Rutherford County, TN Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

Section 404's Table 1, Residential Districts Bulk Regulations, sets maximum lot coverage alongside minimum lot size, width and setbacks for each residential district. The Agricultural Residential (AR) and Low Density Residential (RL) districts cap coverage at 20% for residential uses and 50% for other uses, both under a 35-foot height limit. The Medium Density Residential (RM) district allows 40% coverage, also at 35 feet of height. These figures apply to zone lots and buildings, including enlargements, extensions and conversions, and existing structures that already exceed them become nonconforming under Chapter 13 rather than being grandfathered outright.

3 states the total area of structures, including all detached accessory structures, cannot exceed the maximum lot coverage allowed by the zoning district. 4 then layers on a separate square-footage cap for detached accessory buildings on residential lots: 2,000 square feet combined on a parcel of one acre or less, or 5% of lot area on parcels larger than one acre, counting the whole structure including any staircase-accessed bonus space. Buildings used exclusively for agricultural purposes are exempt from both the accessory-structure size table and the Section 404 bulk table entirely.

Storm shelters, swimming pools, tennis courts and similar recreational features are not counted as buildings for the accessory square-footage calculation, though they still count as impervious coverage for stormwater purposes elsewhere in the code. A property owner who cannot meet the district's lot coverage limit can apply to the Board of Zoning Appeals for a variance under Section 1407, but the Board must find genuine physical hardship tied to the lot itself; financial hardship alone does not qualify, and the variance must be the minimum needed for reasonable use of the land.