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

At a glance

Building permit

Not required under the state residential program in unincorporated areas; unrelated local permits may still apply¹

Zoning

County zoning is unconfirmed for unincorporated areas; McEwen and Waverly have municipal zoning⁵⁶⁷

Septic permits

Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Nashville Environmental Field Office⁴⁸

Owner-builder

One permit every two years to build your own home, but this is a state licensing exemption, not a county building-permit requirement here⁹¹⁰

Subdivision (plat) review

Required by the county Planning Commission for splitting land, outside the Waverly and New Johnsonville planning regions and McEwen city limits²¹¹

Floodplain permit

Required before construction, fill or grading near a mapped flood zone, from the County Executive's Office³¹²

Setbacks (unzoned areas)

40 ft from arterial streets, 30 ft from collector/minor streets, 15 ft side and rear, under the county's subdivision regulations¹³

Agricultural buildings

Exempt from county zoning regulation if incidental to the agricultural enterprise, away from highways, airports and floodplains¹⁴

Who to call

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on September 28, 2026.

Do you need a building permit in Humphreys County, Tennessee?

No state-program residential building permit is required for a one- or two-family home or townhouse in unincorporated Humphreys County because the county is listed as OPT OUT; this answer does not rule out unrelated local permits¹. The state table separately lists New Johnsonville as OPT OUT and McEwen and Waverly as EXEMPT, but those labels do not resolve separate municipal codes¹⁵. An owner in an opt-out jurisdiction may request a State Fire Marshal inspection during construction, and a qualifying home can receive a state Certificate of Occupancy¹⁶¹⁷. Tennessee's owner-builder rule also allows a property owner one permit every two years for a personal home that is not for sale, lease or rent, subject to its contractor-licensing conditions¹⁰. Floodplain, septic and subdivision approvals remain separate from the residential program³⁴².

Who handles land-use permits in Humphreys County, and how do you reach them?

For a land split in the county planning jurisdiction, start with the Humphreys County Planning Commission in Room 1 of the Rawlings Building, 102 Thompson Street, Waverly, TN 37185, at (931) 296-7795¹¹. The commission meets on the fourth Monday of each month, except December, and plat submissions are due three Fridays before the scheduled meeting¹¹. For construction, fill or grading near a flood zone, contact the Humphreys County Executive's Office at the same street address and phone number before work begins¹². TDEC, rather than county government, administers septic permitting through the Nashville Environmental Field Office at 711 R.S. Gass Blvd, Nashville, TN 37216, phone (615) 687-7000⁴⁸. We could not confirm a county building or zoning office for unincorporated parcels, so ask the Planning Commission which county contact applies to a specific project⁵¹¹.

Does Humphreys County have zoning?

County zoning for unincorporated Humphreys County remains unconfirmed, not a settled no⁵. Municipal parcels are different: McEwen administers its own zoning ordinance and official zoning map, while Waverly answers land-use questions from its current zoning map and each property's classification⁶⁷. Outside the Waverly and New Johnsonville planning regions and McEwen city limits, the county's Subdivision Regulations govern land division². In unzoned areas or areas without designated setbacks within that jurisdiction, the regulations set building setbacks of 40 feet from arterial-street rights-of-way, 30 feet from collector or minor-street rights-of-way, and 15 feet at side and rear lot lines¹³. Tennessee law allows counties to adopt zoning outside municipalities, so the Planning Commission should confirm the status for a specific unincorporated parcel¹⁸¹¹. Agricultural buildings qualify for a county-zoning exemption only when the land is devoted to agriculture and the structure is incidental to that enterprise, with exceptions near specified public facilities and in the one-hundred-year floodplain¹⁴.

How do septic permits work in Humphreys County?

TDEC's Division of Water Resources, rather than Humphreys County, administers septic permits for construction, modification and repair⁴¹⁹. TDEC's Nashville Environmental Field Office serves Humphreys County and can be reached at (615) 687-7000⁸. Obtain the septic permit before dirt work or construction of the building pad; a complete application may take up to 45 days to process²⁰. A conventional permit costs $400 for up to 1,000 gallons per day of design flow, with $100 for each additional 1,000 gallons per day²¹. After installation, the installer must arrange the final inspection before covering the system, and TDEC issues the Certificate of Completion after approval²². Only 0.9% of Humphreys County soils are rated without severe limitations for a conventional drain field, so a site evaluation may point toward an alternative design²³. A septic-served land division needs a subdivision evaluation unless every resulting parcel is at least 5 acres²¹. Before an electrical inspector processes service for a proposed house, written proof must show public sewer service, a septic application or an existing septic system²⁴. We could not confirm whether a private well requires its own property-owner permit; ask TDEC's Division of Water Resources⁸.

Can you live in an RV or tiny home on your land in Humphreys County?

We could not confirm a rule for long-term RV occupancy, temporary camping, tiny-home occupancy or manufactured-home placement on private land in unincorporated Humphreys County. Those gaps are not permission or a ban, and the unresolved county-zoning question makes parcel-level confirmation especially important⁵. Ask the Humphreys County Planning Commission what applies at the address before buying a unit or preparing a site¹¹. Inside McEwen or Waverly, contact the relevant city because both municipalities administer zoning, and a city's rules do not answer the question for unincorporated land⁶⁷. The county's state-program opt-out addresses residential building permits for one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses; it does not establish RV, tiny-home or manufactured-home occupancy rights¹. Electrical service for a proposed house also requires written proof of public sewer service, a septic application or an existing septic system before the inspector processes the request²⁴.

What are the steps to build a home in Humphreys County?

<ol><li>Ask the Planning Commission whether county zoning or another land-use rule applies to the parcel and proposed use⁵¹¹.</li><li>If you are splitting land, complete subdivision plat review; minor subdivisions of 1-3 lots cost $250, while major subdivisions cost $400 plus $25 per lot²⁵².</li><li>Ask the County Executive's Office whether the work is near a flood zone, because construction, fill and grading there require a county permit before work starts¹²³.</li><li>Apply through TDEC before septic work, dirt work or building-pad construction; a complete application may take up to 45 days⁸²⁰.</li><li>Confirm that no unrelated local permit applies; the county's opt-out removes the state-program residential permit for covered homes in unincorporated Humphreys County¹.</li><li>If desired, request the optional State Fire Marshal inspection path toward a state Certificate of Occupancy¹⁶¹⁷.</li><li>Arrange the septic final inspection before covering the system, then prepare the required sewer or septic proof for electrical service²²²⁴.</li></ol>

What should you check before buying land in Humphreys County?

Soils are the biggest catch here: only 0.9% of Humphreys County's land is free of severe limitations for a conventional septic drain field, so assume a standard system won't work on most parcels and budget for a site evaluation and likely an engineered system before you commit²³. Terrain is more forgiving, with 48.6% of the county at 15% slope or less, so check the specific parcel's grade rather than assuming easy building on hillier ground²⁶. The county gets 53.7 inches of rain a year with severe drought in only 4.9% of years, and 76.5% of the land is wooded, which matters for clearing and access costs²⁷²⁸²⁹. Ask the Planning Commission directly whether zoning applies to your parcel and confirm flood-zone status with the County Executive's Office before you close, since neither is settled countywide and both affect what you can build¹¹¹². If your driveway will connect to a state highway, Tennessee requires a TDOT entrance permit before construction, on top of anything the county requires³⁰. Typical property tax in the county runs about a 0.5% effective rate, with a median bill near $895 a year, against a typical home value around $258,996³¹³²³³.

Watch-outs

• Humphreys County's building-code opt-out and the absence of a confirmed zoning ordinance can look like "no rules," but subdivision review, floodplain permits and state septic permitting all still apply — confirm each with the Planning Commission, County Executive's Office and TDEC before you build³⁴³⁴.
• RV, tiny-home, temporary-camping and manufactured-home occupancy on private land are open questions with no official Humphreys County or Tennessee source confirming or prohibiting them — call the Planning Commission before you plan around any assumption¹¹.
• McEwen and Waverly administer municipal zoning, so do not apply the unresolved unincorporated-county zoning answer to property inside either city⁶⁷.

Sources

1. Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors, quoted and re-checked
2. Subdivision Regulations of Humphreys County, Tennessee, quoted and re-checked
3. Public Notices & Meeting Calendar, quoted and re-checked
4. TDEC - Subsurface Sewage Disposal Systems (SSDS) (2026 county census)
5. (2026 county census)
6. Planning and Zoning – City of McEwen Tennessee, quoted and re-checked
7. Frequently Asked Questions – City of Waverly, quoted and re-checked
8. Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Nashville Environmental Field Office (tn.gov)
9. Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors (2026 county census)
10. Can I build my own home without a license?, quoted and re-checked
11. Humphreys County Planning Commission (humphreyscountytn.gov)
12. Humphreys County Executive's Office (humphreyscountytn.gov)
13. Subdivision Regulations of Humphreys County, Tennessee, quoted and re-checked
14. Exemption from County Zoning Regulation for Buildings on Land Used for Agriculture, quoted and re-checked
15. Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors, quoted and re-checked
16. Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors, quoted and re-checked
17. Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors, quoted and re-checked
18. Tennessee Attorney General Opinion No. 10-108 (Tennessee statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
19. Subsurface Sewage Disposal System (SSDS) Frequently Asked Questions, quoted and re-checked
20. Subsurface Sewage Disposal System (SSDS) Frequently Asked Questions, quoted and re-checked
21. Septic System Construction Permit, quoted and re-checked
22. Subsurface Sewage Disposal System (SSDS) Frequently Asked Questions, quoted and re-checked
23. Share of soils without severe limits for a conventional septic drain field (USDA SSURGO): Bolthole Index county data
24. Online Application for Septic Related Services, quoted and re-checked
25. Planning Commission, quoted and re-checked
26. Share of land at 15% slope or less: Bolthole Index county data
27. Annual precipitation: Bolthole Index county data
28. Share of years in severe drought: Bolthole Index county data
29. Wooded share of land: Bolthole Index county data
30. Highway Entrance Permits (Tennessee statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
31. Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data
32. Median property tax bill: Bolthole Index county data
33. Typical home value (Zillow): Bolthole Index county data
34. Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors, quoted and re-checked

Written September 28, 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.