Local rules and regulations for Mobile County, Alabama. Population: 414,809.
Verified from official government sources
Select a topic to see Mobile County's rules on that subject.
Alabama has no statewide short-term rental permit, and unincorporated Mobile County requires none. A host needs only a state lodgings-tax account; the county issues no STR license and…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance set short-term rental parking. In unincorporated areas guests park on-site or on the road freely, limited only by HOA covenants and…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance cap short-term rental occupancy. In unincorporated areas the practical ceiling is the property's septic system, sized under Alabama…
Alabama sets no short-term rental insurance mandate, and unincorporated Mobile County requires none. Coverage is a private matter: platform host protection plus a landlord or STR…
Short-term rentals owe Alabama's 4% state lodgings tax under Ala. Code §40-26-1, plus Mobile County and city lodgings taxes. Stays of 180 continuous days or more are exempt.
No short-term rental noise rule exists in unincorporated Mobile County. Guests answer to the same state disorderly-conduct law as everyone else, Ala. Code §13A-11-7, which makes…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance restrict leaf blowers. In unincorporated areas they run at any hour; the only backstop is the disorderly-conduct bar on unreasonable…
Unincorporated Mobile County has no amplified-sound permit or curfew. Loud speakers, bands, and parties are governed only by state disorderly-conduct law, Ala. Code §13A-11-7, which…
Unincorporated Mobile County sets no construction-hour limits. The county cannot zone or regulate work times, so building may proceed day or night, bounded only by the…
Unincorporated Mobile County sets no quiet hours. Alabama counties cannot pass general noise ordinances, so the only limit is state disorderly-conduct law, Ala. Code §13A-11-7, which…
No Mobile County ordinance limits barking in unincorporated areas. A dog owner who recklessly allows persistent barking to disturb neighbors can be charged with disorderly conduct…
Backyard fire pits are legal in unincorporated Mobile County. ADEM's open-burning rule exempts recreational fires and cooking fires outright, so no permit is needed to enjoy a fire pit…
Consumer fireworks are legal in Mobile County. Alabama law permits Class C consumer fireworks statewide, and unincorporated county residents may buy and shoot them. Buyers must be 16…
Outdoor burning is legal in unincorporated Mobile County under ADEM rules, but when the State Forestry Commission declares a drought emergency, Ala. Code § 9-13-141 makes all outdoor…
Alabama maps no regulatory wildfire hazard zones, and Mobile County has no authority to impose defensible-space or fire-hardening building rules. Wildfire risk is managed by the…
Clearing brush by burning is allowed in unincorporated Mobile County under ADEM Admin. Code r. 335-3-3-.01, but the pile must sit 500 feet from any neighboring dwelling, and the…
Nothing in Alabama law or Mobile County ordinance restricts installing a home EV charger, and the county cannot zone unincorporated lots. A home charger simply needs an electrical…
Unincorporated Mobile County cannot zone residential lots, so there is no county rule against parking an RV, boat, or trailer on your own property. In this Gulf Coast boating region…
There is no Alabama statute or Mobile County ordinance barring you from parking a work truck, van, or commercial vehicle at your home in unincorporated areas. The county cannot zone…
Abandoned vehicles in Mobile County are handled under the Alabama Abandoned Motor Vehicle Act, Ala. Code § 32-13-1. A vehicle counts as abandoned once it has gone unclaimed for at…
Mobile County has no zoning authority over unincorporated residential driveways, so there is no county rule dictating driveway surface, size, or how many vehicles you park. HOA…
Alabama has no statewide overnight parking ban, and Mobile County cannot zone unincorporated areas, so there is no county rule against leaving a vehicle parked overnight at your home…
Parking on public roads in Mobile County, including unincorporated county roads, is governed by the state traffic code. Ala. Code § 32-5A-137 bars stopping or parking on sidewalks, in…
Unincorporated Mobile County requires no permit to build a residential fence; Alabama's Dillon's Rule gives the county no general fence-permit power. Permits are a city matter for…
Alabama's Dillon's Rule bars counties from zoning, so unincorporated Mobile County sets no fence-height limit, and no state statute caps residential fence height. Height rules exist…
Unincorporated Mobile County requires no permit for a residential retaining wall, and no Alabama statute sets a statewide height trigger. Permit and engineering requirements apply only…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County rule restrict residential fence materials. Wood, vinyl, chain-link, aluminum, and wrought iron are all lawful. Only city ordinances or recorded…
No Mobile County ordinance and no Alabama statute impose a residential pool-barrier rule on unincorporated land. The 48-inch barrier standard applies only inside cities that enforce…
Alabama shares boundary-fence cost by statute. Ala. Code §35-7-3 makes a partition fence between improved lands the joint expense of both adjoining occupants, so a neighbor who…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance ban feeding wildlife generally. But state hunting rules restrict baiting game, feeding alligators is illegal, and feeding that draws…
Alabama bans possessing many exotic and wild animals. ADCNR regulation 220-2-.26 prohibits possessing or importing listed species, including foxes, raccoons, coyotes, venomous…
Alabama law requires dogs be confined to the owner's premises. Ala. Code §3-1-5 orders every owner to keep dogs on their own land, and Mobile County enforces at-large and rabies rules…
Beekeeping is legal across unincorporated Mobile County and treated as agriculture. Ala. Code §2-14-3 requires every beekeeper to register their colonies each year by October 1 with…
Backyard chickens and livestock are allowed in unincorporated Mobile County; no county zoning bans them. But Alabama abolished open range: Ala. Code §3-5-2 bars letting any animal run…
Alabama has no statewide breed ban and no law barring cities from adopting one; the state is silent. Unincorporated Mobile County restricts no breed. Emily's Law targets dangerous dogs…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance limits trimming trees on your own land in the unincorporated county. You may prune freely. Inside the City of Mobile, right-of-way…
Rainwater harvesting is legal and unregulated throughout Mobile County. No Alabama statute limits collecting rain, and the county has no ordinance. Rain barrels and cisterns for the…
No Alabama statute or Mobile County ordinance restricts native or drought-tolerant planting. You may replace lawn with native Gulf Coast species, pollinator beds, or wildflower meadows…
Mobile County's weed power in unincorporated areas is narrow: under Ala. Code §11-3A-2 the commission may abate overgrowth only as a public nuisance, using the 12-inch standard of…
You may remove trees on your own land in unincorporated Mobile County without a county permit. Alabama has no statewide tree-protection law and the county has no zoning authority. The…
Mobile County can act on overgrown lots in unincorporated areas, but only as a nuisance under Ala. Code §11-3A-2, which adopts the state's 12-inch weed standard. There is no routine…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance governs artificial turf. In unincorporated areas you may install it freely. Only HOA architectural covenants restrict synthetic lawns…
Alabama sets no statewide lawn-watering ban. In Mobile County, restrictions come from your water provider, triggered when the state Office of Water Resources issues a drought…
Running a child-care home for pay in Mobile County requires a license or approval from the Alabama Department of Human Resources under Code Section 38-7-3. The county neither licenses…
Mobile County cannot zone land use under Alabama's Dillon's Rule. In the unincorporated county a home business faces no county location, use, or square-footage limit. Only recorded HOA…
Mobile County does not regulate home-business signs in unincorporated areas. No county sign permit, size cap, or setback applies to a sign at your house. HOA deed restrictions and…
Mobile County places no limit on customers or client visits to a home business in unincorporated areas. There is no county cap on daily visitors, parking, or deliveries. Deed…
Alabama's Cottage Food Law lets you sell approved home-produced foods from a Mobile County home with no permit or health inspection. A 2021 amendment removed the sales cap, so there is…
Mobile County issues no tree-removal permits and has no authority to require one in unincorporated areas. Permits exist only inside the City of Mobile, which regulates protected and…
Alabama designates no heritage or landmark trees by statute, and Mobile County protects none in unincorporated areas. The City of Mobile, a Tree City USA, guards heritage and specimen…
No Alabama statute and no Mobile County ordinance requires replacing a removed tree in unincorporated areas. Replanting mandates exist only inside cities like Mobile, or as a condition…
An above-ground pool gets no special break in Mobile County. It needs a county building permit under the adopted 2012 IRC, and as an outdoor pool the MCHD Rules §9.2 barrier applies…
A public or semi-public spa in Mobile County is permitted and inspected like a pool. MCHD Rules §4.8 require an anti-vortex, anti-entrapment drain cover, and a private hot tub needs a…
Pool safety in Mobile County turns on two things: self-latching gates and drain covers. MCHD Rules §9.2 require self-closing, positive self-latching gates, and §4.8 requires an…
A public or community pool in unincorporated Mobile County needs two permits. MCHD Rules §2.5 require a Plan Review Letter from the Health Department, and Inspection Services issues…
Public and semi-public pools in Mobile County must sit behind a barrier at least four feet high under MCHD Rules §9.2. A private backyard pool has no county fence ordinance and no…
A food truck operating in Mobile County must be approved by the county Health Officer before it works there. Under Alabama's Food Establishment Sanitation rules a mobile unit needs…
Mobile County sets no vending zones or location districts for food trucks; it cannot zone unincorporated land. An approved mobile unit may operate wherever the property owner allows…
Growing marijuana at home is a crime everywhere in Alabama, including unincorporated Mobile County. Possessing marijuana for personal use is unlawful possession in the second degree, a…
Recreational cannabis retail is illegal in Alabama. The only lawful outlets are medical dispensaries licensed by the state Medical Cannabis Commission, and Code Section 20-2A-51 bars…
A backyard shed in unincorporated Mobile County faces no zoning and no setback rule, because the county has no zoning. A shed still falls under the adopted 2012 IRC building permit…
A carport in unincorporated Mobile County faces no zoning setback, because the county has no zoning. As a roofed structure on the hurricane coast, it still needs a county building…
Mobile County has no zoning, so it cannot bar an accessory dwelling unit. But a detached living unit needs a county building permit and, off public sewer, an ADPH onsite sewage permit…
A tiny home's status in Mobile County turns on its foundation. On a foundation it is a dwelling needing a county building permit and, off sewer, an ADPH septic permit under r. 420-3-1…
Converting a garage to living space in Mobile County is a change of use needing a county building permit under the adopted 2012 IRC. Adding a bathroom off public sewer triggers an ADPH…
Mobile County runs no countywide curbside route, but Alabama Code §22-27-3 makes every household and business generating solid waste subscribe to an approved service. In the…
No county ordinance sets when or where carts go to the curb in unincorporated Mobile County. Set-out day and time follow your private hauler's route, and cart storage between pickups…
Alabama has no recycling mandate, and Mobile County requires nothing to be separated or diverted. Recycling in the unincorporated Gulf Coast is entirely voluntary, offered through…
Large items must reach an approved disposal site, not a ditch or vacant lot. Illegal dumping in unincorporated Mobile County violates Alabama Code §22-27-7 and the county Junk Control…
This does not apply on the Gulf Coast. Mobile County sees no measurable snow, maintains no sidewalk-clearing ordinance, and imposes no shoveling duty on property owners in…
Mobile County issues no garage-sale rules for unincorporated areas. Alabama counties can't zone or license residential sales, so how often and how you run a yard sale is a matter of…
Where you store trash and recycling carts is not a Mobile County matter. The county sets no screening or storage rule for unincorporated areas; keeping bins out of view is governed by…
Mobile County directly polices blight in unincorporated areas. Alabama Code §45-49-170.51 makes it a public nuisance to let any lot or premises accumulate garbage, junk, debris…
Overgrown vacant lots are reachable in unincorporated Mobile County. Under Alabama Code §11-3A-2, the county may abate weeds as a public nuisance defined in §11-67-60 — grass or weeds…
There is no garage-sale permit in unincorporated Mobile County. Alabama counties have no power to license residential sales, so no county application, fee, or approval exists. Any…
Mobile County sets no cap on how often you can hold a yard sale in unincorporated areas. Counties can't regulate residential sales, so there is no annual limit — frequency is…
No county ordinance sets yard-sale hours in unincorporated Mobile County. The county cannot regulate residential sales, so start and end times are unrestricted by county law; only…
Mobile County sets no building height limit. Alabama counties lack zoning authority, so height caps in unincorporated areas exist only through HOA deed restrictions and subdivision…
Mobile County sets no yard setbacks. Alabama counties have no zoning power over unincorporated land. The county controls property only through subdivision platting under Ala. Code…
Mobile County sets no lot-coverage or impervious-surface limit. Alabama counties cannot zone unincorporated land. Coverage caps come from HOA deed restrictions and drainage rules tied…
Any land disturbance in unincorporated Mobile County that discharges construction stormwater to a water of the state needs an NPDES permit before work begins. ADEM administers the…
Clearing or grading one acre or more in unincorporated Mobile County makes the site a regulated NPDES construction site under ADEM Chapter 335-6-12. The operator must register and…
Alabama authorizes Mobile County to manage flood-prone areas so property qualifies for the National Flood Insurance Program. The county's flood damage prevention rules require a…
Unincorporated Mobile County lies within Alabama's regulated coastal area under the Coastal Area Management Act. ADEM must review and approve permits for development in the coastal…
Grading that disturbs one acre or more in unincorporated Mobile County falls under ADEM's construction stormwater program, Chapter 335-6-12. Smaller earthwork is exempt from state…
Mobile County and City of Mobile parks close at posted hours, generally dawn to dusk. Chickasabogue Park and other county parks lock their gates at closing. Remaining after hours is…
Unincorporated Mobile County enforces no juvenile curfew because Alabama counties lack that police power. Municipalities set curfews under Ala. Code §11-45-1, and the City of Mobile…
Mobile County has no dark-sky lighting ordinance, and Alabama has no statewide dark-sky law for private property. Shielded or full-cutoff lighting requirements come only from HOA deed…
Mobile County has no light-trespass ordinance, and Alabama has no statute limiting light spilling onto a neighbor's property. Remedies come from HOA deed restrictions and a common-law…
Rent control is illegal in unincorporated Mobile County. Alabama Code §11-80-8.1 bars every county, city, and town from enacting or enforcing any ordinance that would control the rent…
Unincorporated Mobile County has no rental registration. Alabama counties have no zoning or home-rule power, so the county cannot license, register, or inspect residential rentals. A…
Alabama has no just-cause eviction rule, and Mobile County cannot add one. Under Alabama Code §35-9A-421 a landlord ends a tenancy with a seven-business-day written notice for unpaid…
Rooftop solar in unincorporated Mobile County goes through a building and electrical permit and an interconnection agreement with the serving utility, usually Alabama Power. Wiring…
Alabama has no solar access law. Unlike Texas, California, or Florida, no statute stops a homeowners' association in Mobile County from restricting or banning rooftop solar. A recorded…
Mobile County has no ordinance regulating holiday lights, inflatables, or yard displays in unincorporated areas, and Alabama has no statute on them. A homeowner may decorate without a…
Political signs are unregulated by Mobile County on private property — the county has no sign ordinance. Alabama Code §23-1-6 bars signs in a state highway right-of-way, and no Alabama…
Garage-sale signs face no Mobile County rule on your own property — the county has no sign ordinance. But Alabama Code §23-1-6 makes it illegal to plant a sign in a state highway…
Mobile County does not issue or require door-to-door solicitor permits in unincorporated areas; Alabama gives counties no general licensing power over peddlers. Door-to-door sellers…
Mobile County runs no no-knock registry, but a posted "No Soliciting" or "No Trespassing" sign carries legal force. Entering or remaining on posted premises after that notice is…
Recreational drone flights over Mobile County follow federal FAA rules under 49 U.S.C. 44809: register drones over 250 grams, pass the TRUST test, fly below 400 feet, keep line of…
Commercial drone operators in Mobile County follow FAA 14 CFR Part 107: hold a Remote Pilot Certificate, register the aircraft, fly below 400 feet, keep line of sight. Alabama adds no…
These cities are located within Mobile County and may have their own ordinances.
These communities are in unincorporated Mobile County. County ordinances apply directly to these areas.
Ordinance data for Mobile County is sourced from the following official government references. Click any topic above for detailed citations.