Bolthole Index county-legal census · checked 2026-10-10
35 of Oregon's 36 counties — 97% — let an owner build their own home without a licensed contractor. That is the 32nd-largest count of any state. The strongest of them on the Bolthole Index is Union County (71/100). Every entry below cites the county’s own official source.
Rules change, and cities inside these counties set their own — treat this as a verified starting point, not legal advice. All 2952 counties nationwide → Oregon: no building codes → Oregon: rv living → Oregon: tiny homes → Full Oregon profile →
35 of 36 Oregon counties · sorted by Index score
Statewide rule. An owner-built single-family residence and adjacent auxiliary structures whose structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending to occupy th…
oregon.gov ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. An owner-built single-family residence and adjacent auxiliary structures in Jefferson County, Oregon, where the owner intends to occupy the structures and constr…
Oregon Revised Statutes, ORS 455.320 ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family dwellings and adjacent outbuildings in Oregon, including Polk County, where the structural components are constructed entirely by the o…
Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 455 ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Morrow County constructed entirely by the owner who intends to occupy them, or by the o…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code — Chapter 1 ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family dwellings and adjacent auxiliary structures in Wallowa County that satisfy Oregon’s owner-built dwelling qualifications. The owner must…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - Chapter 1 ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family dwellings and adjacent auxiliary structures in Wasco County whose structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code — Chapter 1 ↗Under ORS 701.010 a person building/altering their own property is exempt from CCB contractor licensure, and ORS 455.320 exempts owner-built dwellings from certain structural co…
ORS 701.010 - Exemptions from licensure ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family dwellings and adjacent auxiliary structures in Douglas County that are constructed entirely by the owner intending to occupy them, or b…
Oregon Revised Statutes, ORS 455.320 and related provisions ↗Oregon's owner-built dwelling provisions (ORS 455.320) let an owner build their own primary residence and pull permits without a contractor license.
ORS 455.320 - Owner-built dwellings ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Oregon statute (ORS 701.010 / ORS 455.320) exempts owners building their own residence from CCB contractor licensing and provides an owner-built dwelling structural exemption.
ORS 701.010 Exemptions from licensure ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Oregon statute (ORS 701.010 / ORS 455.320) exempts owners building their own residence from CCB contractor licensing and provides an owner-built dwelling structural exemption.
ORS 701.010 Exemptions from licensure ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Josephine County whose structural components are constructed entirely by the owner inte…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - Chapter 1 ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Oregon allows an owner-builder to obtain permits and build their own residence via an owner-builder statement without hiring a licensed contractor, applicable in Hood River County.
Hood River County Community Development - Building Code & Inspection ↗A homeowner may obtain permits and perform work on their own property; the person performing the work, whether homeowner or contractor, is responsible for permits.
Deschutes County Community Development - What Permits Do I Need ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Lake County where the owner intends to occupy the structures and constructs the structu…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - Chapter 1 ↗Residential building, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permits in unincorporated Washington County where the property owner performs the work or acts as the general contract…
Property Owner Statement Regarding Construction Responsibilities ↗Homeowner installations submitted through Marion County Building Inspection for residential or farm property in the unincorporated county. The installation must be on residentia…
Structural Permit Application ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family dwellings and adjacent outbuildings in Harney County where the owner intends to occupy the structures and constructs the structural com…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code — Owner-built dwellings ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon, including Multnomah County, when the statutory owner and construction condition…
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code, Chapter 1 ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Oregon where the structural components are constructed entirely by the owner intending …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - ORS 455.320 reprinted ↗Statewide rule. Owner-built single-family residences and adjacent auxiliary structures in Gilliam County where the owner intends to occupy the structures. The owner must be the …
2023 Oregon Residential Specialty Code - Chapter 1 ↗Every county here has a full profile — water, land prices, hazard safety, seclusion, and the rest of its building rules. See the Oregon state page for all 36 counties ranked, or go back to the national list.
Off-grid gear
Building on land in one of these Oregon counties? The kit we'd start with:
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General guidance, not legal advice. Off-grid, building, and land-use rules are often set at the county level and change often. Verify with your county and state before acting. Data reviewed 2026-06-26.
