Lynnwood, WA Home Business: Signage Rules (2026)

Lynnwood Municipal Code Section 8.40.0810(A) lists the only signs permitted in residential zones, and a home occupation sign is one of them, sharing its size limit with an ordinary occupant-identification sign. Subsection (A)(1)(c) caps the sign at two square feet if it is mounted flat against a building wall, or two square feet and no taller than 24 inches if it is freestanding. Only one sign is allowed per dwelling unit under subsection (A)(1)(a), so a home business cannot add a second sign alongside a house-number or name plaque.

A freestanding home occupation sign has to be permanently installed, not a temporary A-frame or sandwich board, and set back a minimum of five feet from the right-of-way under subsection (A)(1)(d). The code is strict on lighting: subsection (A)(1)(e) bars any internal illumination of the sign and bars external illumination directed at it as well, so a spotlight aimed at a home business sign at night is not allowed even though the sign itself can be legal in daylight. Subsection (A)(1)(f) adds that the sign's components cannot be temporary or removable, closing off the option of swapping in different message inserts.

Because the sign regulations sit inside the Unified Development Code's Chapter 8.40, a home occupation sign is also subject to the chapter's general sign standards: it needs a sign permit before placement under Section 8.40.0800(C)(1) and must be maintained in good repair, with damage or deterioration repaired within 30 days of a city notice under Section 8.40.0800(C)(4).