Dunwoody, GA Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

Section 27-168 governs every home-based business operating out of a Dunwoody dwelling, except personal care homes, day cares, and bed-and-breakfasts, which are regulated separately under Sections 27-145, 27-137, and 27-133. Type A home occupations, such as telecommuting, writing, or consulting, need no permit because no employee, customer, or client ever visits the property. Type B occupations, covering work like tutoring, photography, or counseling, require a special land use permit under Article V, Division 3, though a teaching-related business conducted entirely inside the home instead goes through the lighter administrative permit of Article V, Division 7.

Both types share general regulations in subsection (f). The business must stay accessory and secondary to the home's residential use, may not alter the residence's exterior character (no new parking lots, commercial lighting, or separate entrances visible from the street), and cannot display signs naming or advertising the business. All activity, including storage, must occur entirely inside the dwelling and is capped at 25 percent of the unit's floor area or 500 square feet, whichever is smaller. Tools and equipment must be soundproofed so nothing is audible beyond the lot line, and hazardous materials are barred except at consumer-commodity quantities. A. Section 40-1-1 may never be parked outside a garage.