Building permits, zoning and land rules in Henry County, Virginia

Yes. Henry County's Department of Planning, Zoning and Inspections regulates and permits new homes, additions, alterations, manufactured-home placement, subdivision development and land disturbance². Construction, additions, repairs, renovations and changes of use are governed by Virginia's Uniform Statewide Building Code, which the local building inspections department enforces¹¹. The 2021 code edition took effect January 18, 2024¹². Apply to the building official before covered work starts; applications may be mailed, and Henry County publishes an online Building Inspection Portal^4,13. Henry County's published fee schedule charges residential new construction at $0.08 per square foot, including electrical, plumbing and mechanical work, with a $25 minimum, and adds a 2% state tax¹⁴. Exact exemptions and permit thresholds depend on the work, so describe the project to Building Inspection before assuming small or accessory work is exempt^2,15.

Henry County Building Inspection is reached at 276-634-4615, in Room #205 of the Henry County Administration Building at 3300 Kings Mountain Road in Martinsville¹⁵. Zoning, rezoning, special-use permits and variances go through Henry County Planning & Zoning at 276-634-4620 in the same building^4,15. Henry County inspects development covered by its building program, but the exact county inspection schedule and exemptions were not confirmed; ask Building Inspection when each stage must be ready^2,15. Statewide minimum inspections can include footings, foundations, framing and utilities before concealment, followed by a final inspection¹⁶. Henry County's fee schedule sets a $10 charge for an extra inspection trip caused by listed readiness or correction problems². A certificate of occupancy is generally required before occupying a regulated building, but confirm the requirement for the particular project with Building Inspection^15,17.

Yes. Henry County administers countywide zoning and its subdivision ordinance, including requests for rezoning, special-use permits and variances^2,4. County zoning jurisdiction covers unincorporated territory, while an incorporated municipality controls zoning within its own boundaries¹⁸. Henry County regulates subdivision development, although the exact thresholds, review steps and fees were not confirmed; contact Planning & Zoning before dividing land^2,15. District-specific controls can differ: the county's newly announced Data Center district, for example, has its own rezoning, hearing, special-use and setback requirements¹⁹. In the Rural Residential (R-R) and Suburban Residential (S-R) districts, structures must sit at least 35 feet from a street right-of-way that is 50 feet or wider, or 60 feet from the centerline of a narrower street^20,21. We could not confirm a minimum lot size, minimum home size or tiny-home standard for Henry County; ask Planning & Zoning for the parcel's district and applicable dimensional rules^2,15.

The Virginia Department of Health's West Piedmont Health District administers onsite-sewage permitting assistance for Henry County⁵. For property without public sewer or water, district staff guide applicants through the documents needed for a required onsite-sewage permit; an existing system may instead need Health Department certification or an upgrade permit for the proposed construction³. The local contact is the Henry/Martinsville Health Department at 295 Commonwealth Boulevard in Martinsville, reached at 276-638-2311²². The standard state application fee is $75, with specified waivers and a refund when a principal-residence site is denied²³. Only about 27.6% of Henry County soils rate free of severe limitations for a conventional septic drain field, so make the site evaluation an early purchase contingency²⁴. The available sources do not confirm a Henry County-specific inspection schedule; ask the Health Department when work must remain uncovered for approval²².

Virginia requires manufactured homes to be allowed in an agricultural zoning district, or a similar district dominated by farm or forest uses, when site-built housing is allowed there⁷. In other districts where site-built housing is allowed, a manufactured home must be converted to real property, have a certificate of occupancy issued within five years of the data-plate manufacture date and occupy an individual lot⁷. Henry County treats manufactured-home placement as regulated development¹. We could not confirm a Henry County rule for living in an RV on a private parcel or occupying a tiny home; call Planning & Zoning at 276-634-4620 with the parcel number and proposed use^2,15. Virginia's campground law excludes certain camping by an individual property owner, but that exclusion does not override county zoning, covenants or sanitation conditions and does not establish a right to use an RV as a residence²⁵.

1. Call Henry County Planning & Zoning at 276-634-4620 to confirm the zoning district, proposed use and parcel-specific dimensional standards^4,15.
2. Determine whether public water and sewer are available; Henry County Public Service Authority requests require forms and supporting documents, a $30 accounting fee and a service-dependent deposit, but the published information does not require every parcel to connect²⁶.
3. Apply through the Henry/Martinsville Health Department at 276-638-2311 for required onsite-sewage or private-well approval when public service is unavailable; the private-well application fee is $300^3,5,22.
4. Ask the proper road authority about access because we could not confirm the driveway-entrance requirement or administering office for Henry County.
5. Apply to Henry County Building Inspection at 276-634-4615 before covered work begins; the county publishes an online portal and related permit forms, while its zoning page publishes appeal, rezoning, special-use and variance applications^4,15.
6. Schedule the inspections specified by Building Inspection before work is concealed, then complete the final inspection and confirm whether a certificate of occupancy is required before moving in^2,15,16.

Start with septic and utilities: only about 27.6% of Henry County's soils rate free of severe limitations for a conventional drain field, so ask the Health Department about site evaluation and verify whether public water or sewer can serve the parcel^22,24,26. Ask Planning & Zoning for the parcel's district and whether it lies in a mapped special flood hazard area, since a building permit can be required there even for otherwise exempt work^13,15. If access runs to a state road, confirm whether the entrance already has a VDOT permit or needs one¹⁰. Henry County has about 49,702 people at 130 people per square mile, is 82.1% wooded, and has 44.6% of its land at gentle slope²⁴. The typical home value is about $142,929, with a median property-tax bill near $604 a year and an effective rate of about 0.5%²⁴.