Gwinnett County, GA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- RA-200 / R-LL max coverage
- 25% of lot area
- R-100 max coverage
- 45% of lot area
- R-SR max coverage
- 70%, detached lots only
- Multifamily (LRR/MRR/HRR)
- No cap, but 10% open space required
- Violation fine
- $250-$1,000 per day, Recorders Court
- Variance authority
- Zoning Board of Appeals, § 270-90
Summary
Unincorporated Gwinnett County caps building footprint under UDO § 210-120: 25% of lot area in the RA-200 and R-LL districts, 45% in R-100, 55% in R-75, 60% in R-60, and 70% in R-SR for detached lots only. R-TH, R-IF, LRR, MRR and HRR carry no coverage percentage, but multifamily and townhouse districts must still hold 10% of the site as open space.
RA-200 R-LL R-100 R-75 R-60 R-SR R-TH R-IF LRR MRR HRR Max. Coverage (% of lot) 25 25 45 55 60 70 4 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A ... Min. Open Space (% of area) 5 N/A N/A 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 4 For detached lots only. Attached villas are subject to the conditional use requirements of this Chapter. 5 Does not apply to individual lots within single-family detached residential zoning districts.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 9).
Full Breakdown
The dimensional standards table in § 210-120 sets a maximum lot coverage percentage for every base residential zoning district in the unincorporated county. The tightest caps sit in the large-lot districts: RA-200 (Agriculture-Residence) and R-LL (Single-Family Large Lot) both hold building footprint to 25% of the lot. R-100 allows 45%, R-75 allows 55%, and R-60 allows 60%. The R-SR Senior Oriented Residence District carries the highest percentage on the table, 70%, but footnote 4 limits that figure to detached lots only; attached villas in R-SR are instead routed through the conditional use requirements referenced in the table, not the flat percentage.
The R-TH Townhouse, R-IF Infill, and the three multifamily districts, LRR, MRR and HRR, show 'N/A' for lot coverage: those districts are not governed by a coverage percentage at all. Instead, footnote 5 requires a minimum of 10% open space for R-100 through HRR, though that open-space floor does not apply to individual lots within single-family detached zoning districts. A property owner in RA-200 or R-LL who wants to build past the 25% ceiling has no coverage variance built into the table; relief runs through the Zoning Board of Appeals under § 270-90, which requires a written petition, a non-refundable fee set by the Board of Commissioners, and a staff report filed at least 7 days before the hearing.
The Department of Planning and Development reviews footprint compliance at building permit application and again at framing and final inspections, so an over-built foundation gets caught before a certificate of occupancy issues.
Violations & Fines
Building or expanding past the § 210-120 coverage cap without an approved variance violates the UDO. Under § 120-70.4, Gwinnett's Recorders Court can fine a violator between $250 and $1,000, order up to 60 days in the county jail, or both, and § 120-70.3 makes each day the violation continues a separate offense. The Director of Planning and Development can also issue a stop work order under § 120-40 or suspend the certificate of occupancy under § 120-50.2 until the footprint is corrected.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the maximum lot coverage in Gwinnett County's R-100 zoning district?
Does the 70% coverage figure in R-SR apply to every home?
Is there a lot coverage limit in Gwinnett's multifamily zoning districts?
What happens if a Gwinnett homeowner builds past the coverage limit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Gwinnett County
Compare Gwinnett County to another location·View the Georgia building setbacks & zoning overview
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