Rice County, Minnesota Rochester & Southeast Minnesota

Barndominium Builders in Rice County, Minnesota

Barndominium builders near Rice County build on a mix of open cropland, wooded hills and lakeshore that sits within commuting reach of both the Twin Cities and Faribault. Buyers here usually want a few acres, room for a shop, and a house that costs less per square foot than a conventional build, and a steel-sided or pole barn home fits that brief well. We sell barndominium kits for owner-builders, draw custom plans, and take on turnkey builds with the grading and permit paperwork included. On the rural side, Rice County itself is the office you will deal with most: its Environmental Services department runs building permits, zoning permits and septic permits for the unincorporated townships, all through one online system. There are exceptions worth knowing before you buy. Bridgewater Township handles its own building and zoning, the cities of Faribault, Northfield, Dundas, Lonsdale and Morristown handle theirs, and the county's agricultural district rations new homes by the quarter-quarter section. Tell us where the land is and we will confirm who signs off and whether the parcel carries a building right.

Rice County at a glance

County: Rice County
Building permit: County or township, by location
Land use: County zoning
Wastewater: Septic (SSTS) via the county
Frost depth / snow load (state rule): 3-1/2 feet / 50 psf

Tell us about your land

Barndominium Kits & Floor Plans for Rice County

The parcel decides the budget more than the floor area does, so each option is priced against your land rather than a rate card.

Barndominium Kits

Barndominium kits and shell kits for Minnesota land, sized to your county's state-set snow load and frost depth, with the drawings your permit needs.

Custom Plans

Custom barndominium plans drawn for Minnesota: your layout and shop, your county's snow load and frost depth, and a set ready for plan review.

Barndominium Floor Plans

Stock plans by size and layout, each a starting point adjusted to your parcel.

Pole Barn Homes near Rice County

A pole barn home sets its frame on posts and trusses (the engineering term is post-frame), which often suits a simple, wide layout with a shop bay under the same roof. Whether it fits your parcel comes down to the zoning and the site, set out below.

Pole Barn Homes

Pole barn homes in Minnesota: pole barn house kits and plans sized to your county's snow load, with posts and footings set below the state frost depth.

Permits, Zoning & Septic in Rice County

Who issues the permit, who zones the land and who handles septic can change at a city limit or a county line. Here is who decides each part in Rice County, taken from the office or document that publishes it. Rules change, so check them again against your parcel before anything is drawn.

Who issues the building permitCounty or township, by location

Building Division, Rice County Environmental Services, or the city or township office

Rice County's Building Division requires a building permit for all construction in the county's unincorporated areas, applied for online, and inspects footings, foundations and structural components. The county does not handle building or zoning in Dundas, Faribault, Lonsdale, Morristown, Northfield or Bridgewater Township; those cities and the township permit separately. Electrical permits and inspections come through the state.

Source: Building Division, Rice County (ricecountymn.gov)

Who decides the land useCounty zoning

Planning and Zoning Division, Rice County Environmental Services

The county's Planning and Zoning division administers the zoning ordinance, shoreland and floodplain regulations and subdivision rules for unincorporated land, except Bridgewater Township, which zones its own land. Rural districts include Agricultural, Urban Reserve, Rural Residential, Shoreland and Wild & Scenic River, and zoning permits are applied for online.

Source: Planning and Zoning, Rice County (ricecountymn.gov)

Sewer or septicSeptic (SSTS): county

Environmental Health, Rice County Environmental Services

Rice County's Environmental Health division administers the county Sewage and Wastewater Treatment ordinance: it reviews septic (SSTS) designs, issues permits and inspects installations. Septic permits and compliance inspections are submitted through the county's online permitting system.

Source: Environmental Health, Rice County (ricecountymn.gov)

Is the State Building Code enforced here?

In Rice County, 20 of the 23 cities and townships in DLI's State Building Code Jurisdiction Directory have adopted the State Building Code, including Dennison, Dundas, Faribault, Lonsdale, Nerstrand, Northfield; elsewhere the county's zoning, shoreland and septic rules still apply.

Source: State Building Code Jurisdiction Directory (Local Code Lookup), Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (secure.doli.state.mn.us), read 27 September 2026. Check it again for your parcel, then call that office.

Design figures the state sets for Rice County

Frost footing depth: 3-1/2 feet (frost Zone II), unless an engineer competent in soil mechanics determines otherwise.
Ground snow load: 50 pounds per square foot of ground snow load, the starting point for the structure's snow design.

Agricultural district density: In Rice County's Agricultural district the base density is one dwelling per quarter-quarter section, counting existing homes, with a second allowed only where the land qualifies; the minimum residential lot is 35 acres, or 1 acre for a qualifying second site (Zoning Ordinance Chapter 509, as amended through January 2024).
When a septic compliance inspection is required: Rice County requires a septic compliance inspection by an MPCA-licensed inspector for any building permit in a shoreland area, for a building permit to replace a dwelling or add a bedroom, for parcel splits and variances, and at property transfer where the system is over five years old or has not had a compliance inspection in the past three years (county fact sheet, read September 2026).
Permits inside Faribault: Inside Faribault, the Building Code Division of the Fire Department and Code Services enforces the Minnesota State Building Code and the Minnesota Electrical Code, and the city answers building, plumbing, mechanical and electrical permit questions itself (City of Faribault, read September 2026).

Turnkey Builds

Turnkey barndominium builds in Minnesota: land check, plans, permits, foundation, frame and finish under one agreement, from raw land to move-in.

Site Preparation

Barndominium site preparation in Minnesota: shoreland and septic checks first, then clearing, grading, the driveway and a pad for frost-depth footings.

Permits & Approvals

Barndominium permits in Minnesota: who enforces the building code on your parcel, and the zoning, septic and well approvals that apply everywhere.

Metal Building Homes & Shouses near Rice County

A steel frame instead of posts, or a home and a workshop under one roof: the same parcel questions apply, so start from the rules above.

Metal Building Homes

Metal building homes in Minnesota, insulated and air-sealed for a long winter, with condensation and radon handled before the walls close in.

Shouses

Shouses in Minnesota: a heated shop and a home under one roof, laid out for big doors, winter work and the separation a house needs from its shop.

Steel & Metal Building Construction

Red-iron steel frames for Minnesota barndominiums and shops: wide clear spans, roofs sized to your county's snow load, columns on frost-depth footings.

Building on land near Rice County

Rural Rice County splits into three kinds of land. The lake country holds wooded hills and shoreline lots, where the county's shoreland district and a compliance inspection on any existing septic system come with a building permit near the water. Along the rivers, a Wild & Scenic River district and floodplain maps the county will draw for any address add their own limits. The rest is productive cropland, where the Agricultural district's one-home-per-quarter-quarter rule means a buildable site depends on what has already been built nearby. If you want a smaller acreage, ask about land already zoned Rural Residential. For city lots, see the Faribault page; for the county to the east, the Goodhue County page.

Other places in this part of Minnesota

Rochester & Southeast Minnesota

See every service

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

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Building in Rice County: questions

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How much does it cost to build a barndominium in Rice County?

Budget for the land work as well as the building: a rural site needs a well, a septic system, a driveway and power, and a lakeshore lot adds shoreland requirements. Our barndominium cost guide sets out sourced per-square-foot ranges, and the survey gets you a price for your parcel.

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

Yes. In the unincorporated townships, the county's Building Division issues the permit through its online system. Bridgewater Township and the cities of Faribault, Northfield, Dundas, Lonsdale and Morristown issue their own. On shoreland, the county also requires a septic compliance inspection before the permit. We handle permitting as part of a turnkey build.

Can I build a barndominium on farmland in Rice County?

Only where the parcel has a building right. The Agricultural district allows one home per quarter-quarter section, counting homes already there, with a minimum residential lot of 35 acres unless the site qualifies for a second dwelling on as little as an acre. Check the density count with the county before you buy.

Can I build a pole barn home on a lake lot in Rice County?

Yes, within the shoreland district's rules, which set setbacks by the lake's DNR class. Any building permit on shoreland also triggers a compliance inspection of the existing septic system. Our pole barn homes can be sized to the buildable area left once those setbacks are drawn.

Keep reading

What usually comes next once you know what Rice 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 Minnesota?

Zoning, permits, 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 Rice County facts above. Rules change, so check the current version with the office before you rely on it.

Other places near Rice County

Nearby places with their own pages. Across a city limit or a county line the permit office, the zoning and the septic rules can change, so each is covered separately.

Faribault

Rice County, Minnesota

Scott County

Minnesota county

Goodhue County

Minnesota county

Owatonna

Steele County, Minnesota

Building in Rice County?

Start with the survey. Tell us where the land is and what you want on it, and we will come back with which offices decide it, what the zoning allows, and a plan to fit.

Start the survey