Home Business in Pontiac, MI (2026)
4 verified home business rules for Pontiac, Michigan, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Zoning & Home Occupation Permits
In the City of Pontiac, a home occupation must leave the residence's exterior character unchanged, employ no more than two people outside the immediate family, and stay confined to the basement, garage, or up to half the floor area of one story. Zoning Ordinance Section 2.536 also caps added traffic and limits signage to one small nameplate.
Pontiac Home Occupation Zoning Conditions
Some RestrictionsPontiac Zoning Ordinance § 2.536(A)-(C),(E),(G)
2.536 Home Occupations. ... A. Exterior Appearance. The exterior appearance of the structure shall not be altered or the occupations within the residence be conducted in a manner which would cause the premises to differ from its residential character either by the use of colors, materials, construction, lighting, signs, or the emission of sounds, noises or vibrations. B. Employees. No more than...
Signage Rules
In the City of Pontiac, a home occupation may display only one nameplate sign, and it cannot exceed 2 square feet, under Zoning Ordinance Section 2.536(G). The sign rule is part of a broader package of home-occupation conditions, including a two-employee cap and a limit on how much of the house the business can occupy.
Pontiac Home Business Sign Size Limit
Some RestrictionsPontiac Zoning Ordinance § 2.536
B. Employees. ... No more than two persons other than members of the immediate family occupying the dwelling shall be employed. C. Location. Either one of the following -- the basement, garage, or no more than 50 percent of the gross floor area of one floor of a residence -- shall be used for these purposes. Use of accessory buildings for these purposes is prohibited, except the garage. ... G. ...
Customer Traffic Restrictions
In the City of Pontiac, a home occupation cannot add more than one extra vehicle's worth of traffic and parking at a time, and delivery trucks are capped at roughly once a week under Zoning Ordinance Section 2.536(E). The limit sits among the conditions the Community Development Department checks before a home business gets a certificate of occupancy, and repeat violations go to the Zoning Board of Appeals or district court.
Pontiac Home Business Client Traffic Limit
Some RestrictionsPontiac Zoning Ordinance § 2.536(E)
2.536 Home Occupations. ... Home occupations may be permitted accessory to the principal use of a residential dwelling unit under the following procedures and conditions: ... ... E. Traffic and Deliveries. The use may not increase vehicular traffic flow and parking by more than one additional vehicle at a time, and may not draw truck traffic other than a delivery by a truck no more frequently t...
Home Daycare
In the City of Pontiac, a home caring for more than six but fewer than 12 children is a group child day care home, treated as a state licensed residential facility under Zoning Ordinance Section 2.506. It must sit at least 1,500 feet from any other licensed or unlicensed residential facility, provide on-site pick-up and drop-off space, and cannot run more than 16 hours a day.
Pontiac Group Child Day Care Home Rules
Some RestrictionsPontiac Zoning Ordinance § 2.506(C)-(D)
C. Separation of Facilities. ... New state licensed residential facilities and/or homes shall be located a minimum of 1,500 feet from any other state licensed residential facility and/or home, boarding and/or lodging house, or unlicensed residential facility and/or home, as measured between the nearest points on the property lines of the lots in question. ... ... D. Group Child Day Care Homes. ...
Looking for Oakland County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Pontiac city rules.
Home Business in Oakland County →