Snow-covered open ground in the outer Twin Cities ring in winter, with bare trees along the far side, a stand of pines and birches and a fence line half buried in snow.
Sherburne County, Minnesota The Outer Metro: Wright, Sherburne, Isanti & Chisago

Barndominium Builders in Sherburne County, Minnesota

Barndominium builders near Sherburne County work with the one thing the inner suburbs have run out of: room. The townships between Elk River, Big Lake, Becker and Zimmerman still hold farm fields, wooded parcels and lake lots, and a house with a large attached shop suits them far better than a subdivision lot. We supply barndominium kits for owners who want to manage their own project, draw plans around the acreage you have, and deliver turnkey homes with the site work and permit paperwork included. The first question on any parcel is which government has it. Inside the cities, the city's own building department issues the permit. On most township land, the county's Planning & Zoning Department handles zoning, building permits and septic from one office at the Government Center. That office adopted a completely new zoning ordinance and zoning map on July 14, 2026, so a lot size or district quoted in an older listing may no longer be right. Send us the parcel number and we will check its district, its septic history and whether it can hold the home you want before anything is drawn.

Sherburne County at a glance

County
Sherburne County
Building permit
County or township, by location
Land use
More than one zoning authority
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 Sherburne 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 Sherburne 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 Sherburne 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 Sherburne 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 permit County or township, by location

Planning & Zoning Department, Sherburne County (township land); each city's own building department inside city limits

On the township land it administers, Sherburne County's Planning & Zoning Department takes applications for new homes, pole buildings, garages and additions through its online permit and payment portal, and warns that new-home applications take at least 10 working days to process. Every city and township in the county has adopted the State Building Code, but the cities issue their own permits, so confirm which office covers your parcel before you apply.

Source: Building Permits, Sherburne County Planning & Zoning (co.sherburne.mn.us)

Who decides the land use More than one zoning authority

Planning & Zoning Department, Sherburne County

Zoning Ordinance No. 292, adopted July 14, 2026 with a new official zoning map, governs land use in the unincorporated townships except Becker Township and the orderly-annexation area of Haven Township. Its districts include Agricultural, General Rural, Urban Expansion, Hamlet and Shoreland Residential, with floodplain and shoreland overlays and a scenic and recreational river district along the Mississippi River. Cities zone their own land.

Source: Zoning Ordinance, Sherburne County (co.sherburne.mn.us)

Sewer or septic Septic (SSTS): county

Planning & Zoning Department, Sherburne County (SSTS program)

Section 25 of the county zoning ordinance runs the SSTS (septic) program on all county land except places with their own approved program. When property with a septic system is sold, a compliance inspection is required unless a recent certificate is already on file, and older systems are also inspected before some building permits.

Source: Section 25 (Subsurface Sewage Treatment System Program), Sherburne County Zoning Ordinance No. 292 (co.sherburne.mn.us)

Is the State Building Code enforced here?

In Sherburne County, 16 of the 16 cities and townships in DLI's State Building Code Jurisdiction Directory have adopted the State Building Code, including Baldwin, Becker, Big Lake, Clear Lake, Elk River, Princeton; 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 Sherburne County
Frost footing depth
3-1/2 feet (frost Zone II), unless an engineer competent in soil mechanics determines otherwise.

Source: Minn. R. 1303.1600, Footing Depth for Frost Protection (revisor.mn.gov)

Ground snow load
50 pounds per square foot of ground snow load, the starting point for the structure's snow design.

Source: Minn. R. 1303.1700, Ground Snow Load (revisor.mn.gov)

Agricultural District lot size
Sherburne County's Agricultural District requires 40 contiguous acres for an unplatted lot and 5 contiguous acres for a platted lot, and allows one single-family home plus one accessory dwelling unit per lot (Zoning Ordinance No. 292, Section 8, adopted July 14, 2026).

Source: Section 8 (Agricultural District), Sherburne County Zoning Ordinance No. 292 (co.sherburne.mn.us)

General Rural District lot size
The General Rural District, which the county describes as land for agriculture and housing on lots without public sewer or water, sets a minimum of 20 acres unplatted or 2.5 acres platted, with dwellings capped at 35 feet tall, or 25 feet in shoreland (Ordinance No. 292, Section 9, 2026).

Source: Section 9 (General Rural District), Sherburne County Zoning Ordinance No. 292 (co.sherburne.mn.us)

State fact sheet the county links
The Department of Labor and Industry fact sheet linked from the county's building permits page says barndominiums and shouses are single-family dwellings that must meet the 2020 Minnesota Residential Code, that permits are required despite their farm-building look, and that a post-frame design must be certified by a structural engineer.

Source: Barndominiums/Shouses and the 2020 Minnesota Residential Code, Department of Labor and Industry (dli.mn.gov)

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 Sherburne 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 Sherburne County

Most buildable acreage in Sherburne County sits in the Agricultural and General Rural districts, and the lot-size rules above decide whether a parcel can be split for a home at all; platted lots are far smaller than unplatted ones. The county's rural districts also tie the lowest floor to the site's soil conditions, so seasonally wet ground can mean fill. Lakes carry their own classification lists and shoreland rules, and the river corridor along the southern edge has its own overlay. Many rural parcels border the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge or the Sand Dunes State Forest, where the ordinance adds larger side and rear setbacks. For land near town, see the Elk River page; across the county lines, the Wright County and Isanti County pages.

Other places in this part of Minnesota

The Outer Metro: Wright, Sherburne, Isanti & Chisago

See every service

Have land in or near Sherburne 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.

Start your build survey

Building in Sherburne County: questions

Start the survey
How much does it cost to build a barndominium in Sherburne County?
On acreage, the site often moves the total as much as the floor plan: a long driveway off a county road, a new septic system sized to the soil, a well, and fill to raise the house above wet ground all add up. For sourced price ranges by size and finish, read the barndominium cost guide; to get a number for your own acreage, start the survey.
Do I need a building permit for a barndominium in Sherburne County?
Yes. Every city and township in the county enforces the State Building Code. On township land the county's Planning & Zoning Department issues the permit through its online portal, and a new home takes at least 10 working days to process; inside a city, apply to the city. The state's fact sheet on barndominiums, linked from the county's permit page, confirms they are treated as ordinary single-family homes. We handle the permitting on turnkey builds.
How many acres do I need for a barndominium in Sherburne County?
It depends on the district and on whether the lot is platted. Under the ordinance adopted in July 2026, the Agricultural District needs 40 contiguous acres unplatted or 5 platted, and the General Rural District 20 acres unplatted or 2.5 platted. Shoreland Residential and Hamlet lots follow their own rules. Check the new zoning map for your parcel, because districts were remapped when the ordinance changed.
Can I put a pole barn house with a big shop on my land here?
Yes, as a house. The state treats a barndominium or shouse as a single-family dwelling, so the living space and attached shop are permitted and inspected as one home, and the frame needs a design certified by a structural engineer. In the rural districts a detached accessory building can be taller on parcels of 5 acres or more. Our pole barn homes page explains how we spec the frame.

Keep reading

What usually comes next once you know what Sherburne 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 Sherburne County facts above. Rules change, so check the current version with the office before you rely on it.

Other places near Sherburne 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.

Elk River

Sherburne County, Minnesota

St. Cloud

Stearns County, Minnesota

Isanti County

Minnesota county

Wright County

Minnesota county

Building in Sherburne 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