Lot Scorecard2026Tiny, Tay, Midland, Wasaga, Collingwood

Is My Lot Buildable? 18-Question Scorecard

Most vacant lots around Georgian Bay can be built on, but the ones that cannot almost always fail on one of six things: year-round access, water, room for a septic bed, environmental mapping, zoning, or cost drivers like rock, slope and fill. Answer the 18 questions below and you get a green, amber or red result, with a link to the guide that explains every problem item.

Updated October 2026 · Georgian Bay Siteworks, the site work division of ICFHome.ca

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Score your lot

Is this lot buildable? Scorecard

Answer what you know. “Not sure” is an honest answer and counts as amber, because an unknown is a cost you have not priced yet. Your score updates as you go.

Access

1. Does the lot front on a year-round, township-maintained road?
2. Can you get an entrance permit where you want the driveway (clear sight lines, at least 3 m from the property line)?
3. Can a loaded concrete truck reach the house site (no weak bridge, steep hill or soft lane)?

Services

4. Is there a hydro pole on your side of the road, close to the lot?
5. Do the neighbours have working drilled wells, or do well records nearby show good water?

Septic

6. Is there room for a septic tank and bed that meets setbacks (15 m from the lake, 3 m from property lines, 5 m from the house, and the well distances)?
7. Is the soil sand or sandy loam rather than heavy clay?
8. Is bedrock well below the surface where the house and septic would go?
9. Does the ground stay dry in spring, with no standing water or high water table?

Environment

10. Is the lot clear of wetland, floodplain and conservation authority regulated area mapping?
11. If the lot is on the water, can the house meet the shoreline setback in the zoning by-law? (Answer Yes if it is not waterfront.)
12. Is any woodland on the lot under 1 ha, or will clearing be tied to a building permit?

Legal

13. Does the zoning allow a single detached house on this lot?
14. Is there a recent survey, with the corner bars found?
15. Is the lot free of easements or rights-of-way where the house, septic or driveway would go?

Cost drivers

16. Is the building area fairly flat, roughly less than a 1 m drop across the house footprint?
17. Is the lot open or lightly treed where the house, septic and driveway will go?
18. Can the house sit at a sensible height without trucking in a lot of fill?

How we calculate

  1. Every question is worded so that Yes is the good answer. Yes = 2 points, Not sure = 1, No = 0, out of 36. Unanswered questions count as Not sure.
  2. Six questions are deal-breakers if the answer is No: year-round road, water, room for the septic bed with setbacks, environmental mapping, shoreline setback and zoning. Any one of them answered No makes the result red, whatever the total.
  3. The other twelve are cost drivers. A No on any of them, or any Not sure, makes the result amber: buildable, but with work and money to sort out before you commit.
  4. Green means every answer is Yes. It does not mean you have a permit. It means nothing on this list is waving a red flag.
  5. This is a screening tool, not a site evaluation. Septic design goes through a qualified designer, and the township, the conservation authority where there is one, and the County have the final word.
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Red means stop and find out, not walk away

A red result means at least one deal-breaker answer is No. Sometimes that really is the end of it: a lot that is mostly provincially significant wetland, or one where the zoning does not allow a house. Other times it is a problem with a known fix and a price tag, like a septic bed that fits once the house shifts over, or a shared lane that just needs a proper right-of-way agreement. Here is a printable lot checklist to take with you.

The point is to find out before you sign, not after. A conditional offer with a few weeks to check these items costs you nothing. Finding out after closing can cost you the lot.

Builder truth: the cheapest lot on the listing is often cheap for a reason, and the reason is usually under the ground or on a map at the conservation authority.

The six things that actually stop a build

Access

No year-round road frontage can stop a building permit. Private lanes need agreements on who ploughs and who pays. See private and shared cottage lanes.

Water

No municipal water means your well is your water. Check neighbouring well records before you buy. See vacant lot costs.

Septic

The bed has to fit with its clearances: 15 m from the lake, 3 m from property lines, 5 m from the house, and 15-30 m from wells. See septic setbacks.

Environment

Wetland, floodplain and shoreline mapping can limit where the house goes. Wasaga, Collingwood and Springwater are NVCA territory; Tiny has no conservation authority. See NVCA permits.

Zoning

Zoning sets whether a house is allowed and how far it sits from lot lines and water. Call the township planning department with the roll number.

Cost drivers

Rock, slope, heavy trees and wet ground rarely stop a build, but they can add tens of thousands. See building on rock and wet lots.

How to check these before you buy

  1. Ask the township for the zoning, any open permits and the septic records on file. In Tiny, a records search is $112 with a letter or $32 without.
  2. Look up the well records for neighbouring properties through the province. Depth and yield tell you a lot about what you will hit.
  3. Check the conservation authority’s regulated area mapping, if your town has one.
  4. Dig test holes where the bed would go. A septic designer needs soil information anyway, and a hole tells you about rock and water table in ten minutes. Septic design and permit packages go through SepticReplacement.ca.
  5. Walk the lot with someone who builds on lots for a living. We look at the road, the trees, the slope and where the trucks will go, then tell you what order the site work happens in. See raw land to footings.

For a longer buyer’s checklist on purchase terms, financing and the full home build, use the Is this lot buildable? checklist on BuildersOntario.

Book a site walk before you sign

We walk the lot, look at access, trees, slope and where the septic can go, and tell you plainly what it will take to get to footings.

Book a Site WalkSite Preparation

Related guides

Site preparation before buildingRaw land to footings: site work orderVacant lot costs: hydro, well, septic, drivewayIs this lot buildable? checklistLot development cost calculator

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know if a vacant lot is buildable in Ontario?

Check six things before you buy: year-round road access, a water source, room for a septic bed with its setbacks, environmental mapping such as wetland or floodplain, zoning that allows a house, and cost drivers like rock, slope and fill.

What makes a lot unbuildable?

The usual deal-breakers are zoning that does not allow a dwelling, no year-round road frontage, no room for a septic system with the required clearances, or most of the lot sitting in a regulated wetland or floodplain.

Does a red score mean I should not buy the lot?

No. It means at least one deal-breaker needs an answer before you commit. Some have a fix and a price; some do not. Make your offer conditional so you have time to find out.

How much room does a septic bed need?

It depends on the house size and soil, but the bed must stay 15 m from a lake, 3 m from property lines, 5 m from the house and 15-30 m from wells. A septic designer works out the size; design goes through SepticReplacement.ca.

Does Tiny Township have a conservation authority?

No. Tiny Township has no conservation authority. Wasaga Beach, Collingwood and Springwater are covered by the NVCA, which issues permits for work in regulated areas.

Will you walk a lot before I buy it?

Yes. Book a site walk and we will look at access, trees, slope, drainage and where the septic can go, and tell you what the site work will involve.