Accessory Structures in Ohio (2026)

Dayton allows one accessory dwelling unit per single-family lot, sized up to 66% of the principal home, but it needs…

Rural District homeowners can add an 816-square-foot accessory apartment inside the main house or attached garage, with…

Butler County has no countywide zoning, so accessory dwelling units are governed by whichever township or city you live…

Cincinnati allows one accessory dwelling unit per single-family lot under Zoning Code § 1421-06, attached, added-on, or…

Columbus allows one accessory dwelling unit per residential lot under Zoning Code § 3332.355, letting homeowners add a…

Hamilton County has no countywide ADU code. Accessory dwelling units are governed by your municipality's zoning or, in…

Since Ordinance 07-2023 (adopted Nov. 20, 2023), Lakewood permits accessory dwelling units as a conditional use in the…

Ohio has no statewide ADU mandate, and Lorain County does not zone incorporated cities. In Elyria's low-density…

Medina allows one in-law suite per detached single-family dwelling, capped at forty percent of the home's total gross…

Montgomery County has no countywide accessory-dwelling-unit ordinance. Whether an ADU, in-law suite, or backyard…

Summit County has no countywide accessory dwelling unit (ADU) rule. In Ohio, incorporated cities and villages zone…

Toledo allows one accessory dwelling unit per single-family lot, attached or detached, capped at 60% of the primary…

Cincinnati requires the owner of any lot with an accessory dwelling unit to live in either the main house or the ADU…

Medina limits in-law suites to housing family members only, and requires the family member living there to have direct…

Toledo requires the owner of any lot with an accessory dwelling unit to live in the principal single-family home for as…

Medina prohibits renting an in-law suite to anyone outside the family and bars any commercial use of the space. Zoning…

Columbus allows one accessory dwelling unit per residential lot, but renting it out short-term pulls the ADU into…

A Cincinnati accessory dwelling unit may be rented out as a short-term rental. Zoning Code § 1421-06(k) allows it…

Ohio Revised Code 3781.06 and the Residential Code of Ohio exempt one-story detached accessory structures of 200 square…

Akron caps backyard sheds and other accessory structures at fifteen feet in height and requires at least three feet of…

Cincinnati treats a carport as an accessory structure under Zoning Code § 1421-01: it cannot sit in a front yard or a…

Sheds and other detached accessory buildings in Cleveland residence districts must sit on the rear half of the lot, at…

Columbus caps residential sheds at 15 feet tall, ties total shed area to your zoning district's lot coverage limit, and…

Before building a shed or any other accessory structure in Dayton, the zoning code requires a zoning certificate from…

Franklin County zoning caps residential lots at two accessory buildings and sets size, setback, and height by lot size…

Hamilton County has no single shed ordinance. Size thresholds, setbacks, and whether a zoning permit is needed for a…

In the R2 District a storage shed may not exceed 80 square feet in area (or the lot-coverage allowance, whichever is…

In Lima, an accessory building under 240 square feet must sit in the rear yard and be at least five feet from the side…

Shed rules come from your city or township, not the county. In Elyria, an accessory structure must sit in the rear…

Medina caps residential sheds and detached garages at 15 feet tall and 744 square feet of combined footprint, set back…

Montgomery County sets no countywide shed ordinance. Whether a storage shed needs a permit, and its setbacks, size, and…

Parma limits a residential shed to 120 square feet on lots up to 7,200 square feet, or 240 square feet on larger lots…

In Canton, a shed is any accessory unit up to 200 square feet, and only one shed is allowed on a property with a…

A detached storage building or garage larger than 200 square feet on a residential lot in unincorporated Summit County…

Toledo caps driveways, open-air parking, detached garages and carports at 50% of the rear yard in Residential…

Hamilton County has no countywide rule on converting a garage to living space. Conversions are governed by your…

A single-family structure may not be altered to house more than one family, but Section 1133.06 now permits an…

Ohio Revised Code 3781.10 makes the Residential Code of Ohio mandatory statewide, but Ohio has not adopted the tiny…

Cincinnati lets homeowners add one accessory dwelling unit per lot, but a detached ADU must be permanently built with…

Hamilton County has no countywide tiny-home ordinance. Whether a tiny house on a foundation or on wheels is allowed…

Summit County sets no tiny-home rule. Whether a tiny house or tiny home on wheels is allowed depends on your city…