Bolthole Index county-legal census · checked 2026-09-12
35 of Oregon's 36 counties — 97% — let an owner build their own home without a licensed contractor. That is the 16th-largest count of any state. The strongest of them on the Bolthole Index is Umatilla County (72/100). 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 1516 counties nationwide → Full Oregon profile →
35 of 36 Oregon counties · sorted by Index score
Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Under ORS 701.010 a person building/altering their own property is exempt from CCB contractor licensure, and ORS 455.320 exempts owner-built dwellings from certain structural co…
ORS 701.010 - Exemptions from licensure ↗Oregon statute (ORS 701.010 / ORS 455.320) exempts owners building their own residence from CCB contractor licensing and provides an owner-built dwelling structural exemption.
ORS 701.010 Exemptions from licensure ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗A homeowner may obtain permits and perform work on their own property; the person performing the work, whether homeowner or contractor, is responsible for permits.
Deschutes County Community Development - What Permits Do I Need ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Oregon allows an owner-builder to obtain permits and build their own residence via an owner-builder statement without hiring a licensed contractor, applicable in Hood River County.
Hood River County Community Development - Building Code & Inspection ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Oregon's owner-built dwelling provisions (ORS 455.320) let an owner build their own primary residence and pull permits without a contractor license.
ORS 455.320 - Owner-built dwellings ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Oregon statute (ORS 701.010 / ORS 455.320) exempts owners building their own residence from CCB contractor licensing and provides an owner-built dwelling structural exemption.
ORS 701.010 Exemptions from licensure ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Every county here has a full profile — water, land prices, hazard safety, seclusion, and the rest of its building rules. See the Oregon state page for all 36 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.
