Building permits, zoning and septic rules across Arkansas counties

Arkansas has 57 counties without a residential building-permit requirement, 15 with requirements limited to certain cases, and 3 where residential building permits are required^1,5. The highest-scoring counties in the no-permit group are Cleveland County, Drew County, Dallas County, Clark County, Ouachita County, Hempstead County, Madison County, Polk County¹. Use the county building-permit list to narrow your search¹.

Arkansas Building Code requirements apply statewide even where building permits or inspections are not required². The State Fire Marshal’s Office enforces and updates the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code¹¹. Arkansas's owner-builder exemption concerns contractor licensing for your own residence and ends if you build more than 1 residence in a calendar year; building-code, building-permit and zoning obligations still apply where required¹⁰.

Arkansas has 54 counties without countywide zoning and 5 counties with zoning^4,5. The highest-scoring counties without countywide zoning are Cleveland County, Drew County, Dallas County, Clark County, Grant County, Ouachita County, Hempstead County, Madison County⁴. Arkansas county planning boards may prepare zoning ordinances for all or part of an unincorporated area, so ask the county planning office about the actual parcel and current zoning map¹².

For buyers seeking both conditions, 48 counties have neither a residential building-permit requirement nor countywide zoning⁸. Compare the no-zoning list and no-building-permit and no-zoning list^4,8. State septic approval remains required for an onsite wastewater system even where the county does not require a residential building permit⁹.

The Arkansas Department of Health is the septic authority across all 75 Arkansas counties⁵. The state Onsite Wastewater program supports Environmental Health Specialists in county health departments; start with that program to reach the specialist serving your land¹³.

A completed septic application and detailed plans must receive approval before construction of a building or residence, and a septic construction permit is required before system work begins⁹. The septic permit review fee is $30 for structures of 1,500 square feet or less, rising through the size-based schedule to $150 for structures over 4,000 square feet⁹. Inspection, approval and a Permit for Operation are required before using the system⁹. Sewer connection is required when a sanitary sewer is within 300 feet of the building's sewer exit and connection is available without crossing another person's property¹⁴.

We could not confirm an RV-living answer for 72 Arkansas counties; the 3 counties with an answer include 1 allowed and 2 limited⁶. Garland County is listed as allowed for county land-use purposes, while Benton and Pulaski counties have flood-zone restrictions⁶. Ask the county planning office and floodplain administrator about your proposed site before relying on that classification⁶.

Tiny-home living has answers for only 2 counties: Garland County and Benton County are listed as allowed for county land-use purposes; 73 counties remain unanswered⁷. Browse the RV-living and tiny-home lists^6,7.

Arkansas's health rules regulate parcels with 3 or more RV, tiny-house-on-wheels or mobile-home spaces where placement or maintenance services are provided for a fee¹⁵. Those park rules do not establish statewide permission for a single tiny house on wheels outside a qualifying park¹⁵.

The highest Bolthole Index scores belong to Cleveland County, Drew County, Dallas County, Clark County, Grant County, Ouachita County, Hempstead County, Madison County⁵. Cleveland scores 85, Drew 84 and Dallas 83 out of 100; each has no residential building-permit requirement, no countywide zoning and state septic oversight⁵. Grant also has no countywide zoning and state septic oversight, but its building-permit requirement applies in limited cases⁵.

The median county farmland value in Arkansas is $3,631 per acre; Dallas County's value is $2,085 per acre and Ouachita County's is $2,230 per acre⁵. Treat those farmland figures as comparison benchmarks when evaluating asking prices⁵. The median of county effective property-tax rates is 0.5%, and the median county property-tax bill is $650 annually⁵. Budget separately for septic approval: the state construction and operation requirements apply regardless of these counties' building-permit answers⁹.

Arkansas's water framework is riparian, and domestic and livestock groundwater use is described as unregulated; 14 counties fall within special groundwater management regimes¹⁶. Ask the water-well program about construction requirements separately from groundwater-use rules¹⁶. Ouachita County and Calhoun County are within the actively managed South Arkansas Sparta Critical Ground Water Area¹⁶.

Wells serving public or semi-public water systems need written Arkansas Department of Health approval before construction; a well contractor uncertain about the classification must obtain a written determination¹⁷. That approval rule does not establish a general construction-permit requirement for private domestic wells¹⁷.

An access driveway on state-highway right-of-way needs an Arkansas Department of Transportation permit before work begins, including residential and temporary driveways¹⁸. Apply through the District Engineer with the location, work description and required supporting materials before arranging the access work¹⁸.