Building permits, zoning and land rules in Coryell County, Texas

Unincorporated Coryell County does not require a county building permit to build an ordinary home¹. Owner-installed industrialized housing is different: the homeowner must file a Residential Installation Permit with TDLR, separate from any local building permit⁷. Texas counties have limited fire-code authority over certain commercial, public and larger multifamily buildings; that authority does not create a general county building permit for an ordinary single-family home here⁸. County subdivision approval, septic permits and county-road driveway permits remain separate requirements^2,3.

For county building-permit questions, contact the County Judge / Commissioners Court at 620 E Main St, Gatesville, TX 76528, phone (254) 865-5911⁹. For septic permits, call the County OSSF Office at 254-213-6601³. A developer dividing land outside city limits must submit a compliant subdivision application to the Commissioners Court unless an exemption applies; applications are reviewed case by case and each may name only one subdivision². Coryell County publishes a Subdivision Development Fees document through Development and Permitting, but we could not confirm the fee amounts; ask that department for the current schedule¹⁰.

Unincorporated Coryell County has no county zoning ordinance⁵. County zoning therefore sets no minimum dwelling size, minimum lot size, lot coverage, building height, or occupancy restriction for RVs, tiny homes, manufactured homes, accessory dwellings or temporary camping on unincorporated land¹¹. That does not remove county subdivision controls or municipal zoning². McGregor, mainly in McLennan County but reaching into Coryell County, sets its own zoning inside city limits¹². The Coryell County OSSF Office serves unincorporated land and cities with county contracts; ask the city which septic authority serves an incorporated parcel⁴. For a subdivision lot fronting a TxDOT-maintained road because no interior street is feasible, the minimum building setback is 50 feet, driveway spacing is 250 feet, and TxDOT approves driveway location².

On-site sewage facilities in unincorporated Coryell County need county OSSF permits regardless of tract size, except systems grandfathered because they were installed before September 1, 1989³. Construction, alteration, extension and repair also require inspection by a TCEQ-certified OSSF inspector³. Going off-grid does not exempt an on-site sewage facility from these requirements⁴. Coryell County’s rule is stricter than the conditional statewide 10-acre exemption, so acreage alone does not waive county OSSF approval^3,13. The county rules exclude incorporated cities without an intergovernmental contract and areas regulated under an existing rule; confirm jurisdiction with the County OSSF Office before applying⁴.

For an RV or tiny-home project on unincorporated Coryell County land, plan the wastewater system before relying on an off-grid setup: an on-site sewage facility remains subject to county permitting and inspection regardless of tract size⁴. We could not confirm a countywide requirement to connect to public water or sewer; ask Development and Permitting and the serving utility about the parcel’s connection requirements². A homeowner installing industrialized housing for personal use may use TDLR’s Residential Installation Permit, but must identify and accept responsibility for the work, provide notarized certification, follow the required plans and instructions, and pay the $75 non-refundable fee⁶.

1. Establish whether the parcel is unincorporated; municipal zoning and county subdivision controls have different jurisdictions².
2. Confirm septic jurisdiction with the County OSSF Office and obtain OSSF approval before installing an off-grid sewage system⁴.
3. If dividing land outside city limits, submit a subdivision application to the Commissioners Court unless exempt; changes to existing subdivisions must also comply².
4. For access to a county-maintained road, apply for a driveway permit; even a division exempt from platting must meet the applicable 60-foot lot frontage and 200-foot driveway-spacing requirements unless an exception is granted².
5. For owner-installed industrialized housing, file TDLR’s Residential Installation Permit and pay the $75 non-refundable fee⁶.
6. For the first installation of an industrialized home, arrange foundation, set and final inspections with a Council-approved inspector; the final inspection is due within 180 days after construction starts¹⁴.

Water and soils deserve close attention here: Coryell County gets about 35 inches of rain a year but experiences severe drought roughly 31% of years, and only about 9% of its soils are rated “not limited” for a conventional septic drain field¹⁵. A low soil rating does not mean septic is impossible, but makes a site evaluation and potentially an engineered system central to the purchase decision¹⁵. About 92% of the land has a slope of 15% or less, about 28% is wooded, and nearly 23% is federal land, so verify access and neighboring ownership for the parcel itself¹⁵. Coryell County has about 81 people per square mile and roughly 84,900 residents; the nearest city of 100,000 or more is about 22 miles from the county's center¹⁵. The effective property-tax rate is about 1.4%, with a median annual bill of $2,509¹⁵. Before closing, confirm septic feasibility with the County OSSF Office and any subdivision fees, setback, or driveway conditions that affect the parcel^2,3,10.