Home/Modular Homes by City/East Hawkesbury
Serving East Hawkesbury & Prescott-Russell
Modular Homes & Garden Suites in East Hawkesbury, Ontario
Factory-direct modular homes and second dwellings for the Township of East Hawkesbury — St-Eugène, Chute-à-Blondeau and Sainte-Anne-de-Prescott, in the far northeast corner of Ontario. East Hawkesbury permits a genuine detached second dwelling as-of-right wherever a house is permitted. But it is one of the very few municipalities in the province that sets a MINIMUM size as well as a maximum, and that single rule decides which homes can legally be built here — so it is worth reading before you shop.
What you can build in East Hawkesbury
Full modular homes — from $175,696. 29 models from 560 to 1,405 sq ft, 1–3 bedrooms — factory-built to the Ontario Building Code and set on a permanent foundation (a real, permanent house, not a “trailer”).
Backyard suites (ADUs) — from $96,244. 7 compact models built for garden-suite and in-law-suite use, sized to fit what East Hawkesbury's by-law allows.
All homes are CSA-certified (A277 modular / Z240MH manufactured), finished in the factory, and delivered ready for foundation and hook-up. What's the difference between modular, manufactured, and mobile? →
Find your backyard suite — 3 quick questions
We'll narrow the models that fit a typical East Hawkesbury backyard allowance to the ones that fit your life. No email needed.
1 · Who's it for?
2 · What layout?
3 · What size feels right? (East Hawkesbury lots typically allow up to up to 861 sq ft)
Important: East Hawkesbury sets a MINIMUM floor area of 45 m² (484 sq ft) as well as a maximum, so a compact backyard studio is too SMALL to be legal here. Your window is roughly 484–861 sq ft in most zones, or 484–1,022 sq ft in the Rural and Agriculture zones — and the unit can never exceed 50% of your house. That points to a small home rather than a garden suite. Check your address for the exact figure. Your exact lot may allow more or less — get the real number for your address in seconds.
Check your exact East Hawkesbury address →Can you put a garden suite (ADU) in your East Hawkesbury backyard?
Often, yes — East Hawkesbury permits a detached Additional Residential Unit on most serviced residential lots. The specifics, from Township of East Hawkesbury Zoning By-law No. 2021-22 §4.8 (Second Dwelling Unit and Second Dwelling):
| Max size | The lesser of 50% of your house and 95 m² (≈1,022 sq ft) in the Rural and Agriculture Type 1 zones, or 80 m² (≈861 sq ft) in every other zone |
|---|---|
| Minimum size | 45 m² (≈484 sq ft) — unusual, and it rules out compact studio-sized suites entirely |
| What you can build | A "second dwelling" — a detached accessory building containing a full independent unit. You may also have a second unit inside the house, so three units on a lot is possible |
| Max height | 5 m (≈16 ft) for a new detached second dwelling — effectively single storey, well below the 11 m the zones otherwise allow |
| Distance limit | It must sit LESS than 12 m (≈39 ft) from the principal dwelling, and share the same driveway entrance |
| Setbacks | The principal dwelling standards for your zone apply. Rear yard is a consistent 8 m (≈26 ft); interior side yard is 2 m in Residential Type 1 and 2, 3 m in Limited Services Residential and Rural, and 6 m in the Agriculture zones |
| Where allowed | Anywhere a single, semi-detached or townhouse dwelling is permitted — R1, R2, Limited Services Residential, Village Core, Rural and the Agriculture zones — and also where an existing house is legal non-conforming |
| Parking | 1 additional space, on top of what the house already requires |
| Servicing | There is no municipal drinking water anywhere in the Township. The second unit must connect to the SAME well and septic as the house, and you need septic approval plus proof of adequate well water before a permit |
| Conservation | None — East Hawkesbury is outside every conservation authority. Hazards are handled by the Township's own Flood Plain and Unstable Slope overlays, and no building or septic is permitted in the Ottawa River flood plain |
Getting your building permit in East Hawkesbury
An eligible lot still needs a building permit before anything is delivered. Here's how East Hawkesbury's process actually works — verified against the East Hawkesbury building department's own pages.
How do you apply for an ADU building permit in East Hawkesbury?
Through No online portal — paper or PDF application. East Hawkesbury does not use Cloudpermit or any other online permit portal. The Township publishes fillable PDF forms; applications go to the Chief Building Official by email or in person at 5151 County Road 14, St-Eugene. East Hawkesbury's building-permit page ↗
- Confirm your zone and check the size window first — a second dwelling here must be at least 45 m² (484 sq ft) and no more than 50% of your house, to a maximum of 95 m² in the Rural and Agriculture Type 1 zones or 80 m² elsewhere
- Check your zoning schedule for the Flood Plain and Unstable Slope overlays — no building and no septic is permitted in the Ottawa River flood plain
- Apply to South Nation Conservation for the septic permit FIRST — SNC approves it and submits it to the Township on your behalf
- Demonstrate to the Township that your well can supply enough water for the additional unit
- Prepare two copies of drawings and two copies of the site plan, each carrying the designer's BCIN number
- Submit the building permit application to the Chief Building Official with the fees, the performance deposit and the education development charge
- Obtain an entrance permit if a new or altered driveway is involved, and order the civic address post
- Book inspections at each stage as construction proceeds
What does a East Hawkesbury ADU permit application need?
- Building permit application form
- Tarion / New Home Warranties declaration
- Two copies of construction drawings, each showing the designer's BCIN number
- Two copies of a site plan referenced to an up-to-date survey, showing lot dimensions, setbacks, grades and any easements or municipal services
- Approved septic permit from South Nation Conservation
- Evidence that the well can serve the additional dwelling unit
- Energy Efficiency Design Summary
- Mechanical Ventilation design form
- Entrance permit where a driveway is created or altered
- Minimum Distance Separation calculation where livestock facilities are nearby
- Possibly an Ontario Land Surveyor floodplain contour survey and an engineer's soils report
How much does an ADU building permit cost in East Hawkesbury?
Estimates only, from Schedule "A" to Building By-law 2024-01 and Fees and Charges By-law 2023-57. The permit fee is calculated as a Service Index rate multiplied by floor area in m². Confirm current figures with the Chief Building Official before budgeting.
| Building permit — Group C residential | $6.05 per m² of first storey (plus $2.29/m² for a basement and $4.17/m² for any additional storey), with a $400 minimum for Group C. A 45–95 m² second dwelling generally lands at the $400 minimum up to roughly $575 |
|---|---|
| Administration fee | $75 on every building permit, in addition to the permit fee |
| Performance deposit | $1,000 for construction of a dwelling unit under $500,000 — refundable, and returned in full if the application is withdrawn or refused or the project never starts |
| Plumbing | $10 per fixture |
| Septic — South Nation Conservation | $859 for a conventional Class 4 system in 2026, or $73 to $193 to review an existing system. SNC issues this permit, not the Township, and it must be approved before the building permit |
| Entrance permit and civic address | $200 entrance permit (2026) plus a $2,000 refundable security where a driveway is created or altered, and $162.20 including HST for the civic address post |
Neither the Township of East Hawkesbury nor the United Counties of Prescott and Russell has a development charge by-law, so no municipal or county development charges apply. An education development charge does: the Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario levies $898 per dwelling unit and names East Hawkesbury in its coverage area. Whether a DETACHED second dwelling qualifies for that by-law's additional-unit exemption is genuinely unclear — the exemption is written around units "contained within" an existing dwelling — so confirm it with the Chief Building Official or the board before you budget.
How long does an ADU building permit take in East Hawkesbury?
Ontario's Building Code requires a decision on a complete house-class application within 10 business days. The Township does not publish a review timeline. The Ontario Building Code's 10-business-day period for a house-class permit applies as the statutory default once the application is complete. Note that South Nation Conservation's own 10-business-day standard applies to the SEPTIC permit, which is a separate step that has to finish first.
Worth knowing before you apply
- There is no online portal — no Cloudpermit, no e-permitting. The Township publishes fillable PDFs and applications go to the Chief Building Official directly.
- The septic permit is issued by South Nation Conservation, not the Township and not the health unit, and it has to be approved BEFORE the building permit. SNC submits the approved permit to the Township for you.
- A second dwelling here must be at least 45 m² (484 sq ft). That minimum is unusual and it rules out compact studio-sized units — the smallest legal second dwelling is roughly the size of a small one-bedroom home.
- The new unit has to connect to the same well and septic system as the house, and you must show the well can supply both before a permit is issued. A separate system is not an option.
- Two complete sets of drawings are required, and every design document must carry the designer's BCIN number.
- Budget for the $898 education development charge — the Township's own checklist confirms education charges apply to new dwellings, even though no municipal or county development charge exists.
Fees and timelines are estimates from East Hawkesbury's published schedules, verified July 30, 2026. Rates and processes change — always confirm current requirements with the building department before you apply.
Grants & financing in East Hawkesbury
See every program → Ontario ADU Grants Directory
A modular or prefab home on a permanent foundation is financed like any house. CMHC Prefab Plus allows an insured mortgage with as little as 5% down on the first $500,000, with construction funds released in stages. How modular home financing works →
Thinking of the suite as a rental? Run the numbers →
East Hawkesbury modular homes — FAQ
Can you build a detached second dwelling in East Hawkesbury?
Yes. Section 4.8 of Zoning By-law 2021-22 permits a "second dwelling" — a detached accessory building containing a complete independent unit — as-of-right on any lot where a single, semi-detached or townhouse dwelling is permitted, and even where an existing house is a legal non-conforming use. You can also have a second unit inside the house at the same time, so three units on one lot is possible.
How big can a second dwelling be in East Hawkesbury?
It cannot exceed 50% of the floor area of your house, and it is separately capped at 95 m² (about 1,022 sq ft) in the Rural and Agriculture Type 1 zones or 80 m² (about 861 sq ft) everywhere else — whichever is smaller. Unusually, there is also a MINIMUM of 45 m² (about 484 sq ft), so a small studio-sized suite does not qualify. On a 1,400 sq ft house the 50% test would cap you at 700 sq ft.
Do I need a conservation authority permit in East Hawkesbury?
No — the Township sits outside every conservation authority's jurisdiction, which is rare in southern Ontario. Instead the Township controls hazards itself through overlay zones drawn on its zoning schedule: no principal building and no septic system at all is permitted in the Ottawa River flood plain overlay, and the unstable slope overlay keeps buildings 30 m back from the top of bank. One thing does still go to South Nation Conservation, though — your septic permit, which must be approved before the Township will issue a building permit.
Can you put a modular home in East Hawkesbury?
Yes, and the by-law says so directly. It defines a "modular dwelling" as a single-detached dwelling built in two or more major pieces and assembled on site, and states that it shall be deemed to be a single detached dwelling house — while expressly excluding a modular dwelling from the definition of a mobile home. The building-permit fee reflects the same view: on a full foundation a factory-built home is charged the same rate per square metre as a site-built first storey.
How much does a modular home or backyard suite cost in East Hawkesbury?
Modular home models start at $175,696 and run to about $338,000 for the largest layouts; backyard ADU models start at $96,244. Site work, foundation, delivery, and permits are additional.
Can I get a mortgage on a modular home in East Hawkesbury?
Yes — on a permanent foundation it is financed as real property, including via CMHC Prefab Plus (5% down on the first $500,000).
Local rules summarized from Township of East Hawkesbury Zoning By-law No. 2021-22 §4.8 (Second Dwelling Unit and Second Dwelling); verified by Modular Homes 400 and reviewed by James Clarke, REALTOR®. Always confirm current requirements with the City of East Hawkesbury before you build.