Chapel Hill, NC Accessory Structures: Tiny Homes (2026)

Under LUMO Sec. 6.19.2, a 'Single-Family Dwelling Unit with Cottage' pairs a detached cottage with a principal single-family house on the same zoning lot. The ordinance's dimensional table sets the minimum lot size at the district's normal minimum lot size plus an additional 2,700 square feet, reserving that extra land for the second structure. The cottage itself has no maximum footprint listed but is capped at a maximum floor area of 1,500 square feet and a maximum height of 29 feet, putting it in the same height bracket as a detached accessory apartment elsewhere in Article 6.

Separation between the cottage and the principal dwelling must comply with the Fire Code rather than a fixed foot measurement, and parking for the cottage is capped at one space per bedroom. Only one cottage is allowed per zoning lot, and the dimensions of the principal single-family dwelling itself are still governed by the underlying zoning district's standards, not by the cottage table. LUMO Sec. 6.19.4's additional requirements apply to any cottage development: driveways should be shared with a recorded easement where feasible, the plat must identify the lot as containing a single-family dwelling with cottage, and the development must meet the Sec.

5.12 utilities standards. Two-family developments, which include the cottage configuration, are also barred from any neighborhood conservation district that does not otherwise permit single-family homes with accessory apartments or duplexes, so a cottage is not automatically available in every historic overlay in town.