Lancaster County, SC Accessory Structures: Shed & Carport Rules (2026)

Section 7-25(a)(1) of the Lancaster County Code states plainly that building permits are required for one-story detached accessory structures valued at $5,000 or less, and that zoning permits are required for all structures. That means there is no dollar-value exemption from the permit process for a backyard shed, detached garage or similar accessory building in unincorporated Lancaster County: low-value structures still need the building permit, and every structure needs the separate zoning permit regardless of size or cost. Section 7-22 folds accessory structures into the general scope of the Building and Manufactured Home Permit Ordinance, covering the construction of any building, structure or appurtenance, and Section 7-23 makes the county building official the enforcement official who collects the fees set under Section 7-25 and can order a stop-work notice on any structure being built contrary to the chapter.

Section 7-24(i) separately allows moving an existing one-story detached building or structure valued at $5,000 or less without the moving permit that subsection otherwise requires for relocating buildings over county roads, but that exception applies only to the act of moving the structure, not to whether a building or zoning permit is needed to place or build it. The dimensional standards themselves, how large a shed can be and how close to the property line it can sit, are set in the county's Unified Development Ordinance administered by the Planning and Zoning Department under Chapter 25, not in this chapter.