Zoning › State preemptions › New Hampshire

NH HB 631 / Chapter 201 (2025) — Multifamily / Mixed-Use By Right on Commercial Land (NH)

Tracked preemption from the New Hampshire overlay bundle.

Overview

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Effective
2026-07-01
Sunset
—
Authority
state
Scope
state:NH
Other New Hampshire preemptions
NH RSA 674:72 — Accessory Dwelling Units (HB 577 / Chapter 197 Rewrite)NH RSA 674:71 / 674:58–61 — Workforce Housing Reasonable Opportunity MandateNH RSA 483-B — Shoreland Water Quality Protection ActPease ANG (Air National Guard) AICUZ — Federal Airspace and Noise OverlayNH RSA 674:32 — Manufactured Housing Anti-Exclusionary MandateNH RSA 675 — Procedure for Adoption of Zoning, Subdivision, and Site-Plan RegulationsHubbard Brook Experimental Forest — USFS Research Watershed Carve-OutWhite Mountain National Forest — Federal Land Carve-Out (USFS)
Primary-source summary
HB 631 / Chapter 201 (2025) — Multi-family / mixed-use by right on commercial land

Trigger predicate

When this evaluates true for a parcel, the law's preempted fields take precedence over base zoning.

AND
  • parcel.base_zone_category == commercial
  • parcel.within_census_urban_area == True
  • parcel.has_municipal_water_service == True
  • parcel.has_municipal_sewer_service == True

Preempted fields

3 fields on the base district schema are rewritten when the trigger fires.

FieldOpValueNote
base_districts[category=commercial].allowed_usesaddmultifamily_residential_by_right
base_districts[category=commercial].allowed_usesaddmixed_use_residential_by_right
review_typewaive_discretionaryby_right_no_special_permitMunicipalities may not require a special permit, conditional use permit, or other discretionary review for qualifying multi-family / mixed-use on commercially-zoned land within a Census urban area with municipal water + sewer

Citation

Authority source
HB 631 (2025 session) → enacted as Chapter 201, Laws of 2025
§ Chapter 201, Laws of 2025 (HB 631)
https://www.hinckleyallen.com/publications/new-hampshire-opens-the-door-to-multifamily-housing-on-commercially-zoned-land/

Research notes

Pending — enacted 2025, takes effect 2026-07-01. Three concurrent triggers required: (1) commercially-zoned parcel, (2) within a Census Bureau-defined urban area, and (3) served by both municipal water AND municipal sewer. Once in force this is a material new preemption surface for downtown corridors in Manchester, Nashua, Concord, Portsmouth, Dover, Rochester, and Keene where commercial zoning currently excludes residential.