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

We could not confirm a general building-permit requirement for a single-family home in unincorporated Presidio County; the county's only construction permit we found is a floodplain development permit application, not a general building-permit ordinance¹. Texas gives counties building-permit authority only in narrow cases, such as a fire-code permit for commercial, public and large multifamily buildings in counties with more than 250,000 people or adjacent to one⁸. Texas Local Government Code Chapter 233, Subchapter F allows qualifying counties to require inspections of new residential construction only after the commissioners court adopts a resolution or order; ask the Presidio County Judge's Office whether such an order affects your project^8,9. Where Subchapter F applies, an owner who builds a primary residence or acts as the owner's contractor is exempt from the penalty for missing an inspection notice, not from the inspection requirement or other approvals⁸. Statewide, industrialized housing, modules and modular components must meet mandatory codes effective July 2024, while non-exempt electrical work is subject to the statewide electrical code¹⁰.

We found no Presidio County building or zoning department, so there is no building-permit office to name¹. The Presidio County Judge's Office is the county's central permitting contact, including for on-site sewage facility (OSSF) applications and floodplain development permits⁹. OSSF (septic) applications go to the county's OSSF program: a single-family system permit costs $250.00, and any other system, including commercial or multifamily, costs $450.00³. A floodplain development permit application costs $50.00, requires plans and specifications when the property is in a flood plain, and is valid for one year from issuance; the Floodplain Administrator checks the flood hazard maps before the application is approved, denied or given a variance¹. Outside the city limits of Presidio and Marfa, a utility cannot connect service until you obtain a Certificate of Compliance from Presidio County, and a parcel of 10 acres or less needs a permitted water well or city water system and a certified septic or city sewer system⁴. Water wells go through a separate special district, the Presidio County Underground Water Conservation District, not the county government⁶. A driveway connecting to a state highway needs a TxDOT permit instead of a county permit⁷.

Presidio County has no zoning authority under Texas law and no zoning ordinance². Texas grants county zoning power only in narrow, specifically defined areas, and unincorporated Presidio County is outside those grants². No Presidio County rule therefore sets a minimum lot size, minimum dwelling size, setback, lot-coverage limit or building-height limit for unincorporated land². An accessory dwelling unit, manufactured home, RV, tiny home or temporary campsite on your own unincorporated land is likewise unrestricted by county zoning². City rules are different: before buying inside Marfa or Presidio, ask the relevant city planning office about its zoning, setbacks and occupancy requirements. The county answer applies only outside incorporated city limits¹¹.

Texas requires a permit to construct, install, alter, extend or repair an on-site sewage facility (OSSF) anywhere in the state¹². In Presidio County, that permit is issued by the county through its own OSSF program rather than by mail to a distant state office³. A single-family system permit costs $250.00; any other system, including commercial or multifamily, costs $450.00³. Before the system is covered, an inspection is required, and you must contact the county's office at least 7 working days in advance to schedule it; a re-inspection costs half the original permit fee³. A property on at least 10 acres may qualify for Texas's '10-acre rule' exemption from OSSF permitting if a licensed site evaluator confirms the system will sit at least 100 feet from every property line, serves a single dwelling that is the only one on the tract, and creates no nuisance or groundwater pollution¹². Water wells are regulated separately: every well in the county must be registered with the Presidio County Underground Water Conservation District, and drilling, reworking or re-equipping a nonexempt well needs a $100.00 district drilling permit that expires after 120 calendar days unless extended^6,13.

Presidio County has no zoning ordinance, so RV occupancy, tiny-home occupancy and manufactured-home occupancy on your own unincorporated land are unrestricted by county zoning². Temporary camping on your own unincorporated property is unrestricted by county zoning for the same reason². Texas grants county zoning authority only in limited, specifically defined areas, and unincorporated Presidio County is outside those grants². Inside Marfa or Presidio city limits, ask the relevant city planning office about municipal zoning and occupancy rules before moving an RV or tiny home onto a parcel¹¹. County zoning freedom does not waive other approvals: a residential setup still needs a lawful sewage solution, and construction, alteration or repair of an OSSF generally requires a permit¹².

1. Confirm your parcel is in unincorporated Presidio County; the county has no zoning ordinance there, and we could not confirm a general building-permit requirement^1,2.

1. Ask the County Judge's Office about the Certificate of Compliance that utilities require outside Presidio and Marfa⁴.
2. Apply for an OSSF (septic) permit through the county's OSSF program before you build; a single-family system costs $250.00³.
3. If your land is on at least 10 acres and meets Texas's other conditions, ask whether the 10-acre OSSF exemption applies instead¹².
4. Register any well with the Presidio County Underground Water Conservation District, and get a $100.00 drilling permit first if the well is not exempt⁶.
5. If any part of the site is in a flood hazard area, get a Presidio County floodplain development permit ($50.00) before construction¹.
6. If your driveway will connect to a state highway, submit TxDOT Form 1058 and wait for a fully executed permit before any work begins on the right-of-way⁷.
7. For anything not covered above — septic inspection scheduling, floodplain questions, general permitting — contact the Presidio County Judge's Office⁹.

The nearest city of 100,000 or more is about 174 miles from Presidio County's center, and population density is around 1.5 people per square mile¹⁴. Annual precipitation averages 12.9 inches, and severe drought has occurred in roughly 32.8% of recent years, so investigate water supply and well yield before buying¹⁴. Only 3.1% of the county is wooded, while about 64% of the land has a slope of 15% or less¹⁴. Just 17.2% of soils lack severe limits for a conventional septic drain field, so budget for a site evaluation and possibly an alternative system¹⁴. Farmland value is about $1,070 an acre, while the typical home value is about $236,634¹⁴. Typical home insurance is about $1,704 a year; the effective property-tax rate is about 1.6%, and the median annual bill is about $1,949¹⁴. Before closing, verify well records with the water district and floodplain status with the County Judge's Office^6,9.