Kings County, CA Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

Maximum lot coverage - the share of a parcel that buildings may occupy - is set by zone in the Kings County Development Code. Article 1 explains the measurement: coverage is the percent of the site covered by structures, found by dividing the horizontal area covered by structures (open or enclosed) by the total area within the property lines. In the residential districts, Table 5-2 of Article 5 caps the maximum area covered by structures at 40% in the Rural Residential (RR) zone and in the standard single-family R-1 zones (R-1-20, R-1-12, R-1-8 and R-1-6). The denser multi-family zones allow more: 50% in RM-3, 60% in RM-2 and 70% in RM-1.5, while the small-lot R-1-3 zone (Kettleman City only) allows up to 83.3%. In the agricultural districts (AL-10, AG-20, AG-40 and AX), Table 4-3 states 'No Limitation' on the maximum area covered by structures, since these are large parcels devoted to farming. Lot coverage works together with the setback and height standards: even where coverage allows more building, the structure must still meet the front, side and rear setbacks and the 30-foot residential height limit. Owners should confirm their parcel's zone, since the coverage cap differs sharply between rural-residential, single-family, multi-family and agricultural land.