Setback areas in 3D
About this app
Setback areas under § 5 and § 6 of the Baden-Württemberg building code on a plot in Stuttgart: each exterior wall folds down like a hinge and shortens to factor times wall height. Drag the house, its corners and its height, change zoning, roof pitch, slope, balcony and garage; for a violation the panel names the reason and the section.
With explain mode: an AI tutor walks you through the app, points out what matters in the scene and answers your questions.
How the setback area is calculated
Under § 5 of the Baden-Württemberg State Building Code, a setback area must lie in front of every exterior wall. Its depth is measured at right angles to the wall and is generally 0.4 of the wall height, in core, village, rural residential, urban and special residential areas 0.2, and in commercial, industrial and non-recreational special areas 0.125. It may not be less than 2.5 m, or 2 m for walls up to 5 m wide. Roofs steeper than 70° count in full towards the wall height, steeper than 45° by a quarter, gable areas by a quarter. On a slope the mean of the corner points applies.
What the app shows
A building plot in Stuttgart seen from above at an angle, with the street and its centre line in front and a neighbouring house on the right. Each wall folds down like a hinge and shortens to its depth. When the zoning changes, the slabs visibly move to the new size. If a slab crosses the neighbouring boundary, passes the street centre or overlaps another setback area, it turns to a warning colour and one sentence names the reason and the section. The calculation appears per wall in a table: wall height, added height, factor, depth, minimum, status.
What you can try
The house can be moved directly in the scene, resized at its corners and raised with the arrow. Roof pitch, eaves or gable facing the street, ground slope and building to the boundary can also be changed. A balcony is disregarded up to 5 m wide, 1.5 m projection and 2 m from the neighbouring boundary; a garage up to 3 m wall height and 25 m² wall area may stand in the setback area. Examples show an urban villa, an infill plot in a core area, a hall in a commercial area and two houses on one plot. The app is not legal advice; the current legal text is authoritative.
Frequently asked questions
- How large is the boundary distance in Baden-Württemberg?
- There is no fixed value. Under § 5(7) LBO the depth of the setback area is generally 0.4 of the wall height, 0.2 in core areas and some others, and 0.125 in commercial and industrial areas. It may not be less than 2.5 m, or 2 m for walls up to 5 m wide.
- Does the roof count for setback areas?
- Roofs with a pitch of more than 70° count in full towards the wall height, more than 45° by a quarter. The height of a gable area counts by a quarter (§ 5(5) LBO).
- May a garage stand in the setback area?
- Yes, if its wall height is up to 3 m and its wall area up to 25 m². Boundary development may not exceed 9 m along one neighbouring boundary and 15 m in total (§ 6(1) LBO).
- What does the app “Setback areas in 3D” show?
- It folds each wall of a house down onto the ground and checks the slabs against boundaries, the street centre and overlaps. The rules follow the Baden-Württemberg State Building Code as last amended on 18 March 2025; the app is not legal advice.
Subject: Architecture & scenography
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