Collier County, FL Building Setbacks & Zoning: Setback Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Estates (E) yards
- 75 ft front, 30 ft side, 75 ft rear
- RSF-3 yards
- 30 ft front, 25 ft rear, side 10 ft waterfront or 7.5 ft non-waterfront
- RSF-2 yards
- 40 ft front, 20 ft side, 30 ft rear
- A and RSF-1 yards
- 50 ft front, 30 ft side, 50 ft rear
- GC district
- No minimum front, side or rear yard
- Public school sites
- 50 ft principal, 25 ft accessory, from all property lines
- Measured from
- Legal lot boundary, or the road right-of-way easement line
Summary
Collier County sets minimum yards for principal structures in Table 2.1 of LDC 4.02.01. Estates (E) lots need 75 feet front, 30 feet side and 75 feet rear, RSF-3 needs 30 feet front and 25 feet rear, and GC has no minimum. Lines are measured from the legal lot boundary, or from the road right-of-way easement line.
Table 2.1, below, provides the minimum yard requirements for principal structures on conforming lots of record in base zoning districts. The following shall apply for all other lots: a. Corner Lots: Corner lots shall have front yards along each street frontage. The other yards shall be considered side yards. See LDC section 2.03.01 for Estates setbacks. [...] Note as to setback line measurement: minimum setback lines are typically measured from the legal boundary of a lot, regardless of all easements burdening a lot, with the exception of easements that comprise a road right-of-way where the minimum setback line is to be measured from the road right-of-way easement line. Zoning district Minimum Front Yard (feet) Minimum Side Yard (feet) Minimum Rear Yard (feet) Public School Requirements GC None None None A 50 30 50 x E 75 30 75 x RSF-1 50 30 50 x RSF-2 40 20 30 x RSF-3 30 Waterfront 10 Non-waterfront 7.5 25 x [...] x = for principal structures: 50 feet from all property lines; for accessory structures: 25 feet from all property lines.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 126 | Land Development Code: Supplement 33).
Full Breakdown
Table 2.1 in LDC section 4.02.01 A.1 is the single table of minimum yards for principal structures in Collier County's base zoning districts. It applies to conforming lots of record, and the site design requirements apply to the principal building on each site. The large-lot districts carry the deepest yards. The A district requires 50 feet front, 30 feet side and 50 feet rear. The E (Estates) district requires 75 feet front, 30 feet side and 75 feet rear, and Estates corner lots follow LDC section 2.03.01. RSF-1 repeats 50, 30 and 50, while RSF-2 drops to 40 feet front, 20 feet side and 30 feet rear. RSF-3 requires a 30-foot front yard, a 25-foot rear yard, and a side yard of 10 feet on waterfront lots or 7.5 feet on non-waterfront lots. The GC district lists no minimum in any yard. The last column covers public school requirements, marked x, which means 50 feet from all property lines for principal structures and 25 feet for accessory structures.
Measurement matters as much as the number. Setback lines run from the legal lot boundary no matter what easements burden the lot, except that a road right-of-way easement moves the starting point to the easement line. On a corner lot, each street frontage is a front yard and the remaining yards count as side yards.
Lot size sits beside the yards in Table 1 of the same section. A requires 217,800 square feet and 165 feet of width, E requires 98,010 square feet and 150 feet, RSF-1 requires 43,560 and 150, RSF-2 requires 20,000 and 120, and RSF-3 requires 10,000 square feet with 95 feet of width on a corner lot or 80 feet on an interior lot.
The section's exemptions soften the yards at the edges. Required yards stay open and unobstructed from 30 inches above the graded lot upward. Sills project no more than 12 inches, window or wall air conditioners, chimneys, fireplaces, bay windows and pilasters no more than 2 feet, and cornices, eaves or gutters no more than 3 feet. Fences, walls, hedges, ground-mounted air conditioners, unenclosed pool equipment and well pumps are allowed in required yards.
Violations & Fines
Section 4.02.01 prints no fine schedule, so the consequence arrives at the permit stage. A site plan or building plan that places a principal structure inside a required yard does not meet Table 2.1. Carports in commercial, industrial and multi-family developments must stay out of the required landscape buffers, and deficient landscaping has to be upgraded through a site development plan amendment or site improvement plan approval before the building permit issues. Nonconforming lots of record use the yards in LDC section 9.03.03 A instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far back must a house sit in Collier County's Estates district?
Where does Collier County measure a setback from?
Can eaves, air conditioners or fences go inside a required yard?
Does a vacant lot between two older homes need the full front yard?
Where can a permanent emergency generator go?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Collier County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Collier County to another location·View the Florida building setbacks & zoning overview
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