Clarksville

Montgomery County portion

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ADU Pass helps homeowners in Clarksville, Montgomery County, Tennessee navigate the permit paperwork for building an accessory dwelling unit. This area covers 4 ZIP codes.

4 ZIP codes

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ADU details

ADU legality: unclear

Stateunclear (Tennessee accessory-dwelling framework) — Tennessee statewide ADU posture per state-adu-research file.

Countywith-restrictions (Montgomery County unincorporated zoning) — Montgomery County permits ADUs in unincorporated areas under state-law-aligned standards. Within Clarksville city limits the city ordinance plus state law govern.

Citywith-restrictions (City of Clarksville Municipal / Zoning Code — Accessory Dwelling Units) — City of Clarksville permits ADUs under the local ordinance aligned with Tennessee statewide framework where applicable.

Tennessee leaves ADU regulation to local municipalities under home-rule or Dillon-rule authority. Clarksville permits ADUs subject to local conditions per its zoning ordinance.

Cost scenarios

Scenario	Sq ft	Permit	Build	Total
minimum	150	$1,600	$33,750	$35,350
600	600	$1,600	$135,000	$136,600
midpoint	525	$1,600	$118,125	$119,725
maximum	900	$1,600	$202,500	$204,100

Fee breakdown

Plan review$480

Building permit$880

Impact fees$240

Total$1,600

Viability (permitted uses)

Long-term rental: yes Long-term rental of ADU generally permitted; landlord-tenant law and any city rental-registration ordinance apply.
Short-term rental: with-restrictions STR rules vary by city. Clarksville regulates STRs separately from ADU permitting; check local STR ordinance and HOA covenants.
Office rental: with-restrictions Detached office rental requires home occupation permit or rezoning.
Home office: yes Home occupation permitted with restrictions on signage and customer traffic.
Studio / workshop: yes Personal artist studio is a permitted accessory use.
Agriculture: with-restrictions Limited urban agriculture permitted in residential zones; livestock varies by district.
Relative support: yes Family-occupancy ADU explicitly permitted in single-family zones.

Utilities

Water: Clarksville Water Utility · 30d connect · $4,500
Sewer: Clarksville Sewer / Wastewater · 30d connect · $5,500
Electric: Clarksville Electric Utility · 21d connect · $1,800
Gas: Clarksville Gas Utility · 30d connect · $1,500

Property values & taxes

Median value$295,000

Median tax$2,508/yr

Effective rate0.8%

Construction timeline

Detached build24 weeks

Conversion14 weeks

Contractor lead3 months

Realistic total: best 7mo · typical 10mo · worst 16mo

Financing

Fannie Mae ADUeligible

Insurance impact

Annual premium delta$380

Landlord policyrecommended

Umbrella threshold$1M umbrella when renting

HOA prevalence & preemption

State HOA preemptionno

Tennessee has no statewide statute that voids HOA bans on ADUs. Common-interest communities in Tennessee are governed primarily by the Tennessee Condominium Act of 2008 (T.C.A. §§66-27-201 to 66-27-603) for condominiums, by Tennessee's Horizontal Property Act (T.C.A. §66-27-101 et seq.) for older horizontal-property regimes, and by general nonprofit corporation law for HOA-style planned communities. Restrictive covenants in declarations and bylaws — including those prohibiting accessory structures or secondary kitchens — remain enforceable per their terms.

Technical envelope (climate & building code)

Climate & energy code

IECC climate zone4A

Heating degree days4,200

Cooling degree days1,500

Design low / high18°F / 91°F

Frost depth16"

Design snow load10 psf

Wind design speed115 mph

Seismic design cat.B

Annual rainfall44"

Wildfire exposurelow

Energy codeIECC

Version / adopted2018 / 2020

Building code

Base codeIRC

Version year2,018

Adopted2020

Fire sprinklernone

Egress window5.7 sqft min

Min ceiling7 ft

Attic R-valueR-49 min

Wall R-valueR-20 min

Amendments:

Amendment
Amendment

Legal history (timeline)

Current ordinance: City of Clarksville Municipal Code — Accessory Dwelling Units, adopted 2020-01-01, last amended 2024-04-01

2024-01-01 — City of Clarksville ADU code refresh (city-ordinance)
Conforming local-code amendments aligning with current Tennessee accessory-dwelling framework.
Effect: Codified permissive ADU standards consistent with state law and local zoning.

Federal (United States) — ADU-relevant rules and programs

Federal ADU law

The United States has no federal statute that directly regulates accessory dwelling unit entitlement or design. Land-use authority over ADUs resides with states and local governments under the traditional police power. Federal engagement is limited to financing (Fannie/Freddie/FHA/VA/USDA), flood insurance (FEMA/NFIP), and discretionary housing programs (HUD), which are recorded in sibling sections of this file.

Federal financing programs

Federal housing-finance agencies and GSEs set nationwide underwriting rules that govern whether an ADU can be financed, appraised, and counted toward mortgage qualifying income. The relevant actors are Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA (HUD), VA, and USDA Rural Development.

Federal tax credits

There is no ADU-specific federal tax credit. ADUs may incidentally qualify for existing federal energy-efficiency and clean-energy tax credits when the ADU construction includes qualifying measures.

Federal housing programs

HUD administers several discretionary programs that can fund ADU-related activity at the grantee's election, but none is an ADU-specific program.