Atlanta, GA Accessory Structures: Tiny Homes (2026)

Atlanta does not have a separate "tiny house" zoning category. Under Part 16 of the Atlanta Code of Ordinances, a tiny home on a permanent foundation can be built only as a detached accessory dwelling unit in R-4, R-4A, or R-5 districts (and select SPI/historic overlays), subject to the ADU rules: maximum 750 sq ft, maximum 20 ft height, side and rear setbacks of 7 ft and 15 ft in R-4/R-4A and 4 ft and 4 ft in R-5, lot coverage capped at 50% (R-4/R-4A) or 55% (R-5), and only on lots already containing a primary single-family dwelling. Construction is reviewed under the Georgia State Minimum Standard One and Two Family Dwelling Code (2018 IRC with Georgia amendments), and Georgia adopted Appendix S in November 2017, which authorizes tiny houses on permanent foundations of 400 sq ft or less and reduces the minimum habitable room size from 120 to 70 sq ft. Tiny houses on wheels (RVs/THOWs) are not recognized as permanent dwellings and cannot be lived in full-time on a residential lot under Atlanta zoning. Pending Georgia legislation (HB 1166 in the 2025-2026 session) would preempt local rules to allow ADUs of 400 sq ft or less by-right, but as of the 2025 session it has not been enacted; HB 555 ("Georgians First Residential Property Protection Act") addresses institutional residential investors, not ADU preemption. A pending Atlanta DCP amendment would also raise the detached ADU height to 24 ft and the size cap to 1,000 sq ft and add R-4B.