Johnson County, IA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Child Care Home cap
- Up to 5 children
- Child Development Home
- 6 or more children
- Escalation point
- 7+ children becomes a Child Care Center
- Zoning status
- By-right accessory use
- Coverage area
- Unincorporated county only
- Setting required
- Single-family dwelling
- Unpermitted first-offense fine
- Up to $750 civil penalty
Summary
Running a small daycare out of a single-family home in unincorporated Johnson County is allowed by right as long as headcount stays within the county's two-tier limit: up to five children makes it a Child Care Home, and six or more makes it a Child Development Home. Cross into seven or more and the county reclassifies the operation as a Child Care Center needing Board of Adjustment approval.
47. Child Care Home. A facility providing child care or preschool activities within a single-family dwelling, for up to five (5) children at any one time. 48. Child Development Home. A facility providing child care or preschool activities within a single-family dwelling for six (6) or more children at any one time. ... B. Accessory Structures and Uses. The following structures and uses are permitted in the A district, provided that they are incidental to a primary or conditionally permitted use. ... 9. Child Care Homes. 10. Child Development Homes.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: the cited page had not changed since it was quoted.
Full Breakdown
Johnson County's Unified Development Ordinance, which governs only the unincorporated areas of the county, splits small-scale child care in a residence into two by-right accessory uses. Sec. 4(47) defines a Child Care Home as a facility providing child care or preschool activities within a single-family dwelling for up to five children at any one time, while Sec. 4(48) defines a Child Development Home the same way but for six or more children at any one time. Both classifications must stay within a single-family dwelling; once a facility serves seven or more children it is reclassified as a Child Care Center under Sec.
4(46) and must instead obtain a Conditional Use Permit. The UDO lists both Child Care Homes and Child Development Homes as permitted Accessory Structures and Uses, not conditional uses, in the county's rural residential-type districts: A-Agricultural at Sec. 6(B)(9)-(10), AR-Agricultural Residential at Sec. 7(B)(7)-(8), SF-Small Farmstead at Sec. 8(B)(10)-(11), and RC-Rural Conservation at Sec. 11(B)(4)-(5). Unlike 'Home Occupations,' which the same accessory-use lists flag as subject to Zoning Administrator approval, the Child Care Home and Child Development Home entries carry no such approval note. The use must still be incidental to the property's primary dwelling per each district's general accessory-use requirement, and any supplemental conditions adopted under Sec. 24 continue to apply.
Violations & Fines
If a home daycare's enrollment grows into Child Care Center territory (seven or more children) without first obtaining the required Conditional Use Permit, county officers can enforce under UDO Sec. 8:8.2 with a stop-work order or permit revocation. Section 8:8.3 makes the unpermitted use a County Infraction carrying a civil penalty of up to $750 for a first offense and up to $1,000 for a repeat, with each day treated as a separate violation; Sec. 8:8.4 also allows a criminal fine up to $625 plus 30 days in jail.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many kids can I watch in my home without a permit?
Does this rule apply if I live in Iowa City or Coralville?
What happens if my daycare grows past six children?
Do I still need any zoning sign-off at all?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Johnson County
Compare Johnson County to another location·View the Iowa home business overview
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