The use of a property that is inconsistent with the current zoning regulation is called:

• A. Non-Conforming Use
• B. Illegal Use
• C. Spot Zoning
• D. Conditional Use

Answer: (A)

This tests the concept of a non-conforming use. A non-conforming use is when a property is being used in a way that doesn’t comply with current zoning rules, but that use existed before the zoning change and is allowed to continue as a kind of “grandfathered” use. It remains legal because it was lawful at the time the property was established, even though it doesn’t fit the new regulations. For example, if a house sits in what’s now a commercial zone but was a residence before the rezoning, the home can keep operating as a residence, though it generally can’t be expanded or intensified in ways that would increase nonconformity. It’s not the same as an illegal use, which has no legal basis to begin with; spot zoning refers to an unlawful, targeted rezoning favoring a single parcel, and a conditional use is a permitted use subject to specific conditions.