Building permits, zoning and land rules in Cheatham County, Tennessee

Yes. In unincorporated Cheatham County, residential and commercial construction and covered alterations require a building permit; the first accessory structure on a parcel is exempt when it is no larger than 200 square feet¹. Agricultural buildings supporting a commercial farm may qualify for relief from some permit requirements, but the county recommends applying, charges no permit fee, and still requires setback and final inspections⁶.

Cheatham County uses the 2018 International Residential Code, International Building Code and related amended codes². Permitted construction proceeds through footing, foundation, framing and rough-in, insulation, and final inspections⁶. The building official must issue a Certificate of Occupancy before a building or structure is used or occupied, and final septic and driveway inspections must be complete before the county final inspection⁶.

Cheatham County Building & Codes administers building permits, inspections, zoning, subdivision rules and land use in the county’s unincorporated areas². The office is at 338 Frey Street in Ashland City and can be reached at (615) 792-7915 or codes@cheathamcountytn.gov². Applications are accepted and processed until 3:30 p.m. on weekdays, and the county provides online links for permit applications, inspection scheduling and permit-status checks².

County permit fees vary by project type; the published schedule includes an archive fee and separate charges for homes, additions, manufactured or modular homes, mobile homes and commercial work⁹. An owner may obtain a permit to build the owner’s own home once every two years if the home is for individual use and will not be sold, leased or rented⁵. A hired contractor is treated as the prime contractor, must be licensed and must obtain the permit⁵.

Yes. Cheatham County enforces zoning approval and subdivision regulations in unincorporated Cheatham County; property inside a municipality is subject to that city’s rules instead². A building permit may not be issued for a lot of record smaller than one acre under the zoning resolution’s lot-of-record provisions, and district minimums vary with zoning and public water or sewer availability^7,8.

Dimensional rules are district-specific. Residential front, side and rear setbacks vary by district, residential lot coverage ranges from 20% to 40%, and residential height is limited to three stories⁸. In the Agricultural District, a single-family dwelling or individual mobile home has 50-foot front, 20-foot side and 35-foot rear setbacks; all structures together may cover no more than 20% of the lot, and the general building-height limit is 35 feet or three stories¹⁰. Confirm the parcel’s district and flood status with Building & Codes before designing or dividing land^2,11.

TDEC, rather than Cheatham County Building & Codes, issues septic permits and evaluates the site to determine the required system type¹. A septic construction permit is required to construct, modify or repair a system, and the state permit is separate from the county building permit⁴. Obtain the septic permit before dirt work or construction and present it before the county building permit is issued⁴.

Only 16.2% of mapped county soils are rated without severe limitations for a conventional drain field, so acreage alone does not establish septic suitability¹². After installation, the installer must arrange TDEC’s final inspection before covering the system; approval results in a Certificate of Completion⁴. The TDEC Nashville Environmental Field Office serves Cheatham County and can be reached at (615) 687-7000¹³. We could not confirm whether alternative off-grid sanitation is allowed on an ordinary private parcel, so ask TDEC before relying on anything other than an approved septic or sewer connection.

Cheatham County’s commercial campground and recreational-vehicle-park rules do not answer whether someone may live long-term in an RV on an ordinary private parcel. The commercial rules require zoning approval, limit a facility to fewer than 150 sites and limit a guest to 45 days in a calendar year¹⁰. Ask Building & Codes for a parcel-specific answer before moving an RV onsite; we could not confirm a general private-land temporary-camping rule.

A tiny home used as a dwelling must meet the adopted residential code and county foundation and plan requirements⁶. Manufactured and modular homes are allowed in residential zoning districts, while mobile homes are limited to the Agriculture Zoning district; each requires a building permit⁵. One accessory dwelling may be allowed per deeded lot when the owner occupies the principal dwelling, both homes share utility meters other than telephone and cable, and the accessory unit meets parking, size, setback, lot-coverage and height conditions⁸.

For unincorporated Cheatham County, use this order:

1. Ask Building & Codes to verify zoning, flood-zone status, lot size and public-road status^3,7.
2. Obtain TDEC’s septic permit and site evaluation before dirt work⁴.
3. Contact the Cheatham County Highway Department about county-road access even if a driveway exists; state-highway frontage requires a TDOT permit^3,14.
4. Submit the plans and contractor or owner-builder documents, then pay the applicable county fees and taxes³.
5. Schedule the required construction inspections, arrange the septic inspection before the system is covered, and complete final septic and driveway approvals before the county final^4,6.
6. Do not occupy the home until the building official issues the Certificate of Occupancy¹⁵.

Confirm the zoning district, lot size, legal road frontage, driveway approval, flood status and septic suitability before treating a Cheatham County parcel as buildable^3,8. The terrain deserves an early site walk: only 44.6% of the county is at a slope of 15% or less, and 75.8% is wooded¹². Those conditions can constrain the practical placement of a driveway, house and drain field¹².

Ask the serving utility whether water or sewer reaches the parcel and whether connection is required; we could not confirm a general county connection rule or a private-well permit rule. A qualifying Tennessee utility may require an existing building on an abutting parcel to connect to available sewer, but that authority does not prove service is available at a particular property¹⁶. If the parcel will be divided, Cheatham County enforces subdivision regulations in unincorporated areas, so discuss the proposed division with Building & Codes before closing¹⁷.