Title and General Description

A Proposed Two-Storey Duplex Apartment on an R2-Basic Property

Statement of the Problem

A retired elderly couple decided make use of their vacant property in an affluent
neighborhood in San Juan City to construct a duplex apartment building that they will
rent out to young, starting families. Due to the demands of this market, they decided
that each of the two apartments will be provided with two parking spaces. The
apartments will two-storeys tall and will be joined in the middle by a 200mm-thick party
wall.
Each apartment will have a paved carport, mostly uncovered, located at the front outer
corners of the lot. Each carport is designed for two cars, with cars intended to park
perpendicular to the road. Each car slot measures 3.00 m. x 5.00 m.
Between the carport and the party wall is a foyer, measuring 2.00 x 2.00 m., set back 3.00
meters from the road. The 3-meter-long space between the road and the foyer will be
paved.
The foyer leads to the main ground floor, which is set back 2.00 meters from the rear
property line and 2.00 meters from the side property line. The ground floor contains a
living room, a dining area, a kitchen, a toilet, and a staircase leading to the second floor.
The area of the ground floor is 52 square meters including the foyer, and 48 square
meters if the foyer is not included.
A small rectangular portion of the rear yard, 3 meters wide on one side, will be paved to
serve as an outdoor laundry or service area. All other remaining areas will be left
unpaved.
The second floor is 8 square meters larger than the ground floor (including the foyer)
and follows the minimum setbacks required by the NBC. It partially projects above the
carports and completely covers the foyer below. This second floor will contain two
bedrooms and a common toilet stacked on top of the toilet on the ground floor. The
master bedroom will have a walk-in closet and a queen-size bed, while the other
bedroom will only have a single bed.

Project Site Features

The site is a rectangular inside lot with a depth of 15 meters and an area of 240 square
meters. It will be split down the middle to accommodate the duplex apartment. Each of
the two apartments is an exact mirror image of the other. Along the middle, a 200mm-
thick party wall will be constructed. On the south side of the property is a 10-meter-
wide RROW. The property is zoned as R2-Basic based on a city ordinance.

Questions (20)
1. What are the minimum setbacks required by the NBC for this property?
a. 3m for the front, 2m for the sides, 2m for the rear
b. 8m for the front, 2m for the sides, 2m for the rear
c. 8m for the front, 3m for the sides, 3m for the rear
d. 3m for the front, 2m for the sides, 3m for the rear

2. What is the maximum TGFA allowed by Table 7.1 for this property if the project
will have firewalls?
a. 3 x 60% of TLA
b. 5 x 60% of TLA
c. 3 x 70% of TLA
d. None of the above

3. Within the entire property, what is the actual ISA?

a. 60 sqm.
b. 72 sqm.
c. 84 sqm.
d. 120 sqm.

4. What is the actual PSO for the entire property?

a. 21.67%
b. 43.33%
c. 68.33%
d. 93.33%

5. What is the maximum PSO allowed by Table 8.1 of the Building Code for this
project, considering it has firewalls?
a. 55%
b. 60%
c. 70%
d. 75%

6. What is the actual construction area for the entire property?

 a. 43.33%
b. 68.33%
c. 73.33%
d. This cannot be determined

7. What is the maximum construction area allowed for this property by Table 8.1 of
the NBC, considering it has firewalls?
a. 55%
b. 75%
c. 85%
d. 90%

8. Is the carport part of the open space?

a. Yes, because it is mostly uncovered
b. No, because it is partially covered
c. Yes, because it is paved
d. No, because it is paved

9. The parking slots provided for the apartments are

a. Smaller than what is required by the Building Code
b. Exactly the size that is required by the Building Code
c. Larger than what is required by the Building Code
d. None of the above

10. What is the minimum air space provision for habitable rooms?
a. 3 cubic meters per person
b. 12 cubic meters per person
c. 14 cubic meters per person
d. 18 cubic meters per person

11. What is the minimum distance required between canopies and awnings and the
property lines?
a. 300mm
b. 750mm
c. 1000mm
d. 2000mm
12. If the laundry area at the back is paved and uncovered, then it is part of the
a. USA and TOSL
b. ISA and TOSL
c. Construction Area
d. Both A and C
e. Both B and C

13. What is the maximum building height allowed for this project?
a. 3 floors
b. 5 floors
c. 10 floors
d. 12 floors

14. How much of the entire property is allotted to the carports?

a. 30 sqm
b. 60 sqm
c. 68 sqm
d. 72 sqm

15. What is the minimum foundation thickness required by the NBC for a project like
this?
a. 150mm
b. 200mm
c. 250mm
d. 300mm

16. For R2-Basic projects, how much of the required front yard may paved for carport
use?
a. 25%
b. 50%
c. 75%
d. 100%

17. What is the maximum FLAR allowed for this project?

a. 1.30
b. 1.50
c. 3.00
 d. 8.10

18. Based on the maximum allowable FLAR for this project, what is the maximum
allowable TGFA?
a. 312.00 sqm.
b. 360.00 sqm.
c. 450.00 sqm.
d. 720.00 sqm.

19. If the house will use wooden posts or suportales spaced 3 meters apart and the
both the ground and second levels of the house are 3 meters high, what are the
minimum dimensions required for the wooden posts?
a. 100 x 100 mm.
b. 125 x 125 mm.
c. 175 x 175 mm.
d. 200 x 200 mm.

20. Assuming one side of a rectangular bathroom is exactly 1.00 meter wide, how
wide must the other side be in order to comply with requirements of the Building
Code?
a. 0.80 m.
b. 1.00 m.
c. 1.20 m.
d. 1.50 m.