Unincorporated Sharp County, Arkansas does not require a county building permit for a home, but the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code is the statewide fire and building code12. The county does not zone unincorporated land, while Cherokee Village has its own zoning code; Arkansas Department of Health septic permits remain statewide345.
At a glance
- Building permit
- Not required in unincorporated Sharp County1
- Zoning
- No county zoning ordinance for unincorporated land3
- Septic permits
- State construction permit, installation inspection and operation permit67
- Owner-builder
- Exempt from contractor licensing on your own home, up to one residence per year8
- Septic lot sizing
- No fixed acreage minimum; sized to soil suitability on each lot9
- Effective property tax rate
- About 0.6%10
- Population density
- About 30 people per square mile11
Who to call
Also useful
General county administration (Sharp County Judge) for unincorporated Sharp County; there is no separate county building or zoning department, so this is the main number for anything this guide can't confirm online.
U.S. Highway 167 North, Ash Flat, AR 72513
Septic permits
Arkansas Department of Health, Onsite Wastewater Program (Sharp County local health unit)
Septic (onsite wastewater) permits for Sharp County, issued through the local county health unit's Onsite Environmental Specialist under the statewide Arkansas Department of Health program.
4815 W. Markham, Little Rock, AR 72205-3867
Building permits
Building permits and Planning & Zoning matters within Cherokee Village city limits only, not unincorporated Sharp County. Cherokee Village straddles Sharp and Fulton counties.
2 Santee Dr., Cherokee Village, AR 72529
Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 9, 2026.
Off-grid gear
Going off-grid in Sharp County means bringing your own water and power. The kit we’d start with:
- Water Crystal Quest Filter any source — well, rain, or creek — to drinking-clean.
- Power Bluetti Solar generators and home battery backup for living off the grid.
- Septic Soil percolation test kit Run your own perc test before paying an engineer — the first thing a septic office asks about.
- Water Well water test kit Bacteria, nitrates, hardness — know what the well on a parcel is really pumping.
These are affiliate links — we may earn a commission, at no cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, Bolthole Index earns from qualifying purchases.
Do you need a building permit in Sharp County, Arkansas?
Unincorporated Sharp County does not require a county building permit to construct a home1. The Arkansas Fire Prevention Code is nevertheless the statewide fire and building code, including in Sharp County2. We could not confirm whether Sharp County conducts local building inspections or requires a certificate of occupancy for an ordinary home, so ask the Sharp County Judge's Office before work begins12. The statewide certificate-of-occupancy rule found for charter-school facilities does not establish such a requirement for ordinary private construction13. Residential construction inside Cherokee Village follows the city's separate building-permit process14.
Who issues building permits in Sharp County?
Sharp County does not identify a separate building department for unincorporated land, which is consistent with the county having no local building-permit requirement1. The Sharp County Judge's Office is the county contact for parcel-specific building-inspection or occupancy-certificate questions that remain unconfirmed12. Inside Cherokee Village, use the city's online portal or contact City Hall for residential building permits and municipal planning and zoning1415. The portal requires the requested fields and related plans or documents and states a review time of 2 to 3 business days14. City building-permit and zoning authority does not replace septic review: Arkansas Department of Health handles septic permits statewide through the local health unit516.
Does Sharp County have zoning?
Sharp County has not adopted a zoning ordinance with districts and a map for unincorporated land; the county instead has an interim land-use policy plan3. Cherokee Village has adopted its own official zoning code, and that city code does not establish zoning authority over unincorporated Sharp County4. We could not confirm an unincorporated-county minimum dwelling size, setback, lot-coverage limit, building-height limit or private-land occupancy rule, so ask the Sharp County Judge's Office about the proposed use12. Cherokee Village's published zoning ordinance lists a $250 rezoning fee and a $25 special-use-permit fee, but it does not establish building-permit fees or rules outside that city17. Septic permits remain with the Arkansas Department of Health rather than a city's zoning office5.
How do septic permits work in Sharp County?
The Arkansas Department of Health handles onsite wastewater in Sharp County through the local health unit's Onsite Environmental Specialist185. Obtain a septic Permit for Construction before building, altering, repairing or extending a system; after installation, the system must be inspected and cannot be used until its Permit for Operation is issued67. A septic lot needs suitable primary and secondary absorption areas sized from natural soil data, not a fixed acreage minimum9. Only about 10% of Sharp County soils lack severe limits for a conventional drain field, so make the soil evaluation a purchase contingency19. For a subdivision using onsite wastewater, submit through the local health unit and obtain final Department approval before any construction begins on any lot20. A public-sewer connection is required when the building sewer exits within 300 feet of access on the owner's property or an adjacent street or alley21.
Can you live in an RV or tiny home on your land in Sharp County?
We could not confirm a Sharp County rule that allows or prohibits long-term RV or tiny-home occupancy on a single unincorporated parcel, so ask the Sharp County Judge's Office before moving onto the land12. The absence of county zoning does not settle sanitation, utility, floodplain or occupancy questions3. Arkansas regulates a paid parcel as a mobile-home or recreational-vehicle park when it has 3 or more spaces for recreational vehicles, tiny houses on wheels or mobile homes; that rule does not answer whether one unit may be occupied on private land22. In such a regulated park, a tiny house on wheels is treated as a mobile home if plumbed and inspected under the 2018 Arkansas Plumbing Code and as a recreational vehicle otherwise23. Any onsite wastewater system requires construction approval, inspection and an operation permit67.
Building a home in Sharp County: the steps, in order
- Confirm whether the parcel is unincorporated or inside a city; Cherokee Village runs its own residential building-permit process and has adopted its own zoning code144.
- Ask the Sharp County Judge's Office about parcel-specific county-road access, floodplain, building-inspection and occupancy requirements that we could not confirm12.
- Call the local health unit's Onsite Environmental Specialist for the soil evaluation and obtain the septic construction permit before fixing the house site166.
- Ask the relevant road authority about driveway approval because we could not confirm Sharp County's county-road process12.
- Build to the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code even though unincorporated Sharp County does not require a county building permit21.
- Have the septic installation inspected and obtain its operation permit before use7.
- An owner building a personal residence may use the state contractor-licensing exemption when building no more than 1 residence in a calendar year, but that exemption does not waive building-code, septic, inspection or occupancy requirements24. A nonresidential farm building also has a narrow exemption from electrical licensing and Arkansas Electrical Code Authority Act requirements, not from unrelated building, fire, environmental, septic or local rules25.
What to check before you buy land in Sharp County
Make septic feasibility a purchase contingency: only about 10% of Sharp County soils lack severe limits for a conventional drain field, and the system needs suitable primary and secondary absorption areas based on natural soil data199. About 79% of county land has a slope of 15% or less, but confirm the buildable area and septic area on the actual parcel26. Sharp County is about 74% wooded, so include clearing and access in the site budget27. Ask the Sharp County Judge's Office about county-road access and floodplain requirements, neither of which we could confirm for unincorporated parcels12. The county averages about 30 people per square mile, and its center is about 107 miles from the nearest city of 100,000 or more1128. The median property-tax bill is about $548 a year at an effective rate near 0.6%2910.
Watch-outs
- Ask the Sharp County Judge's Office about floodplain development and county-road access before choosing a house site because we could not confirm the applicable county procedures12.
- Sharp County's interim land-use policy is not a zoning ordinance with districts and a map, but that does not answer every use or occupancy question3.
- Cherokee Village residential projects follow the city's permit process and official zoning code rather than the unincorporated-county answer144.
Sources
- Sharp County Code of Ordinances, Chapter 13 (2026 county census)
- 2021 Arkansas Fire Prevention Code — Summary Agenda, quoted and re-checked
- Sharp County Code of Ordinances, Chapter 13 (2026 county census)
- Ordinance No. 2017-06A: Adoption of Zoning Code by Reference, quoted and re-checked
- 20 CAR § 131-106. Treatment and disposal of human waste, quoted and re-checked
- Rules Pertaining to Onsite Wastewater Systems (2024), quoted and re-checked
- Rules Pertaining to Onsite Wastewater Systems (2024), quoted and re-checked
- Arkansas Residential Contractors Committee Rules, quoted and re-checked
- codeofarrules.arkansas.gov, quoted and re-checked
- Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data
- Population density: Bolthole Index county data
- Sharp County Judge's Office (portal.arkansas.gov)
- 6 CAR § 31-425. Charter school facilities, quoted and re-checked
- Cherokee Village Citizen Portal, quoted and re-checked
- Cherokee Village City Hall (cherokeevillage.gov)
- Arkansas Department of Health, Onsite Wastewater Program (Sharp County local health unit) (healthy.arkansas.gov)
- Cherokee Village Ordinance No. 99-2, quoted and re-checked
- Arkansas Department of Health - Onsite Wastewater FAQs (2026 county census)
- Share of soils USDA rates "not limited" for a conventional septic drain field (SSURGO). A strict rating: the median county is about 6% and a tenth of counties are 0%, so a low figure means most lots need a site evaluation or an engineered system, not that septic is impossible. Cite it only with that caveat: Bolthole Index county data
- 14 CAR § 21-405. Subdivisions, quoted and re-checked
- 20 CAR § 131-106. Treatment and disposal of human waste, quoted and re-checked
- 20 CAR § 138-101. Definitions, quoted and re-checked
- 20 CAR § 138-101. Definitions, quoted and re-checked
- Arkansas Residential Contractors Committee Rules, quoted and re-checked
- 17 CAR § 210-602. Construction and exemptions, quoted and re-checked
- Share of land at 15% slope or less: Bolthole Index county data
- Wooded share of land: Bolthole Index county data
- Straight-line distance from the county center to the nearest city of 100,000+ people: Bolthole Index county data
- Median property tax bill: Bolthole Index county data
Written October 9, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.