Tarrant County, TX Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

Under Texas Local Government Code Chapter 240, counties have very limited authority to set zoning-style lot coverage caps. Tarrant County does not impose a general maximum lot coverage percentage on unincorporated parcels. However, several indirect controls function as de facto coverage limits. Recorded subdivision plats and HOA CCRs commonly cap impervious surface at 40 to 50 percent in DFW suburban platted communities, and these restrictions are enforced privately under Texas Property Code Chapter 202. Tarrant County's OSSF rules implementing 30 TAC Chapter 285 require a minimum drain-field area sized for the home, which effectively caps buildings and paving on lots served by septic. Tarrant County's floodplain regulations under the National Flood Insurance Program limit fill and impervious surface in the Special Flood Hazard Area along the Trinity River, West Fork, Clear Fork, and other mapped floodplains. Stormwater rules under Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) Construction General Permit TXR150000 require a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) for any site disturbing 1 acre or more. Within incorporated cities, zoning ordinances set specific lot coverage and impervious surface limits: Fort Worth, Arlington, Grapevine, Southlake, Keller, and Mansfield all have their own rules that preempt county authority.