---
title: "Second-Storey Additions in Pickering: Height and Fees"
url: "https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/second-storey-additions/pickering"
description: "Second storeys in Pickering as of October 2026: the 9.0 m and 12.0 m height limits by zone, how height is measured, which houses suit and what the City charges."
publisher: "Jarvis Contracting"
dateModified: "2026-11-02"
---
# Second-storey additions in Pickering

**How tall can I build a second storey on my Pickering house?**

In Pickering, as of October 2026, houses can reach 9.0 m in the R1D and R1E zones and in the six Established Neighbourhood Precincts, and 12.0 m in the R1A, R1B, R1C and R1F to R1I zones under By-law 8149/24, measured from average grade to the midpoint of a pitched roof. Going higher takes a minor variance from the Committee of Adjustment ($2,500 since 1 July 2026), and an engineer has to confirm the existing footings and walls can carry the new floor. (Checked 2026-10-13.)

## Key takeaways

- Pickering's maximum house height is 9.0 m in the R1D and R1E zones and 12.0 m in the R1A, R1B, R1C and R1F to R1I zones ([zone tables in By-law 8149/24](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=258309&dbid=1&repo=PICKERING)).
- Inside Pickering's Established Neighbourhood Precincts the limit is 9.0 m whatever the zone, and rooftop mechanical structures count toward it ([By-law 8149/24, s. 4.10](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=258309&dbid=1&repo=PICKERING)).
- Pickering takes a sloped roof's height at the mean level between its eaves and its ridge, and a flat roof's at the top of the roof or parapet ([By-law 8149/24, s. 3](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=258309&dbid=1&repo=PICKERING)).
- About 71% of Pickering's occupied homes in 2021 were built between 1961 and 2000, and only 22.5% since 2001 ([Statistics Canada, 2021 Census](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&DGUIDlist=2021A00053518001)).
- Pickering's 2026 fee schedule has no line written for additions: the Chief Building Official decides the category, and residential buildings are $20.12 per m2 of gross floor area from 1 July 2026 ([Pickering 2026 user fees](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=261891&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING), [Building By-law 8057/23](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=253333&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING)).

## Permits for this work in Pickering

| Item | What applies | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where to apply | Online Application Portal (mycity.pickering.ca) | [www.pickering.ca](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/building-and-renovating/building-permits/) | 2026-10-05 |
| Addition permit fee | No separate addition line in the July 2026 fees; the Chief Building Official sets the building category and floor area (Building By-law 8057/23 s.15(3)). Residential buildings are $20.12 per m2 of gross floor area | [corporate.pickering.ca](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=253333&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING) | 2026-10-06 |
| Conservation authority (1) | Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) | [www.pickering.ca](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/building-and-renovating/building-permits/) | 2026-10-05 |
| Conservation authority (2) | Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority (CLOCA) | [www.pickering.ca](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/building-and-renovating/building-permits/) | 2026-10-05 |
| Zoning by-law | City-wide Consolidated Zoning By-law 8149/24 (enacted December 16, 2024); supersedes 2511, 2520, 3036, 3037 and repeals 7364/14 (Seaton) and 7553/17 (City Centre) | [corporate.pickering.ca](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=258309&dbid=1&repo=PICKERING) | 2026-10-05 |
| Minor variance (Committee of Adjustment) fee | $2,500 flat | [corporate.pickering.ca](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=261891&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING) | 2026-10-05 |

Fees and rules as published by Pickering and the agencies linked, checked 6 October 2026. Confirm with the building department before you apply.

## The nearest finished jobs

- [West Lynde: a Whitby bungalow made two storeys in 4.5 months](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/projects/west-lynde): Whitby, 13 km away, 2023. New second storey of about 800 sq ft with two bedrooms, a walk-in closet and a bathroom; new kitchen, two new bathrooms, floors, stairs and trim below.
- [Greenwood: a new top storey and rear extension in Toronto](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/projects/greenwood): Toronto, 27 km away, 2026. Top floor replaced with a new storey, rear extension, basement enlarged, full interior design and build.

## What it costs

| Work | Range (CAD) | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Second-storey addition, 600 to 1,200 sq ft | 300000 to 800000 | GTA, 2026. The new floor; a kitchen or bathrooms below add to it. Before 13% HST. | Our 2026 price |

Our 2026 ranges, not quotes: every job is priced after a site visit.

What moves the number:
- Whether the foundation and walls can carry the new floor, or need reinforcing
- A full storey or a partial one
- Whether the main floor is redone at the same time
- The roof design and how it meets what's left
- Engineering, drawings and the permit
- Finish level, and 13% HST on top

## Is my Pickering house in a 9 m zone or a 12 m zone?

Look up your zone first, then the overlay. [By-law 8149/24](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=258309&dbid=1&repo=PICKERING) gives R1D and R1E lots 9.0 m and most other detached zones 12.0 m. But if Schedule 1 puts you in the Dunbarton, Highbush, Liverpool, Rosebank, Rougemount or Woodlands precinct, you're at 9.0 m regardless. There's no angular plane on the detached zones to slope the new wall back; the by-law uses one only where apartment buildings back onto low-density lots.

Nine metres goes further than it sounds on a pitched roof. Height runs from average grade to halfway between eaves and ridge. Eaves at 6.0 m and a ridge at 11.0 m measure 8.5 m, our arithmetic, so a two-storey house with a moderate gable can fit. A flat roof is measured to the top of the parapet, and in the precincts a rooftop mechanical box counts too.

All of Whitevale is a [Heritage Conservation District](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/planning-and-development/heritage-planning/) (By-law 4074/92, passed 7 June 1993). The [Ontario Heritage Act](https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90o18) requires a heritage permit there for any exterior alteration, which a new storey always is.

## Which Pickering houses suit a second storey?

Pickering's stock is middle-aged. The [2021 Census](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&DGUIDlist=2021A00053518001) counted 8,350 occupied homes built from 1961 to 1980 and 15,495 from 1981 to 2000. The census can't tell you which of those are one storey or which streets they're on, so we judge each house on site.

What we look at is what's under it. A one-storey house had its footings, foundation walls and floor framing sized for one storey and a roof. An engineer checks whether they can take a second floor's weight, where the new point loads land, and whether a steel beam or new posts on new footings in the basement are needed. That review comes before drawings, because it can change the plan or kill it.

If you're weighing a move instead, fewer new detached houses are coming. Pickering's own [activity reports](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/building-and-renovating/building-activity-reports/) show permits for 554 semi and detached units in 2024, 285 in 2025 and 303 to the end of August 2026; the City revises year-end figures in later reports.

## Where do we live, and what will the City charge?

Plan to move out for a full second storey. With the roof off, rain and cold get in until the new storey is framed and sheathed, and services get shut off at times while trades work. Book the rental before the permit lands, not after.

The nearest second storey we can point you to is [West Lynde](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/projects/west-lynde), in Whitby, about 13 km east of central Pickering: a bungalow taken to two storeys in about 4.5 months on site. [Greenwood](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/projects/greenwood), roughly 27 km west in Toronto, got a new top storey and a rear extension in 10 months including design and permits.

Because Pickering's schedule has no addition line, the Chief Building Official decides which category your storey falls in under [Building By-law 8057/23](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=253333&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING). The rate for residential buildings is $20.12 per m2 of gross floor area, so a 75 m2 storey would be about $1,509 if that line applies (our arithmetic); get the City's number before you budget. A revision to a house permit costs $180, and expect one if the engineer moves a beam mid-job. The storey itself, at 600 to 1,200 sq ft, runs $300,000 to $800,000 in our 2026 range, before HST.

## How the job runs in Pickering

1. **Meet James.** James meets you at the house, hears what you want and gives you a rough estimate on the spot. The first estimate is free.
2. **Proposal and contract.** If the estimate works for you, James prepares a detailed proposal. The whole project is priced, and the contract signed with a 10% deposit, before any design work begins.
3. **Design onboarding.** Our designer sends you an onboarding email with some homework: your style, how your family uses the house, and what you need and want. You share Pinterest boards, then go through them together on a Zoom call: what you like in the pictures, and what you don't.
4. **Measure and floor plans.** The designer measures the house and draws the floor plan: which walls come out, where the stairs land, how new space joins the old. We go through it with you until it's confirmed.
5. **Drawings and 3D rendering.** With the plan confirmed, she draws the elevations and the millwork, then puts it all into a 3D rendering, so you see the rooms before anyone orders a cabinet.
6. **Finishes presentation.** We don't take you round the stores: there are too many options. Using what she learned in onboarding, the designer narrows the tile, flooring, quartz, plumbing fixtures and the rest to a few choices that suit your style, collects the samples and presents them to you in our office. If a selection changes the price, the change goes through a change order you sign.
7. **Permits and engineering.** We prepare the permit drawings, bring in the structural engineer wherever a beam or a load changes, and apply to the municipality. If the plan changes after the permit is issued, we file the amendment. In Pickering, applications go through the town's online permit portal.
8. **Construction.** Our crew and trades build it, with one point of contact from demolition to the last coat of paint. Our site supervisors write a job log every day, which you can follow in our online app. When we open a wall and find a problem, you hear about it, and what it costs, before we fix it.
9. **Inspections.** The municipal building inspector checks the work at each stage the permit sets, before it gets covered up. Inspections are booked with Pickering's building department.
10. **Handover.** We walk the finished house with you and put right anything that isn't. On one job a stair stain didn't match the new floor, so we refinished the stairs.

## Credentials

- Written warranty: 1 year workmanship and materials, 2 years plumbing, heating, electrical and building envelope, 7 years structural
- BBB Accredited Business: Accredited by the Better Business Bureau since November 2025 (https://www.bbb.org/ca/on/ajax/profile/general-contractor/jarvis-contracting-inc-0107-1416595)
- Durham Region Home Builders' Association: Member, Renovators (https://www.drhba.com/Sys/PublicProfile/99587295/5125036)
- RenoMark: RenoMark renovator, through the DRHBA (https://renomark.ca/find-a-renovator/)

## Questions

### Does Pickering measure house height to the peak of the roof?

Not on a pitched roof. Pickering's Zoning By-law 8149/24 measures gabled, hip and gambrel roofs from average grade to the mean level between eaves and ridge, and a mansard roof to its deck line. A flat roof is measured to the highest point of the roof surface or parapet.

### Can I add a second storey to a house in the Whitevale Heritage Conservation District?

You need a heritage permit from the City of Pickering first. Whitevale has been a Heritage Conservation District since By-law 4074/92 passed on 7 June 1993, and the Ontario Heritage Act requires a permit to alter any exterior part of a property there. Designated homes can also get a 20% rebate on the municipal and education property tax.

### What does Pickering charge for a second-storey building permit?

As of October 2026, Pickering's fee schedule has no line written for additions, so the Chief Building Official sets the category for each application; the residential building rate is $20.12 per m2 of gross floor area from 1 July 2026. Call Building Services at 905.420.4631 before you budget. The schedule does list $180 for a revision to a house permit, and the minimum permit fee is also $180.

### Do I need a variance to go above 9 m on an R1D lot in Pickering?

Yes. Height over the zone's limit needs a minor variance, and Pickering's Committee of Adjustment names an increase in permitted building height as a typical request. A single residential variance costs $2,500 and several cost $3,000, as of 1 July 2026.

## Sources

1. [City of Pickering, Zoning By-law 8149/24 (Tables 6.4 and 6.5, s. 3 and s. 4.10)](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=258309&dbid=1&repo=PICKERING)
2. [Statistics Canada, 2021 Census Profile, Pickering](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&DGUIDlist=2021A00053518001)
3. [City of Pickering, 2026 user fees (effective 1 July 2026)](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=261891&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING)
4. [City of Pickering, Building By-law 8057/23](https://corporate.pickering.ca/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=253333&dbid=0&repo=PICKERING)
5. [City of Pickering, Heritage planning](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/planning-and-development/heritage-planning/)
6. [City of Pickering, Building permit activity report, August 2026](https://media-002-ca.cdn.govstack.com/pickeringca-009-ca/media/yiyd2vbn/2026-august-bp-activity-acc.pdf)
7. [Ontario Heritage Act](https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90o18)
8. [activity reports](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/building-and-renovating/building-activity-reports/)
9. [City of Pickering: Building permits](https://www.pickering.ca/business-building-development/building-and-renovating/building-permits/)

## How this page was made

Written by Jarvis Contracting. Municipal facts checked 2026-10-06. Fact-checked by Space & Story on 2026-10-13.

## Keep reading

- [Second-storey additions: all areas](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/second-storey-additions)
- [Building in Pickering](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/areas/pickering)
- [Second-storey additions in Ajax](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/second-storey-additions/ajax) (6 km away)
- [Second-storey additions in Whitby](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/second-storey-additions/whitby) (13 km away)
- [Second-storey additions in Oshawa](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/second-storey-additions/oshawa) (19 km away)
- [Home additions in Pickering](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/home-additions/pickering)
- [How much does a home addition cost in Ontario in 2026?](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/guides/home-addition-cost-ontario)
- [How much does a second-storey addition cost in Ontario in 2026?](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/guides/second-storey-addition-cost-ontario)
- [Is it cheaper to build up or out? 2026 Ontario costs](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/guides/build-up-or-out)
- [Ontario HST relief for owner-built homes and big renovations, 2026](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/guides/ontario-hst-relief-substantial-renovation)
- [Should we add on or move? Costs compared for 2026](https://www.jarviscontracting.ca/guides/renovate-or-move)