Home / North Carolina / Hertford County
Hertford County
Zone 8a, 208 frost-free days, farmland at $3,623 an acre. Top hazard: hurricane.
4.5 out of 10 overall, #85 of 100 NC counties with every factor weighted equally. Re-rank with your own weights
Scores out of 10, compared with the other 99 NC counties
- 9.3Land cost
- 5.8Rain
- 2.7Sun
- 4.9Growing
- 4.7Rules
- 6.8Clean
- 5.2Hazards
- 0.8Farm country
- 0.0Mesh
Land and living costs
| Farmland and buildings, per acre (2022) | $3,623 source |
|---|---|
| Median home value | $111,100 source |
| Median rent | $806/mo source |
| People | 20,492 source |
| Farms (2022) | 97 source |
Growing food
| Hardiness zone | 8a source |
|---|---|
| Last spring frost (typical) | Apr 6 source |
| First fall frost (typical) | Nov 1 source |
| Frost-free days | 208 source |
| Rain, April–September | 28.5 in source April–September |
| Rain, whole year | 49.6 in source |
| Prime farmland | 40% of soils source includes 'prime if drained/irrigated/protected' |
| July average high / January average low | 89.1°F / 30.1°F source |
Frost dates and season length come from the Murfreesboro weather station: the 50% chance date for 32°F.
County rules: RVs, tiny homes, animals
Zoning: The county zones its unincorporated land. The Hertford County UDO applies to all land in the county outside town jurisdictions; rural land is mostly the RA-30 Residential-Agriculture district. Hertford County Unified Development Ordinance (amended 2025-12-01), Section 1.8 and Article IX
These are rules for county land outside town limits. Towns have their own. Read on 2026-11-13.
Living in an RV on your landRestricted
The RA-30 use table lists no RV or temporary residence use; Sec. 9.2.2 says unlisted uses with no analogous listed use are prohibited. RVs appear only as campground/RV park units (Article XIII), and the RV definition calls them temporary living quarters.
“If there is not an analogous or similar use, then the “unlisted” use is prohibited.”
§ 9.2.2; § 9.3.3 RA-30 use table; § 2.2.2 Recreational Vehicle, read 2026-11-13
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
Tiny house on wheelsRestricted
Tiny houses on wheels are not named. A wheeled unit built as temporary living quarters falls under the RV definition, which is handled as for rv_living (not a listed residential use in RA-30).
“a vehicular type unit primarily designed as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel use”
§ 2.2.2 Recreational Vehicle (RV), read 2026-11-13
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
Small house on a foundationAllowed
Single-family dwellings are a General Permit (by-right zoning permit) use in RA-30. No minimum dwelling floor area found in zoning; minimum lot is 30,000 sq ft without public sewer.
“Single Family, Two-Family, & Multi-Family”
§ 9.3.3 and § 9.3.4 (RA-30), read 2026-11-13
State law: farm buildings outside town limits skip the building code (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 143-138(b4)).
State law: homes on 10+ acres in farm districts (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 160D-903(b)).
State law: building permits (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 160D-1110).
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
ChickensWith conditions
Poultry falls under 'Agricultural Commodities', a General Permit use in RA-30 (a zoning permit is needed). No acreage minimum or setback specific to poultry found.
“Livestock shall include but not be limited to equine (horses), bovine (cattle), sheep, goats, bees, poultry, and other animals”
§ 9.3.3 RA-30 table; Article X Agricultural Commodities, read 2026-11-13
State law: real farms are exempt from county zoning (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 160D-903(a), (a1)).
State law: right to farm (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-701(a)).
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
Goats and livestockWith conditions
Goats, sheep, cattle and horses fall under 'Agricultural Commodities', a General Permit use in RA-30. Swine are not permitted.
“Swine are not permitted”
Article X Agricultural Commodities, Supplemental Regulations, read 2026-11-13
State law: real farms are exempt from county zoning (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 160D-903(a), (a1)).
State law: right to farm (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-701(a)).
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
BeesWith conditions
Bees are named in the livestock list under 'Agricultural Commodities', a General Permit use in RA-30. No hive count or setback found.
“Livestock shall include but not be limited to equine (horses), bovine (cattle), sheep, goats, bees, poultry”
Article X Agricultural Commodities, Supplemental Regulations, read 2026-11-13
State law: real farms are exempt from county zoning (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 160D-903(a), (a1)).
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
Composting toiletNot addressed
Full-text search of the UDO for toilet, privy, outhouse and composting found only campground toilet-facility standards; nothing on composting toilets for homes.
whole UDO searched, read 2026-11-13
State law: composting toilets are allowed, but you still need a septic permit (15A NCAC 18E .1001 (eff. Oct. 1, 2021)).
Confirm with Hertford County before you buy land or build.
What we couldn't confirm
- RV living 'restricted' is read from the absence of an RV-dwelling use in the RA-30 table plus the unlisted-use rule in 9.2.2; the UDO does not have a sentence that says 'living in an RV is prohibited'.
- Whether 'General Permit' for agricultural commodities applies to a few backyard hens on a homesite (versus a farm) is not stated.
What breaks here
11 federal disaster declarations covered Hertford County in the last 10 years: 5 hurricane, 2 biological, 2 tropical storm, 1 severe storm, 1 winter storm. source
FEMA's biggest risks for the county: hurricane (relatively high), drought (relatively moderate), winter weather (relatively moderate). source
Gear that answers it
- Portable power station with solar panelRuns a freezer, fridge or medical device for a day or more when the grid is down, without fumesSee price on Amazon
- Stackable water storage (7-gallon)One gallon per person per day for drinking and cookingSee price on Amazon
- NOAA weather radio (hand-crank)Alerts when cell service and power are outSee price on Amazon
- Pocket mesh radioPairs with your phone to send texts over the meshFrom RAKwireless
We may earn from these links. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Mesh radio coverage
| MeshCore radios heard (30 days) | 0 source |
|---|---|
| Repeaters | 0 source |
| County near a repeater | 0% source share of the county within 10 km of an active repeater — a rough line-of-sight guess, not a measured signal |
| Nearest repeater to the county centre | 41.1 km source from the county centre |
Most of Hertford County is out of range. A solar repeater on high ground near the red X would cover the biggest gap. Solar repeater kits
Data: MeshCore map. Coverage assumes about 10 km per repeater; real range depends on height and terrain. State gap map
Animals nearby
Livestock already in the county is a fair sign of feed stores, vets and neighbours who know how.
| Laying hens | withheld by USDA to avoid disclosing individual farms source |
|---|---|
| Goats | withheld by USDA to avoid disclosing individual farms source |
| Cattle | 242 source |
| Hogs | 41,661 source |
| Bee colonies | 318 source |
- Chicken coop for 4–6 hensWhere chickens are allowed
- Beginner beehive kitBees help every garden
- Seed starting kit with heat matStart tomatoes and peppers indoors before your last frost
Clean ground, sun and power
| Active Superfund sites | None source |
|---|---|
| Toxics Release Inventory facilities | 5 source facilities registered with EPA's Toxics Release Inventory, active or open status |
| FEMA overall risk | Relatively Low source |
| Sun, kWh per m² per day | 4.35 source |
| Public EV charging stations | 1 source |
Rooftop solar credit depends on your utility. Duke Energy customers: see the state rules on the North Carolina page.
Nearby counties
| County | Overall |
|---|---|
| Gates | 5.4 |
| Bertie | 5.6 |
| Northampton | 5.2 |
| Chowan | 5.2 |
| Martin | 6.6 |
| Perquimans | 5.6 |