Nonconforming use
National Real Estate Exam glossary · Land Use Controls
Definition
A use of land that was lawful when established but no longer complies with current zoning—a corner store in a district later zoned residential. Such a use is typically grandfathered and allowed to continue, though restrictions often bar its expansion, rebuilding after destruction, or resumption after abandonment.
Nonconforming use in plain English
"Zoning" is the city's rulebook for what you're allowed to do on a piece of land — like "this whole neighborhood is homes only." A nonconforming use is something that was totally legal when it started but breaks the rules the city adopted later, like a little corner store that's been there for decades in an area the city later declared residential. The store usually gets to stay open — it's "grandfathered in" — because it's unfair to shut down something that followed the rules at the time. But there's a catch: the owner usually can't expand it, rebuild it if it burns down, or restart it after closing for a long time, so over the years these uses tend to fade away.
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