space rents in the R-MHP district follow the state Mobilehome Residency Law; we did not find a local space rent ordinance. See our AB 1482 guide and just cause eviction guide.

Brisbane rental property rules

• Short-term rentals. Chapter 17.35, adopted by Ordinance 655 in September 2020, allows only hosted stays in legal single-family homes. The owner must live there at least 275 days a year, and no more than two rooms may be rented at once. Short-term rentals are barred in ADUs and on any property with an ADU created on or after April 1, 2017. Permits require $500,000 liability insurance and neighbor notice, and three violations in a year bring revocation and a one-year bar.
• Housing Element status. The city’s FAQ says HCD temporarily decertified Brisbane’s Housing Element after the May 18, 2026 deadline to adopt the Baylands Specific Plan passed. Until recertification, qualifying housing projects may use the Builder’s Remedy. The city expected Council action starting in early September 2026; we did not confirm adoption.
• Transfer tax. The County’s documentary transfer tax is $0.55 per $500. Brisbane’s Chapter 3.16 sets a $0.275 city tax under the standard state law, which typically shares the County rate; confirm in escrow.

Hillsides, older buildings and the Baylands

Brisbane’s residential lots are often small and steep, which is why R-3 includes a front height step-down and garage and downslope exceptions. Older wood-frame buildings warrant a seismic retrofit review, and buildings of three or more units with elevated decks need SB 721 balcony inspections. For the Baylands, the city’s specific plan page posts the staff-recommended 2026 draft and a Final EIR published May 14, 2026; housing there depends on adoption, remediation and landfill closure approvals that the FAQ describes.

Underwriting a Brisbane multifamily purchase

1. Confirm the district and run the 1,500-square-foot-per-unit test for R-3 lots.
2. Check the FAR tier; adding an eleventh unit drops the allowed FAR to 0.72.
3. Classify units under AB 1482 and model increases at or below 8.8% for covered units.
4. Underwrite long-term rents; short-term rentals are hosted-only and barred where an ADU was added after April 2017.
5. Collect leases and estoppel certificates.
6. Rebuild expenses with reassessed taxes, slope-related maintenance and SB 721 costs in our rental property analysis.

Questions people ask

Sources & notes

1. Brisbane Chapter 17.10, R-3 (GoCodebook)
2. Brisbane Chapter 17.05, Two-Unit Overlay
3. Brisbane Chapter 17.14, NCRO districts
4. Brisbane Chapter 17.35, Short Term Residential Rentals
5. Brisbane Chapter 3.16, Real Property Transfer Tax
6. City of Brisbane, Housing Element decertification FAQ
7. City of Brisbane, 2026 Baylands Specific Plan
8. San Mateo County Clerk-Recorder, documentary transfer tax
9. California Attorney General, rent caps

Note: We did not review the R-2, R-MHP, R-BA, ADU (17.43) or inclusionary (17.31) chapters, or the number of housing units the Baylands plan proposes.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.

Related: Brisbane real estate guide · Commercial real estate in Brisbane · Multifamily investing guide · Investor services