Forsyth County, NC Ordinances (2026)

The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County UDO sets minimum yards by zoning district: for example RS9 requires a 20-ft front, 25-ft rear, and 7-ft one-side setback. RS7 requires 15-ft front…

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County single-family districts cap impervious surface cover at 40% of the zoning lot. Detached accessory structures cannot exceed 5% of the lot (576 sq ft always…

In unincorporated Forsyth County, a detached accessory structure is limited to 17 feet maximum height under the UDO; a detached accessory dwelling unit may go up to 25 feet…

Forsyth County's animal code has no general ordinance against feeding backyard wildlife, but it bars keeping or harboring wild animals (Sec. 6-54) and prohibits public-nuisance…

Cats in Forsyth County must be licensed (Sec. 6-10) and rabies-vaccinated at three months or older (Sec. 6-25). Cats are covered by the running-at-large rule (Sec. 6-13) just like…

Keeping horses, cattle, goats, sheep, swine, and fowl on qualifying property in unincorporated Forsyth County is protected as a bona fide farm use under NC right-to-farm law (NCGS…

Forsyth County has no blanket spay/neuter mandate, but any dog the department of public health or FCSO declares dangerous or potentially dangerous, or that bites a person or animal…

Forsyth County's animal code sets no flat numeric limit on how many dogs or cats you may keep. Instead, keeping animals so as to create a public nuisance is prohibited (Sec. 6-9), and…

In Forsyth County it is unlawful to let any animal, including cats, run at large (Sec. 6-13). Dogs must be leashed in any public park, except inside a legal dog park. Legally hunting…

Forsyth County does not ban any dog breed. North Carolina law (NCGS 67-4.1) defines a 'dangerous dog' by behavior, not breed - a dog that without provocation kills or severely injures…

Forsyth County Sec. 6-54 makes it unlawful for any person or business to possess, harbor, or have an inherently dangerous exotic mammal, an inherently dangerous reptile, or a wild…

Winston-Salem parks are open 7:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., and it is unlawful to be in a public park after closing without permission. A citywide youth-protection curfew also bars anyone 17…

Forsyth County's Voluntary Agricultural District program, Code Chapter 22, exists in part to cut down nuisance suits between farmers and their neighbors. Sec. 22-2 states the district…

Forsyth County lets farmers enroll at least 5 acres in a Voluntary Agricultural District under a 10-year conservation agreement. Enrollment does not stop a landowner from farming, but…

Forsyth County Code Sec. 19-7 requires every property owner or occupant to remove accumulated solid waste at least once every seven days, and to clear out material set aside for…

Recovered material to be recycled must be removed at least every 14 days. North Carolina law bans certain items from landfill disposal, including plastic bottles, aluminum cans…

Owners or occupants must remove solid waste at least once each week. Unincorporated households and small businesses use affordable franchised garbage collection. Franchise haulers must…

Bulky waste includes appliances, furniture, trees, branches and other oversize items. Forsyth County residents dispose of household garbage, construction debris and yard waste at…

It is unlawful to dump litter or waste anywhere in Forsyth County except in an authorized container or location. Open dumps are prohibited. Report unauthorized dumping to Environmental…

Forsyth County Code Sec. 19-5 makes property owners responsible for sanitary storage of garbage, refuse, and recovered material, and sets the container standard: durable…

Forsyth County has no separate tiny-home ordinance. A permanent tiny house on a foundation is treated as a dwelling (or a detached ADU) under the UDO and NC Residential Code, while a…

You may convert an existing detached garage into an accessory dwelling unit, but the conversion must meet the UDO's ADU standards and the North Carolina Residential Code. Converting a…

The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County UDO allows one accessory dwelling unit (ADU) per lot, attached or detached, in districts that permit the principal single-family use. A detached ADU is…

Forsyth County's "Loud and disturbing noise" ordinance singles out the hours between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., when playing a radio, instrument or amplifier that disturbs a reasonable…

Neither Forsyth County's Sec. 15-1 nor Winston-Salem's Chapter 46 sets a numeric construction-hours window. Instead, Winston-Salem Sec. 46-5 bans loud domestic tools, garage machinery…

Forsyth County Code Sec. 15-1 lists keeping any animal whose frequent or long-continued noise disturbs a reasonable neighbor as a prohibited "loud, disturbing" noise at any time of day…

Forsyth County measures noise by distance, not decibels: Code Sec. 15-1(c) makes it unlawful to play a radio, tape player, or amplifying device so loudly that it disturbs or frightens…

Forsyth County and Winston-Salem set no local decibel limit on aircraft; aircraft noise and operations are regulated federally by the FAA, which preempts most local rules…

Forsyth County Code Sec. 15-1 bans playing a radio or amplifier in a vehicle on public right-of-way loud enough to be disturbing at 100 feet, and covers loud, defective or improperly…

Forsyth County and Winston-Salem set no leaf-blower-specific decibel or model ban. Winston-Salem Code Sec. 46-5 does make it unlawful to run lawn mowers and other gasoline-powered…

Forsyth County Code Sec. 15-1 prohibits playing any radio, instrument or amplifying equipment at a volume that disturbs a reasonable resident, especially between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00…

North Carolina bans most consumer fireworks countywide. Only non-aerial, non-explosive novelties (wire sparklers, fountains, snakes, smoke devices, party poppers) are allowed…

Forsyth County bars piling fast-burning pine straw or similar landscape cover within ten feet of a dwelling that has combustible siding like vinyl, aluminum, or wood. Single- and…

Recreational fires must be confined to a container such as a fire pit or chiminea, kept no larger than 3 feet high and 2 feet in diameter, and located at least 25 feet from any…

Forsyth County Code Sec. 19-10(b) strictly prohibits open burning of solid waste or recovered material anywhere in the county's solid waste program, with no seasonal or permit…

Forsyth County's Minimum Housing Standards require a working smoke detector on every floor level of a dwelling, positioned outside each sleeping area near the bedrooms and kitchen…

The county sets no fence setback, so you may place a fence anywhere on your own property except in easements and rights-of-way. Inspections advises staying at least six inches off the…

A building permit is only required for fences over six feet tall in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County. Those need engineer-sealed plans. Fences six feet or under need no permit, though you…

Under the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County UDO, a residential fence six feet or under needs no building permit; anything over six feet triggers a permit and engineer-stamped plans. No…

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County requires tree preservation on development, not on routine homeowner tree removal. Any project needing a land-disturbing (erosion control) permit must meet…

Since 2024 Winston-Salem lets residents replace lawns with registered Natural Landscape Areas of native plants. Turf grass must stay under eight inches, areas need a 5-foot setback and…

Forsyth County's Minimum Housing Standards require that yards and areas surrounding an occupied dwelling be kept free of noxious weeds and plant growth that harm health or shelter…

A Forsyth County home occupation may display only one occupancy sign no larger than 144 square inches (one square foot). There may be no salesroom or display window, and neon or…

A zoning permit from the Director of Inspections is required for a home occupation in the unincorporated county. The permit is granted only when all UDO conditions are met and is…

Home cooking, baking, and preserving are expressly allowed as a home occupation under the Forsyth County UDO. To sell packaged foods you also need North Carolina Department of…

In Winston-Salem/Forsyth County an on-premises yard or garage sale sign may not exceed two square feet, limited to one sign per lot. It may go up seven days before the sale and must…

Under the Forsyth County/Winston-Salem UDO, the base rule limits political signs to two square feet, but Winston-Salem does not enforce that cap for noncommercial signs: instead…

Forsyth County makes it unlawful to let a motor vehicle sit on your property in a state the code calls a health or safety hazard: breeding insects, collecting stagnant water, or left…

Forsyth County bans running or maintaining an open dump on any land in the county, including vacant lots, and requires anyone controlling land where one has operated to close it under…

Every dwelling, dwelling unit, or rooming unit rented or occupied in unincorporated Forsyth County must meet the minimum standards of fitness set out in section 7-113 of the county…

Forsyth County requires carbon monoxide detectors in every home with an attached garage or fossil-fuel heat, plus smoke detectors on each floor level outside every sleeping area and in…

In unincorporated Forsyth County, it's unlawful to build, alter, or demolish a building, or to install, extend, or repair plumbing, HVAC, or electrical work, without first getting a…

Unincorporated Forsyth County enforces electrical work through the North Carolina State Building Codes and National Electrical Code adopted in section 7-2, with the City of…

Before any plumbing or drainage system in unincorporated Forsyth County can be built or altered under the plumbing code adopted in section 7-2, the applicant must pay the required…

Forsyth County has no blanket overnight on-street parking ban for its unincorporated, state-maintained roads. In Winston-Salem, overnight parking is allowed on most residential streets…

Forsyth County lets the fire marshal tow any vehicle blocking a fire hydrant, marked fire lane, fire protection equipment, or fire station, and bills the owner for removal and storage…

Forsyth County's own abandoned-vehicle chapter defines when a car counts as abandoned or junked, from being left on private land over two hours without consent to sitting on public…

Forsyth County and Winston-Salem regulate light trespass only from non-residential property, requiring lighting to be shielded so it does not spill onto neighbors. Glare from one home…

Forsyth County bans consuming or possessing malt beverages, wine, spirits, or mixed drinks at ten named county parks unless the county manager designates an area and posts hours…

North Carolina has no statewide short-term-rental licensing preemption, and neither Forsyth County nor Winston-Salem issues a dedicated STR permit. A whole-house rental is treated as a…

State law, not a Forsyth County ordinance, actually forces the issue: G.S. 160D-1110(a) makes it unlawful to construct any "building or structure," which includes an in-ground or major…

Forsyth County inspects dwellings, including rentals, under its Minimum Housing Standards article rather than a routine city-style rental registration program. The housing…

Every pawnbroker doing business in Forsyth County must create a daily paper and computerized record of each day's pawn transactions under Code Sec. 17-2, and transmit that computerized…

Forsyth County requires every dwelling's foundation, walls, roof, windows and doors to be kept rodent-proof and in good repair, and puts owners and renters on the hook for pest control…