Carver County, Minnesota issues building permits for all ten of its townships, requiring one for any structure over 200 square feet under the county's Code of Ordinances Chapter 150 Building Regulations12. The county's Land Management Department also administers zoning for those same townships, and a zoning permit applies even to smaller structures because setbacks still count3. Septic systems (SSTS) go through Carver County Environmental Services, which also requires a disclosure form and escrow process when a property with a septic system changes hands4.
At a glance
- Building permit
- Required for any structure over 200 sq ft in the county's townships; not required at 200 sq ft or under, but setbacks still apply12
- Zoning
- Yes, countywide for all ten townships; cities zone themselves35
- Septic
- Permitted, inspected and maintained by county Environmental Services (SSTS); disclosure required at property transfer46
- Owner-builder exemption
- County offers a homeowner permit to act as your own contractor; a separate state licensing exemption also applies if you'll occupy the home78
- Driveways
- A county building permit is required, plus a road-authority permit: County Engineer for county roads, Town Board for township roads, MnDOT for state highways29
- RV as a residence
- Not permanently; a temporary home is allowed only while building a permitted permanent home, and must be removed within 2 years10
- Floodplain
- A local floodplain permit is required to build a house, place fill, or install a culvert or bridge in a mapped floodplain11
- Septic soils
- Only about 1.6% of soils are rated free of severe limits for a conventional drain field12
Who to call
Building permits
Carver County Land Management - Building Permits
Building permits for all ten townships in Carver County (cities issue their own)
600 East 4th Street, Chaska, MN 55318
Zoning
Carver County Land Management - Zoning
Zoning administration, the zoning code and zoning/policy maps for all ten townships in Carver County
600 East 4th Street, Chaska, MN 55318
Septic permits
Carver County Environmental Services - SSTS Program
Design, installation, inspection and maintenance oversight of subsurface sewage treatment systems (SSTS), plus septic property-transfer requirements and financial assistance
Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on September 25, 2026.
Do you need a building permit in Carver County, Minnesota?
Yes. Carver County is responsible for issuing building permits for all townships, under the county's Code of Ordinances Chapter 150 Building Regulations12. If your land sits inside one of Carver County's cities rather than a township, that city reviews the permit instead of the county2. A permit is required for any structure over 200 square feet; structures at 200 square feet or less don't need one, though the county's setback rules still apply to them12. Permits cover new construction (homes, sheds, swimming pools), additions, driveways, work to existing structures, and any electrical, gas, plumbing or mechanical work regulated by the state building code2. A building-permit application that isn't complete, or a completed application that isn't paid for within 180 days of being received, is considered abandoned and expires13. A final inspection must be completed and a certificate of occupancy issued before anyone occupies or uses a new home14. Minnesota's State Building Code is the statewide standard behind all of this, and it supersedes any municipal building code where the two conflict15.
Who is Carver County Land Management, and how do you reach them?
Carver County Land Management handles building permits and zoning for the county's townships25. Appointments are encouraged for all inquiries; schedule one at [email protected] or (952) 361-1820, and have your site plan, septic/well locations, building size and construction value ready ahead of time2. The office is part of Public Services on the main floor of the Government Center at 600 East 4th Street, Chaska, MN 553185. Inspections themselves aren't done by county staff: once your application is submitted, reviewed, approved and issued, you schedule the actual inspection with Metro West Inspection Services, Inc. at (763) 479-1720, which also fields building-code questions2.
Does Carver County have zoning?
Yes. Carver County's Land Management Department oversees zoning for all ten townships in the county, and a zoning permit is required even for structures too small to need a building permit, since setbacks still apply3516. The county's zoning chapter applies to unincorporated land outside cities and outside any orderly-annexation or joint-powers area with its own zoning authority16. Side lot lines carry a 15-foot setback in all districts, rear lot lines carry a 30-foot setback, and bluff impact zones carry a 50-foot setback that grows to 100 feet on an actively eroding bluff17. Structures are capped at 35 feet, with specific exceptions such as farm accessory structures, flagpoles and similar structures allowed up to 100 feet, and a conditional use permit required above that18. Minimum lot size depends on how you're building: 1.5 acres for a non-shoreland lot or specified shoreland under the county's density option, 2 acres on a natural-environment lake, and 2.5 acres for a lot created under the density options or conditional-use provisions unless a permit specifies otherwise; agriculture-only reasonable-use parcels need at least 20 acres19. Splitting or reconfiguring a lot counts as creating a new lot under the county's subdivision standards, and the new lot must meet those size, frontage and other requirements20. New construction needs a survey showing the lowest floor elevation and a site plan, and accessory buildings have their own permitted-use standards under the zoning code2. Carver County's zoning policy map also flags parcels with additional density options tied to a transfer of one building right per 40 acres, so ask Land Management whether that applies to a specific property before you assume how many homes it could support5. Minnesota law lets a county with fewer than 300,000 people, by the 1950 federal census, carry on county planning and zoning activities, which is the authority Carver County's zoning program runs on21.
How do septic permits work in Carver County?
Septic systems, called SSTS (subsurface sewage treatment systems) in Minnesota, are designed, installed, inspected and maintained under the oversight of Carver County Environmental Services46. Schedule an SSTS inspection by calling (952) 361-1800, or email your designs and inspection reports to [email protected]6. Statewide, MPCA sets the baseline rules, and counties, cities and townships issue construction permits for most systems, only handing large systems designed for more than 10,000 gallons a day off to the state directly22. Carver County also has its own property-transfer requirements for septic systems, including a disclosure form and an escrow process, so ask about a system's compliance and get an inspection before you close on land with an existing septic system6. Soils here make this especially important: only about 1.6% of Carver County's soils are rated free of severe limits for a conventional septic drain field by the USDA soil survey, so plan on an engineered or alternative system on almost any parcel12. If a system fails, sits in a sensitive area, or otherwise meets the county's priority criteria, Carver County's low-interest loan program can help: it charges 1.5% interest up to a $25,000 maximum loan6.
Can you live in an RV or tiny home on your land in Carver County?
Not as a permanent home: Carver County's zoning code says no garage, tent, trailer, cargo container, recreational camping vehicle or accessory building may at any time be used as a permanent dwelling unit, and temporary occupancy in one of those is allowed only under the chapter's specific standards23. A travel trailer, motor home or similar temporary home can house you while you build a permanent home, but only if you already have building and SSTS permits for the permanent home, a building permit for the temporary home, an SSTS in place before you move in, a state-code-compliant water supply, and you remove the temporary unit within two years of the permanent home's building permit and no later than 30 days after the permanent home gets its certificate of occupancy10. A travel trailer or motor home can also be used after an emergency such as a fire or tornado, generally for under 180 days, with approval from the Land Management Department and Building Official10. A manufactured home, as distinct from an RV, must be inspected under the Federal Installation Standards Programs before occupancy, and any alteration needs documentation reviewed by the state or the local building official before work begins24. Before you plan to live in an RV or place a tiny or manufactured home on land here, call Carver County Land Management to confirm what your specific township and parcel allow23.
Building a home in Carver County: the steps, in order
- Confirm your parcel is in a township, not a city, since Carver County issues the permit for townships while cities review their own21.
- Schedule an appointment with Land Management at [email protected] or (952) 361-1820, and bring your site plan, septic/well locations, building size and construction value2.
- Apply for your building permit if your structure will be over 200 square feet; anything smaller skips the permit but still has to meet setback rules12.
- If you're acting as your own contractor, use Carver County's homeowner permit option, and remember Minnesota's separate licensing exemption only protects an owner who will occupy the home or keep it as a rental, not one built for resale78.
- Line up your septic (SSTS) permit with Environmental Services before you finalize your site plan, since only about 1.6% of the county's soils are rated free of severe septic limits and most parcels will need an engineered system612.
- Once your building permit is submitted, reviewed, approved and issued, schedule your actual inspections with Metro West Inspection Services, Inc. at (763) 479-17202.
- If your land is in a mapped floodplain, get a local floodplain permit before building a house, placing fill, or installing a culvert or bridge11.
What to check before you buy land in Carver County
Water and septic: only about 1.6% of Carver County's soils are rated free of severe limits for a conventional septic drain field, and the county has its own property-transfer requirements (a disclosure form and an escrow process) for septic systems, so get an inspection before you close126. Zoning and building: confirm whether your parcel is in a township (county-permitted) or a city (city-permitted), and ask Land Management about the county's density-transfer program before assuming how many homes a large parcel could support25. Flood: a local floodplain permit is required before building a house, filling, or installing a culvert or bridge in a mapped floodplain11. Access: a new or altered driveway needs a permit from whichever authority controls the road it connects to — the County Engineer for a county road, the Town Board for a township road, or MnDOT for a state highway — and a township-road access generally needs 100 feet of separation from neighboring accesses unless the lot's recorded frontage is too narrow925. Terrain and climate: about 96.2% of Carver County's land sits at 15% slope or less and about 23% is wooded, with roughly 31.9 inches of precipitation a year, so most parcels are easy to build on from a grading standpoint even though septic soils are difficult262728. Taxes and market: Carver County's effective property tax rate runs about 1%, with a typical annual bill near $4,380, a typical home value around $496,298, and farmland running about $8,140 an acre29303132. The nearest city of 100,000 or more people is about 26 miles away in a straight line33.
Watch-outs
- Carver County contracts inspections out to Metro West Inspection Services, Inc. rather than doing them in-house, so schedule your inspection with that company at (763) 479-1720, not the county planning office2.
- Only about 1.6% of Carver County's soils are rated free of severe limits for a conventional septic drain field, so budget for an engineered or alternative system on nearly any parcel12.
- Carver County requires a septic disclosure form and an escrow process at property transfer, so confirm a system's status and schedule an inspection before you close on land with an existing septic system6.
Sources
- Building Code Overview Letter (2026 county census)
- Carver County Land Management - Building Permits (carvercountymn.gov)
- § 152.005 Application and Jurisdiction (2026 county census)
- § 152.035 SSTS Standards (2026 county census)
- Carver County Land Management - Zoning (carvercountymn.gov)
- Carver County Environmental Services - SSTS Program (carvercountymn.gov)
- Carver County Land Management - Building Permits (2026 county census)
- Sec. 326B.805 MN Statutes (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- § 152.036 Access Requirements, quoted and re-checked
- § 152.030 No Garage, Tent, Trailer, quoted and re-checked
- Floodplain Regulations (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- Share of soils without severe limits for a conventional septic drain field (USDA SSURGO): Bolthole Index county data
- Building Code Overview Letter, quoted and re-checked
- Building Code Overview Letter, quoted and re-checked
- 2025 Minnesota Statutes, section 326B.121 (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- § 152.005 Application and Jurisdiction, quoted and re-checked
- § 152.034 Setbacks, quoted and re-checked
- § 152.037 Height Regulations, quoted and re-checked
- § 152.033 Lot Requirements, quoted and re-checked
- § 152.033 Lot Requirements, quoted and re-checked
- Minnesota Statutes 2025, section 394.21: Authority to Carry on County Planning and Zoning (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- SSTS design (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- § 152.030 No Garage, Tent, Trailer, quoted and re-checked
- Manufactured home information (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- Minnesota Statutes, section 160.18: Access to roads; approaches (Minnesota statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
- Share of land at 15% slope or less: Bolthole Index county data
- Wooded share of land: Bolthole Index county data
- Annual precipitation: Bolthole Index county data
- Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data
- Median property tax bill: Bolthole Index county data
- Typical home value (Zillow): Bolthole Index county data
- Farmland value per acre (USDA census): Bolthole Index county data
- Distance to the nearest metro area: Bolthole Index county data
Written September 25, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.