Brentwood, CA Accessory Structures: Shed & Carport Rules (2026)

006 of the Brentwood Municipal Code sets the standards for accessory buildings such as garages, sheds, gazebos, greenhouses, and pool houses in residential, agricultural, and open space zones. Accessory buildings cannot go in a front yard setback, must sit at least 4 feet from any other building on the lot, and must be set back 4 feet from side or rear property lines, measured from the closest point such as a roof overhang. 005. A portable shed gets its own carve-out within the required rear or side yard: it can rise no higher than the adjacent fence, capped at 7 feet, and its floor area cannot exceed 120 square feet.

The lot must still keep a clear, gated passageway at least 3 feet wide from the street to the rear yard on one side of the house, and the shed cannot block a window or an exit from the dwelling. Shipping containers used as sheds are barred outright in residential zones, with narrow exceptions for a driveway placement capped at 14 days a year, 30 days with community development director approval, or during an active, permitted construction project. Every accessory building, portable or permanent, must meet the California Building Code and get a building permit where the code requires one.

The code also caps total rear-yard coverage: buildings and structures other than pools and spas cannot cover more than 50 percent of the required minimum rear yard.