Building permits, zoning and septic rules across Indiana's counties

Indiana has 3 counties without a residential building-permit requirement: Greene County, Crawford County, Pike County¹. These county counts concern unincorporated land; cities set their own rules inside city limits¹. Another 6 counties require building permits only in some cases: Orange County, Dubois County, Gibson County, Martin County, Starke County, Vanderburgh County². The remaining 83 counties require residential building permits².

Use the Indiana no-building-codes list to find the no-permit counties, but distinguish the local building-permit requirement from Indiana's adopted building and fire-safety codes^1,9. Residential inspections fall under local government, rather than the state's inspection program for Class I structures¹⁰. Ask IDHS Building Plan Review about a project's state filing exemption at 317-232-6422¹¹. We could not confirm a statewide owner-builder exemption; ask the local building office about work you will perform yourself.

Indiana local health departments issue residential septic permits, while the Indiana Department of Health establishes and reviews the statewide residential sewage rule⁴. County offices handle septic permits in 85 counties, and multi-county health districts serve 7 counties². Start with the local health department for the property; the state Environmental Public Health Division can answer program questions at (317) 233-7177 or eph@health.in.gov^4,12.

An Indiana dwelling that is not connected, or cannot connect, to sanitary sewer must have a compliant residential sewage system with a septic tank and a functioning soil absorption system⁴. Drywells and cesspools are not allowed, and temporary holding tanks are subject to state approval and specified exceptions⁴. Off-grid power therefore does not remove the residential sewage obligation⁴. Ask the local health department for residential septic application requirements and fees before committing to a house site.

Greene County leads Indiana's Bolthole Index at 83, followed by Orange County at 80, Crawford County and Pike County at 79, Dubois County and Gibson County at 77, Sullivan County at 75 and Clay County at 74².

Among that group, Greene, Crawford and Pike require no residential building permit and have no countywide zoning; Orange, Dubois and Gibson require building permits in some cases, while Sullivan and Clay require them². Dubois and Gibson also have no countywide zoning, Clay has zoning, and Orange and Sullivan's zoning remains unconfirmed; county offices handle septic permits throughout this group².

Indiana's median county farmland value is $8,103 per acre, with Crawford County at $4,347 per acre; these are farmland values rather than prices for a particular buildable parcel². The median county effective property-tax rate is 0.7%, and the median county property-tax bill is $1,106 annually².

Indiana follows a riparian water-rights regime, with domestic and farm groundwater use described as unregulated¹³. That water-use answer does not remove local well-construction requirements: some local health departments require a permit before constructing a residential well or installing a well pump, and water-well drillers must be licensed by Indiana DNR⁸. Ask the property's local health department about well permits, and contact DNR's Division of Water at 317-232-4160 for state water-program questions^8,14.

A driveway connection to an INDOT-controlled roadway needs an INDOT driveway permit, covering residential as well as commercial connections¹⁵. Apply through INDOT's Electronic Permit System; the published private-driveway application fee is $55^16,17. INDOT's jurisdiction covers state highways, so permission for a road under another government's jurisdiction comes from that government¹⁶. DNR oversees most floodway development, while floodplain-fringe development has no state review or permit but may still need local approval¹⁸.