Bolthole Index county-legal census · checked 2026-07-01
29 of Tennessee's 95 counties — 31% — have no county-wide zoning. That is the 11th-largest count of any state. The strongest of them on the Bolthole Index is Johnson County (88/100). Every entry below cites the county’s own official source.
Rules change, and cities inside these counties set their own — treat this as a verified starting point, not legal advice. All 959 counties nationwide → Tennessee counties with no building codes → Full Tennessee profile →
29 of 95 Tennessee counties · sorted by Index score
The county states it has no zoning department ('We do not have a Zoning Department').
Johnson County TN - Newcomer Information ↗The county states it does not have building codes or zoning restrictions for properties outside the Livingston city limits.
Overton County, TN - Permits & Zoning ↗No county planning/zoning office or building-codes department is listed among McNairy County's departments or officials, indicating unincorporated areas are not county-zoned.
UT CTAS - McNairy County Officials Directory ↗Outside the City of Hohenwald, Lewis County does not zone and only requires what is outlined in Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA); it employs no building/codes staff.
Lewis County Government - Zoning ↗The county's official departments page lists no planning, zoning, or codes department, indicating no countywide zoning.
Decatur County Departments ↗County page plainly states Fentress County does not have zoning regulations (except inside City of Jamestown).
Fentress County Zoning and Permitting ↗Grundy County has not adopted comprehensive county-wide zoning under the Tennessee County Zoning Act; the TN Supreme Court struck down a 2020 county resolution as an improperly …
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts - Grundy County Zoning Ruling ↗The Jackson County government lists no planning or zoning department, consistent with rural TN counties without countywide zoning (city of Gainesboro has its own zoning).
Jackson County, Tennessee Government ↗The Clay County government lists no planning or zoning department among its offices, consistent with rural TN counties having no countywide zoning.
Clay County, Tennessee Government ↗The county's official department/services list includes no planning or zoning office; zoning enforcement appears limited to the incorporated town of Spencer rather than a county…
Van Buren County, TN - Departments & Services ↗Stewart County lists no county planning or zoning department; codes/zoning are administered only by the City of Dover, indicating no county-wide zoning in unincorporated areas.
Stewart County Government - Official Site ↗Hancock County has no county-wide zoning ordinance; its Planning Commission administers only subdivision regulations (adopted 2021).
Hancock County, TN (official county website) ↗The county states plainly that it 'does not have any zoning restrictions, or code enforcement.'
Hawkins County, TN official site ↗The county Planning Commission administers only subdivision regulations for unincorporated land; no countywide zoning ordinance is in place.
Grainger County Planning Commission ↗Unincorporated Lawrence County has no residential zoning regulations except within designated special flood hazard areas, which require a floodplain permit.
Lawrence County Zoning/Building Regulations flyer ↗Hardin County government lists no county planning or zoning department; zoning in the county exists only within municipalities such as Savannah, so unincorporated land is genera…
Hardin County Government - Departments ↗The Monroe County Regional Planning Commission publishes subdivision, mobile-home/RV, flood and nuisance regulations but no comprehensive county-wide zoning resolution for uninc…
Monroe County Regional Planning Commission ↗The county's Planning Commission administers only minimal subdivision regulations; no countywide zoning resolution was found.
Claiborne County Planning Commission ↗Houston County's official government site lists no planning, zoning, or codes department, indicating no countywide zoning outside incorporated municipalities.
Houston County, Tennessee Government - Departments ↗The county Codes Enforcement page states Henry County does not have local zoning regulations in the unincorporated areas of the county.
Henry County - Property Subdivision and Codes Enforcement ↗The county's official site states DeKalb County does not have countywide zoning regulations.
DeKalb County Building Department ↗Per the county FAQ, each city has its own codes but outside city limits no zoning code exists, so unincorporated Obion County is not zoned.
Obion County, TN - FAQs ↗Rhea County has repeatedly declined to adopt county-wide zoning; only subdivision regulations apply in the unincorporated county, while incorporated cities (e.g., Dayton) mainta…
Southeast Tennessee Development District - Rhea County (Subdivision Regulations) ↗Putnam County has no formal county zoning code; it has adopted subdivision regulations but not zoning (incorporated cities like Cookeville have their own zoning).
Putnam County TN - Regional Planning Commission ↗The county states the unincorporated areas of Giles County are not subject to zoning regulations; only subdivision standards apply when land is subdivided.
Giles County Regional Planning Commission ↗Zoning in Weakley County falls under individual cities; there is no county-wide zoning in the unincorporated county (which has no building codes/restrictions besides the permit …
Weakley County Trustee's Office - Building Permits ↗County lists Subdivision Regulations for the Warren County Planning Region and Environmental Regulations but no countywide zoning resolution was found.
Warren County Codes Documents & Links ↗County FAQ states 'there is no zoning in unincorporated Marion County, Tennessee,' though some plats have private covenants/HOAs.
Marion County FAQ ↗Campbell County's official site states the county does not have a county-wide zoning commission; zoning ordinances are handled at the municipal level.
Campbell County, TN - Business/County Government ↗One email a week: the best counties to live off-grid, rule changes that matter, and rule changes as Tennessee counties adopt or drop codes. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Every county here has a full profile — water, land prices, hazard safety, seclusion, and the rest of its building rules. See the Tennessee state page for all 95 counties ranked, or go back to the national list.
General guidance, not legal advice. Off-grid, building, and land-use rules are often set at the county level and change often. Verify with your county and state before acting. Data reviewed 2026-06-26.