Transfer of development rights (TDR) programs are a growth management tool that combines planning and zoning to address community priorities. They create market incentives to shift development from designated “sending areas” – like areas designated for farmland protection – to “receiving areas” where increased development is preferred. They do this by compensating landowners who sell development rights in the sending areas and offering incentives to developers to build in receiving areas. 

This fact sheet explains how Virginia’s TDR Law allows local governments to create TDR ordinances to conserve and promote public health, safety, and general welfare.