Iredell County, NC Home Business: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (2026)

Performance Requirement R16, Home Occupations Customary, requires the occupation to be clearly incidental and subordinate to the residential use and prohibits it from changing the dwelling's residential character. No accessory buildings or outside storage may be used, and the occupation is limited to 25 percent of one floor of the principal building. Only residents may work in the home occupation, except that lawyers, physicians, dentists and chiropractors may each employ one assistant. No product display can be visible from the street, and only products accessory to the primary use may be sold on-site; no interior or exterior alterations inconsistent with residential use are allowed, and no machinery causing noise or radio/television interference is permitted.

Only passenger-type vehicles may be used in connection with the occupation, and music, dance or similar instruction is capped at six students at a time. R17, Home Occupations Grading, Contractors and Automotive Operation, applies instead where the use involves grading, contracting or automotive work: it requires a minimum 3-acre parcel, operator residency on-site, a 3,500-square-foot cap on associated buildings, no more than three non-resident employees, and setbacks of 30 feet from residential property with screening or 15 feet from commercially zoned property. R18, Home Occupations Rural, allows a larger 3,500-square-foot building on parcels of two acres or more with an 80-foot setback from residential property, or smaller footprints with 30-foot or 15-foot setbacks depending on the adjoining zoning, and limits vehicles associated with the use to six wheels and three axles. 1 for the specific sign regulations that apply to home-based businesses.