Standard building lots have traditionally been rectangular with a depth of two to three times the lot width. Homeowners have been accustomed to more private space in front or back than in side yards. Most local governments find it necessary to permit variation in lot shape and frontage. Lot shape and frontage restrictions should be flexible enough to accommodate certain forms of higher-density, architecturally integrated developments, like zero-lot line housing, and to allow nonrectangular lots to be used at the ends of cul-de-sacs, as shown.

The Advantages: the whole picture is finished when the flag lots and reverse corner lots are completed.

The Challenges: for the subdivision lots in small places are with the so-called flag, pipe-stem, panhandle, or spaghetti lots. These are the lots that are distinguished by the portion of the lot that fronts on the street or road is wide enough to accommodate a driveway.

Design Techniques for the Featured Plan: creating privacy and height, garden rooms, pathways, sitting areas, garden structures, scale and proportion, and focal points.