Guilford County, NC Code Violation Reporting: Common Violations (2026)

UDO Subsec. B lists the specific acts the county treats as ordinance violations: occupying, developing, or using land or a structure without first obtaining the required permits or development approvals; subdividing land without approval; excavating, grading, cutting, or clearing without a land-disturbing permit; installing or altering a sign without a sign permit, or failing to remove a sign whose permit has expired; creating or expanding a nonconformity outside the ordinance's rules; and reducing required dimensional standards or increasing density beyond what is approved. Subsec. A treats any failure to comply with a permit's terms or conditions as a violation in its own right, and clarifies that a permit only authorizes the exact use, density, and design it describes.

Under Subsec. C, every calendar day an offense remains unremedied after a Notice of Violation is served is a separate offense, and Subsec. D holds the owner, tenant, occupant, architect, engineer, builder, or contractor personally responsible. Subsec. F lets the county pick up enforcement at the same stage reached in a prior case if the same offender repeats a violation within two years. The county's Enforcement Officer may also revoke a permit outright for false statements or a permit mistakenly granted in violation of state or local law (Subsec. A).