Johnson County, Kansas Kansas City, Johnson County & the KC Metro

Barndominium Builders in Johnson County, Kansas

Most of Johnson County is city, so the first job on any barndominium here is to find out whether the parcel sits inside a city limit or in the unincorporated county. The answer decides who reviews the plans, which zoning rules apply and whether sewer is even an option. Outside the cities, the county's Building Codes division issues the permit, and its rural zoning is written around large tracts, which is where a shop house with room for equipment actually fits. We design and build barndominiums, steel-framed homes and post frame homes on that unincorporated land, mostly in the southern and western parts of the county where the tracts are still big enough. The county treats steel and pole-barn framing as a non-conventional design, so the drawings go in sealed by a Kansas-registered design professional hired for the project, and we plan the schedule around that review. Licensed trade contractors handle plumbing, electrical and HVAC. Some owners want a finished turnkey house; others take our barndominium kits and run the interior themselves. Start the survey with the parcel address and we will confirm the jurisdiction before anything else.

Johnson County at a glance

County: Johnson County
Building permit: County (unincorporated land)
Local facts on this page: 5, each linked to its source

Tell us about your land

Before you build in Johnson County

The local answers that shape a build here, each taken from the office or document that publishes it. Rules change, so we confirm them again against your parcel before drawing.

County-issued permitWho issues the permit

Johnson County Building Codes, a division of Planning, Housing and Community Development

On unincorporated land the county's Building Codes division enforces the building code, issues permits and inspects. Each city in the county runs its own building department, so a parcel inside Olathe, Overland Park or any other city is permitted there, not by the county. The county asks applicants to confirm the address is unincorporated first, and it will not issue a permit to a parcel without an address.

Source: Building Codes | Johnson County Kansas (jocogov.org)

Residential code: The Board of County Commissioners adopted the 2018 International Codes, with the county's own amendments, as the Johnson County Code of Regulations for Buildings and Construction, 2018 Edition, on 12 March 2020, effective 1 July 2020. The list includes the 2018 International Residential Code, and it applies to the unincorporated areas of the county.
Steel and post-frame homes: The county's new-dwelling permit page lists steel-framed and pole barn/post-frame construction as non-conventional designs that must be designed and sealed by a design professional registered in Kansas. Post-frame structures are to be designed for a 115 mph wind load at exposure C and a 20 psf roof snow load, per the county's reference to the 2018 International Building Code.
Rural zoning minimum: In the county's RUR Rural District every new dwelling needs a nominal lot area of at least 10 acres and a lot width of at least 300 feet (Article 9 of the Johnson County Zoning and Subdivision Regulations). Article 8 places any land not shown in another zone on the zoning map in the Rural District.
Septic systems: The Johnson County Department of Health and Environment permits private sewage systems where no public wastewater system serves the property, inspects new residential systems, and licenses their designers and installers under the Johnson County Environmental Sanitary Code. An existing residential system must pass a resale inspection before the property changes hands.
Contractor licensing: The Kansas Business Center lists Johnson County Contractor Licensing among the local offices that license construction businesses, and notes that a county permit may be required for cities in Johnson County. Kansas leaves contractor licensing to cities and counties.

Building on land near Johnson County

Big tracts in Johnson County sit mainly outside the cities, and the county's Rural Comprehensive Plan and Stilwell Community Plan cover that ground. The rural zoning sets a ten-acre floor per dwelling, so check the lot area and frontage before you commit, because a sub-standard parcel can block a building permit. A tract with no sewer main needs a county septic permit, and a first structure on raw land usually needs a driveway entrance permit from Public Works before final inspection. Pole barn homes and metal building homes suit these tracts, provided the sealed structural drawings are part of the budget from the start.

Where we build in this part of Kansas

Kansas City, Johnson County & the KC Metro

What we build in Johnson County

Kits, custom plans and turnkey builds. The parcel decides the budget more than the floor area does, so we price against your land rather than a rate card.

Custom Plans

Custom barndominium floor plans for your Kansas parcel: septic sized to bedroom count, the well sited clear of it, and the values your county publishes.

Barndominium Kits

Barndominium kits for Kansas land: steel or post-frame shell packages sized to the snow, wind and frost values your own city or county publishes.

Turnkey Builds

Turnkey barndominium builds in Kansas: one contract from land check and septic permit through shell, finish and move-in, with licensed trades.

See every service

Have land in or near Johnson County? Tell us about the parcel and what you want to build, and we will check it against the local rules before anything is drawn.

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Building in Johnson County: questions

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How much does a barndominium cost in Johnson County?

Land is the swing factor here: a ten-acre rural tract with a septic system and a long entrance drive is a very different budget from a lot on a sewer main, and the sealed structural drawings the county requires for steel and post-frame designs add a professional fee. The sourced ranges are in our barndominium cost guide, and the survey lets us price your parcel.

Do I need a building permit for a barndominium in Johnson County?

Yes. On unincorporated land the county's Building Codes division issues it under the 2018 international codes it adopted in 2020. If the parcel is inside a city, that city issues the permit instead, so confirm the address first. Our permitting service prepares the submission, including the sealed drawings for a steel or post-frame design.

How much land do I need for a barndominium in rural Johnson County?

In the Rural District the county asks for at least ten acres per dwelling and 300 feet of lot width. Other county districts set smaller minimums, from three acres down to one, but a parcel only has them if it is already zoned that way. Tell us about your land and we will check its zoning before you design around it.

Can barndominium contractors outside the county build here?

Out-of-county barndominium contractors can, but the county runs its own contractor licensing office, a county licence may also be needed for work in its cities, and plumbing, electrical and HVAC need separately licensed trades. Browse our floor plans for layouts that suit a rural tract, then start the survey.

Keep reading

What usually comes next once you know what Johnson County allows.

Barndominium Cost Guide

Sourced per-square-foot ranges by tier and size, and what moves the number on your land.

Read it

Is a Barndominium Legal in Kansas?

Zoning, septic and who inspects, before you buy the land.

Read it

How Long Does It Take?

From parcel to move-in, and which steps set the clock.

Read it

Sources for this page

The published pages behind the Johnson County facts above. Rules change, so check the current version with the office before you rely on it.

Barndominium builders near Johnson County

Nearby places we also build in. Across a city limit or a county line the permit office, zoning and septic rules can change, so each has its own page.

Olathe

Johnson County, Kansas

Gardner

Johnson County, Kansas

Miami County

Kansas county

Douglas County

Kansas county

Building in Johnson County?

Start with the survey. Tell us where the land is and what you want on it, and we will come back with which office permits it, what it will allow, and a plan to fit.

Start the survey