Harnett County, NC Accessory Structures: Shed & Carport Rules (2026)

132 of the county's Unified Development Ordinance sets the baseline for every accessory building or structure in the unincorporated area. No accessory building may be erected in a required yard or within five feet of any other building on the lot. The county carves out an exception for smaller sheds: an accessory building of 600 square feet or less may go into the required side or rear yard, but only if it stays at least five feet from the property line and does not encroach into any recorded easement.

A narrower exception covers well and pump houses, which may be as small as 50 square feet and can be placed in the front, side, or rear yard, again with a five-foot line setback and no encroachment into easements or sight angles. An accessory building can sit on a separate contiguous or non-contiguous lot from the principal use it serves, but only if the principal use itself would be allowed on that lot. Manufactured homes and the cargo or trailer body of a motor vehicle cannot be used as an accessory storage structure under any circumstance.

Portable storage units get their own set of rules: a temporary unit may sit in the front yard for no more than 60 days, additional units are confined to the side or rear yard out of view from the public right-of-way, and lots of 10,000 square feet or less are capped at two accessory structures whose combined footprint cannot exceed the square footage of the principal structure. 061 applies: it is unlawful to establish or alter a use, including erecting a structure, without a land use and zoning permit issued by the Administrator.