BH zone - housing in apartment buildings

A BH zone is a zone for multi-family housing (bydlení hromadné) in a Czech zoning plan. The uniform standard for zoning documentation (Decree No. 157/2024 Coll.) describes it as housing with a higher population density, mainly on apartment-building plots, complemented by local amenities. The older MINIS methodology used the same code for 'housing in apartment buildings'.

What the zone includes

• plots of apartment buildings and possibly family houses,
• related roads, parking and utilities,
• public spaces, greenery and small water areas,
• related local amenities, except plots for retail buildings (budovy obchodního prodeje) over 1,000 m².

Other buildings may be part of a housing zone only if they do not reduce the quality of the environment and residential comfort and mainly serve the residents of the zone (Section 15 of Decree No. 157/2024 Coll.).

What it means for a buyer

A stabilised BH zone around a building means the plan confirms the current use, typically a housing estate or town block. What matters is what the plan allows to be added: extra storeys, new buildings in courtyards or in proposed zones. This is set in the text part of the plan, especially the height limit and possibly a plot coverage ratio.

A proposed housing zone larger than 2 ha must include public space of at least 5% of its area, unless decisions there depend on a regulatory plan or a planning agreement. Roads do not count towards this share.

Watch out for

• A municipality may subdivide the BH zone, for example into subtypes with different heights.
• Older zoning plans, which remain valid, may mark apartment buildings differently; read the code using that plan's legend.
• The binding wording is always the text and drawings of the municipality's plan as interpreted by the building authority.