Ontario Garden Suite Planning Kit the homework, already done
A 29-page plain-English guide, a budget workbook and four printable checklists, written by Ontario builders who have been at this since 1979. Is it allowed on your lot, what it really costs, how the permit works, where the money is, and how to hire a builder without getting burned. $29.99 + HST, instant download.
At a glance
General information for Ontario homeowners. Not legal or tax advice. If it does not help, email us within 14 days and we refund.
The Ontario Garden Suite Planning Kit is a $29.99 + HST download: a 29-page guide in eight chapters, an Excel budget workbook with live totals, and four printable checklists. It is built around the 2026 numbers we use on the site, about $185,000 to $235,000 all-in for a typical one-bedroom suite outside Toronto, so you walk into every meeting knowing the right questions.
Most Garden Suite Mistakes Happen Before the Shovel
Let us set expectations down honestly. The people who get burned on garden suites rarely get burned by the building. They get burned by something nobody priced: a 35 metre sewer trench, a septic bed that was already full, a quote that said “site work by owner,” or a grant that needed approval before the first shovel went in.
We wrote this kit in the order we would do things if it were our own lot. It is the same advice we give on the phone, minus the part where we repeat ourselves. It will not make you a builder. It will make you very hard to fool.
Eight Chapters, One Workbook, Four Checklists
Every chapter ends with something you can use the same day: a script, a table, a list of questions or a box to tick.
1. Is It Allowed on My Lot?
How to check your town in an evening, the six names towns use for a garden suite, what the province already guarantees, and a word-for-word script for the zoning desk.
2. The Real Budget
A line-by-line 2026 budget with low and high ranges, what quotes usually leave out, and the five ways budgets go sideways.
3. Servicing and Septic
Water, sewer and hydro from the house to the back yard, why sewer only works downhill, panel upgrades, and what changes on a well and septic lot.
4. Plans and Permits, Step by Step
The documents list, who does what, how long it really takes, what inspectors check at each visit and nine reasons applications bounce.
5. Money
Grants and forgivable loans by region, the CMHC insured refinance, the HST rental rebate, the multigenerational tax credit (up to $7,000 for 2026) and HELOCs.
6. Hiring a Builder
Twenty questions to ask, red flags in quotes, contract must-haves, and a sample payment schedule with the 10% holdback the Construction Act requires.
7. Renting It Out
The Ontario Standard Lease, rent rules for a new unit, short-term rental traps, insurance calls to make, and the cash flow math.
8. Printable Checklists
Lot check, permit package, pre-construction and final inspection. Print them, take them to meetings, tick the boxes.
Budget Workbook (Excel)
Four sheets with working formulas:
- Budget: low, high and your-quote columns, 10% contingency, 13% HST, live totals
- Quote Comparison: 3 builders side by side, what is included Y/N, a comparable all-in price
- Rental Cash Flow: rent, vacancy, costs, financing, yield and payback
- Timeline: phases, typical weeks, your dates
Built for Homeowners Before They Sign Anything
Good fit
- You own a house in Ontario and are thinking about a garden suite, coach house, ARU or ADU
- You want a parent or an adult kid close by, or you want rental income
- You have a quote or two and cannot tell if they are fair
- You are on well and septic and nobody will give you a straight answer
- You would rather spend $30 learning than $30,000 finding out
Not a fit
- You need a ruling on your specific lot: that is the $399 + HST Feasibility Report
- You need stamped permit drawings: see Permit Packages
- You want someone to read your builder’s quote with you: Talk to a Builder
- You are a contractor looking for leads: try the builder partner program
$29.99 + HST, downloaded in about a minute
Pay securely, then download the PDF guide and the Excel workbook right away. No account, no subscription, no follow-up sales calls.
Three Items From the Lot Check List
The Lot Check has 15 items. These three catch more projects than the other twelve combined.
Fire access path measured
Width, clear height, and distance from the street to the suite door. Toronto, for example, wants a path generally 1.0 m wide and 2.1 m high with the entrance within 45 m of the street. A side yard with an air conditioner in it is not a 1.0 m path.
I know where the house sewer leaves the building
And there is enough fall to the suite spot, or I have priced a pump. Sewer only works downhill, about a quarter inch per foot. Over 30 m that is 60 cm of drop your back yard may not have.
Rural: septic tank and bed located, assessment booked
A second kitchen and bathroom raise the design flow. Find the bed and its reserve area before you pick the suite location, because they are not negotiable space. Septic work runs $15,000 to $45,000 or more.
The numbers in the kit match the site. A typical one-bedroom garden suite of about 500 sq ft runs about $185,000 to $235,000 all-in in 2026 in Simcoe County and most of Ontario outside Toronto (roughly 20% higher in Toronto), about $340 to $490 per sq ft. Rural septic work adds $15,000 to $45,000 or more. Drawings run about $2,000 to $5,000.
Pay, Download, Start Tonight
Pay $29.99 + HST
Click any Buy button. Checkout is handled by Stripe; we never see your card number.
Download instantly
After payment you land on the download page with two buttons: the PDF guide and the Excel workbook. Save both.
Read Chapter 1 first
Then run the free Rules Checker for your town and start filling in the workbook as quotes arrive.
Plan it properly for less than a tank of gas
Eight chapters, a working budget workbook and four checklists. $29.99 + HST, instant download, 14-day refund if it does not help.
Planning Kit Questions
What do I actually get?
A 29-page PDF guide in eight chapters, an Excel budget workbook with four sheets (Budget, Quote Comparison, Rental Cash Flow, Timeline) and four printable checklists inside the guide. Both files download right after payment.
What is your refund policy?
It is a digital product, so there is nothing to send back. If it does not help, email us within 14 days and we refund. Use our contact page and include the email address you paid with.
Is the kit up to date for 2026?
Yes. It is the 2026 edition, checked in October 2026 against provincial rules, CMHC and CRA pages and municipal garden suite pages. Rules and grant programs change, sometimes mid-year, so the kit tells you exactly what to confirm with your town before you spend money.
Does it cover my town?
It covers how the rules work everywhere in Ontario and shows you how to look up your own town’s numbers, with a script for the zoning desk. For published numbers by municipality, use the free Rules Checker and Rules by City pages.
Will the workbook open on a Mac or in Google Sheets?
The workbook is a standard .xlsx file. It opens in Microsoft Excel on Windows or Mac, in Apple Numbers and in Google Sheets. The formulas are ordinary ones, so the totals work in all of them.
Is this legal or tax advice?
No. It is general information written by builders. It explains how zoning, permits, HST and tax credits generally work, then tells you what to confirm with your town, the CRA or a tax professional. For a look at your actual lot, the $399 + HST Feasibility Report is the next step.
Can I share it with my builder or family?
Share it with the people working on your own project, of course. Please do not post it online or resell it. If a friend is planning their own suite, it costs less than a tank of gas.
Is the price credited toward anything else?
The kit is a standalone purchase. If you want us to look at your lot or read a quote with you, see the $399 + HST Feasibility Report or Talk to a Builder calls from $149.99 + HST.