Raleigh, NC Accessory Structures: Tiny Homes (2026)

Raleigh is among the more tiny-house-friendly cities in North Carolina because it adopted NC Residential Code Appendix Q in 2019 and allows ADUs by-right at sizes down to the appendix's 150 square foot minimum. A tiny home on a permanent foundation, connected to city utilities, can serve as a detached ADU under UDO 2.5.1 with the standard accessory structure setbacks (5 feet side/rear) and height cap of 25 feet. It can also serve as the principal dwelling on any conforming lot, though minimum lot sizes (typically 4,000 to 10,000 square feet depending on zoning district) make this expensive per square foot. Appendix Q provides relief from some standard residential code requirements: loft ceilings can be as low as 6 feet 8 inches, egress windows in lofts can be 5 square feet instead of 5.7, and ladders can replace stairs to sleeping lofts. The tiny home must still have a bathroom with running water, a kitchen with a sink, heating capable of maintaining 68 degrees, and smoke/CO alarms. Tiny homes on wheels (THOWs), whether self-built or commercially manufactured, are treated as recreational vehicles under NC law and cannot be occupied as permanent residences on private property in Raleigh. They are allowed only in licensed RV parks or campgrounds, and even then for stays limited by park rules and county health codes. Some residents keep THOWs on rural lots in Wake County outside city limits, but within Raleigh's jurisdiction enforcement of the RV rule is active. Raleigh has no tiny-home-specific zoning overlay or dedicated tiny house village as of the current ordinance.