A zoning district is a label assigned to every lot in NYC that determines what can be built there, how much, and what form it has to take.

In NYC, R stands for residential, C for commercial, and M for manufacturing. The number indicates density, higher numbers allow bigger buildings, so an R7 district permits more bulk than an R6. The suffix letter refines the building's shape. R6A requires a contextual street wall and a height cap. R6B requires a lower, rowhouse-scaled building. Same base density, very different buildings. Every property's zoning district is searchable through the NYC Department of City Planning's ZoLa tool.

A zoning district determines FAR, lot coverage, setbacks, and permitted uses (the four numbers that define what a developer can build, and therefore what your land is worth). Owners often assume similar-sounding districts are interchangeable, but R6A and R6B produce dramatically different buildings on identical lots.

The zoning label is just a label, until it changes, then everything changes.

Example: Your lot is zoned R6B with a FAR of 2.0. On a 5,000 SF lot, that's 10,000 buildable SF. The city rezones your block to R7A, which carries a FAR of 4.0. Your lot now supports 20,000 buildable SF. The lot didn't change. The building didn't change. Only the label did, and your land just became significantly more valuable overnight.

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