Ann Arbor allows home occupations without a special permit if you meet the performance standards: use no more than 25% of the dwelling's floor area, no more than one nonresident employee, and no more than 24 client visits per day (six at a time), between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.
Washtenaw County does not license home occupations; cities and townships set the rules. Ann Arbor's Unified Development Code permits a home occupation as an accessory use provided it meets performance standards: it must be incidental and secondary to residential occupancy; storage of goods and materials must be entirely indoors; a maximum of 25% of the principal dwelling's floor area may be used; no more than one nonresident employee is allowed; and client visits are capped at 24 per day and six at a time, only between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. No truck or van over 10,000 pounds may be regularly parked on site. Other Washtenaw municipalities set their own comparable standards.
Exceeding the floor-area, employee, client, or hours limits makes the home occupation noncompliant; the city can issue zoning-enforcement orders and require the use to cease.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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See how Washtenaw County's home occupation permits rules stack up against other locations.
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