Albany County
Town of New Scotland, NY: zoning for new construction
Residential lots in the Town of New Scotland run from a 0.23-acre minimum in Residential Hamlet up to 3 acres in Residential Forestry, across 13 zoning districts in all. No local short-term-rental law on record - which is not the same as permission. Power here is National Grid territory. The district table below has the setbacks, height limits and coverage - confirm the specifics with the building department at (518) 439-9153 before you rely on a figure.
Looking specifically at an accessory dwelling unit? See ADU rules for New Scotland →
Zoning districts
| District | Min lot | Setbacks F / S / R | Max height | ADU |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial Hamlet | 0.23 ac | 30 / 15 / 30 ft | — | No |
| Commercial | 0.76 ac | 50 / 25 / 25 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Development Area | — | — | — | No |
| Hamlet Center | — | — | — | No |
| Hamlet Expansion | — | — | — | No |
| Industrial | 0.92 ac | 40 / 25 / 30 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Medium Density Residential | 0.51 ac | 40 / 25 / 30 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Mixed Economic Development Distr | 0.23 ac | 10 / 10 / 10 ft | 60 ft | No |
| Residential - 2 Acre | 2 ac | 50 / 25 / 50 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Residential Agricultural | 0.69 ac | 40 / 25 / 30 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Residential Forestry | 3 ac | 50 / 50 / 50 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Residential Hamlet | 0.23 ac | 30 / 15 / 30 ft | 35 ft | No |
| Residential Senior Citizen Distr | — | — | — | No |
Short-term rentals
No local short-term-rental law on record - which is not the same as permission. No local short-term-rental law found as of 2026-08-26; the 2020 codified Zoning Law (Local Law 1 of 2020) was read in full — about 540,000 characters — and contains no short-term-rental, transient-rental or rental-registration provision, and the Town's own Laws and Ordinances index lists no such local law. A BED AND BREAKFAST INN is a permitted use in two districts, defined by transient lodgers in at least three but not more than five bedrooms; a ROOMING HOUSE is separately defined and listed. Both are owner-present or managed lodging uses. Absence of a found STR law is not permission. New York State's 2025 short-term rental registry (Ch. 99 of the Laws of 2025) separately requires every host statewide to register the unit regardless of local law. Confirm with Town of New Scotland at (518) 439-9153 before listing.
Good to know
- UtilityNational Grid territory.
- Building dept(518) 439-9153
- Last reviewed2026-07-08
Working out a budget? A standard-finish build here runs $202–$265/sq ft , and a conforming lot adds about $1,769 on top - see the full cost to build a house in New Scotland, or what an ADU costs here.
Sizing up a specific parcel in New Scotland?
Aldo pulls the exact zoning district, setbacks, and build feasibility for any parcel — before you buy. Enter your email to open Aldo and run your free report.
Other Albany County towns
All Albany County zoning: Albany (City) · Cohoes (City) · Watervliet (City) · Berne · Bethlehem · Coeymans · Colonie · Guilderland · Knox · Rensselaerville · Westerlo · Altamont (Village) · Colonie (Village) · Green Island (Village) · Menands (Village) · Ravena (Village) · Voorheesville (Village)
Zoning figures for Town of New Scotland are compiled from the municipal code (last reviewed 2026-07-08) and provided for decision-support only - not legal, engineering, or architectural advice. Setback and dimensional standards often carry conditions and exceptions; verify with the building department at (518) 439-9153 before relying on any number. Source: Offsite / Aldo zoning dataset, municipalData.js.