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Raleigh Regional
Assn. of Realtors
111 Realtors Way
Cary, NC 27513
( 919) 654-5400 voice

( 919) 654-5401 fax
info@rrar.com

 


We Asked for It:
Local Sign Rules

UPDATED INFORMATION REGARDING RALEIGH SIGNS 

New Raleigh Sign Interpretation Clears Way for Open House Weekend Signs

RRAR recently inquired with the Raleigh City Inspections Department to clarify rules on non-commercial signage. Many members complained about not being able to place directional signs in the yards of their neighbors with permission. These types of signs, under the recent interpretation, are permitted. The specifics of the off-site signage interpretation are as follows.

• The sign would not exceed 2 square feet (6" x 18") and could contain no more than three colors in addition to a white background;
• The only copy on the sign would be "Open House" with (optional) an arrow pointing in the direction of the Open House. For enforcement purposes, small one inch letters with the name of the person (REALTOR®) and contact number should also be on the sign;
• The sign must be on private property with the permission of the owner, and owner cannot be compensated for placement of the signage;
• There is a maximum of four signs permitted per Open House and signs may not be placed more than 1/4 mile from the Open House;
• No sign shall be placed on or over the public right-of-way, public park or greenway; and
• Signs are permitted between Friday at 5:00pm and Sunday at 7:00pm.

Any sign found to be in violation will be subject the offender to a civil penalty of $100 and a $100 administrative fee. For more information about the sign ordinance, contact Tara Lightner at TaralynL@rrar.com or 654-5406.

For information regarding Raleigh signs and enforcement in the ETJ (Extra Territorial Jurisdiction) contact:
Faye Allen at 516-2546 or faye.allen@ci.raleigh.nc.us

Raleigh DOES enforce in the ETJ (Extra Territorial Jurisdiction). If you want to know if your listing is in the ETJ, visit: www.wakegov.com/realestate . Enter the address, then click on account and then land. Under the heading ETJ, it will say RA if the property is located in the ETJ, and therefore would fall under the sign enforcement.

Town Of Apex
UDO Sec.8.7.1/Permitted Signs:
Locations, Size and Number

REAL ESTATE
A temporary sign advertising the real estate upon which the sign is located as being for rent, lease or sale and meets the conditions below:
Real Estate signs shall be allowed provided that:
Single Family, duplex, triplex, quadplex, town home, condo or residential lot or dwelling: A maximum of one (1) real estate sign per lot frontage advertising for rent, sale or lease. Such sign shall not exceed five (5) sq. ft. and four (4) ft. in height and shall be located on the property to which the advertisement is referring. The sign shall be removed when property is sold by the transfer of title to the new owner.
Signs are not allowed off-premise or in private commons areas.
No Multi-family apartment leasing signage allowed except as specifically stated in Sec. 8.7.1(A) (13) (e)
A maximum of one (1) real estate sign per development at a residential subdivision or nonresidential subdivision entrance to advertise properties for sale. Such sign shall not exceed thirty-two (32) square feet and five (5) feet in height and shall be removed no later than the time at which one hundred (100) percent of the properties within the subdivision have initially been sold to a builder or private owner.
One (1) single-family residential subdivision “sales center” sign, not to exceed five (5) square feet or four (4) feet in height is permitted on the lot on which the sales center is located.
A maximum of one (1) real estate sign per lot frontage advertising the rent, sale, or lease of a non-residential lot or structure including tenant spaces located within a structure. Such sign shall not exceed five (5) sq. ft. and four (4) ft. in height and shall be located on the property to which the advertisement is referring. The sign shall be removed when the rented or leased property is occupied by the new tenant or when the property is sold by the transfer of title to the new owner.

Violation/Fees

The following civil penalties may be imposed on a person who violates this Ordinance:

Individual Violation– A civil penalty of $100.00 for each violation
Continuing Violation– If a violation is not corrected within 10 days of receipt of a notice of violation, then civil penalties accrue starting on the 11th day and accrue through and until the violation is corrected. A person receiving a notice of violation and correction order shall pay all accrued civil penalties to the Town within 30 days of receipt of the notice, then the civil penalties, including all further accruing penalties for a continuing violation, shall be collectible for the Town through a civil action in the nature of debt. Each day that any violation continues shall constitute a separate violation for the purpose of assessing civil penalties.
Contact for the Town of Apex
Amy Overfeld—919-249-3422


Town Of Cary
LDO Sec.9.3.2 R & Q Permitted Signs:
Locations, Size and Number

(R) Real Estate Signs shall be allowed, provided that:
In single-family residential districts: one real estate sign in lieu of one of the two “residential” signs otherwise permitted, provided that:
Such signs may be placed only on private property, with the permission of the owner, and such signs shall be in lieu of one “residential” or other freestanding sign otherwise permitted; and
Such signs shall be subject to size and placement restrictions applicable to “residential signs.
In residential areas zoned for multi=family use; or in non-residential areas for multi-occupant properties:
In place of any wall or window sign permitted to an occupant of the space that is available for sale, rent or lease; and Either up to four additional pieces of information on the principal ground sign; or
C) A separate ground sign for each parcel, limited to 30 inches in height and five (5) sq. ft. in area on
each side, made of the same materials and colors as the principal ground sign, and set back at least
30 ft. from any public or private right-of-way. For single occupant non-residential properties, , one sign of not more than 30 inches in height and five (5) sq. ft. in area; or, in place of any building or window sing permitted to an occupant of the space; On vacant parcel in residential areas, one sign per lot not to exceed 42 inches in height and five (5) sq. ft. in area; On vacant parcels in non-residential areas, one sign per lot or tract not to exceed 42 inches in height and five (5) sq. ft. in area 6. On vacant or developed parcels with dual
Street frontage, a second sign meeting the requirements of (R) (2) above may be allowed.

Off Premise Signs shall be allowed, provided that:
There shall be no more than 3 total off premise signs for any open house event. These signs shall include a realtor’s license number or homeowner’s number where the event is taking place.
Signs can only be placed in residential area with more than 3 signs directing prospective buyers in the same direction at any one intersection.
Such signs may be in place only from 10 a.m. on Saturday to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Such signs shall not exceed 2 sq. ft. in sign area.
Such signs shall not exceed 24 inches in height.
Such signs shall only use a combination burgundy (Color No 491 C Pantone) and white.
No more than two open house events per year for any one home, residential project or structure.

Violations/Fees
After receiving notification of a violation, you could be fined $100. The violation is per sign for the first day of the violation, $500 per sign for the second day, and $1000 per sign for each day thereafter. Temporary and portable signs may be removed and disposed of by a zoning compliance officer.
Contact for the Town of Cary
Mark Tutor-919-462-3885

Town of Fuquay-Varina
Town Code-The Sign Ordinance:
Sign placement for specific businesses
One real estate sign no larger than Six (6) square ft. may be placed on site. Signs may not be placed off-site or on roadsides. Signs reading “Open House” or “House for Sale” may be placed as directional signs at intersections. These directional signs may not display the name of a real estate company or subdivision and must be at least three (3) feet from the street or on the far side of the sidewalk during the week, but on the weekend, company names and logos are permitted with a permit.

Temporary signs at project sites
Temporary signs advertising contractors, architects, developers, real estate agents, lending institutions or owners are permitted on project sites. No single sign may exceed 32 sq. ft. in surface area and the total for all signs for a single project may not exceed 64 sq. ft. If a free-standing sign exceeds 15 sq. ft., the sign must be engineered to meet the State Building Code for wind loads. Calculations and engineers seal must be submitted with the sign permit application. All violations are subject to fines, up to $100 per day per violation.
Contact for the Town of Fuquay-Varina
Shannon Duncan-919-552-1421


Town of Garner
UDO Sec.7.5 Sign Regulations:

C. Prohibited Signs
The following signs are prohibited in all districts
6. Balloons, blimps or similar types of lighter-than-air objects, except those which are subject to Federal Aviation Administration regulations;
D. Signs Allowed Without a Permit
The following signs may be erected and maintained in all districts without a permit:
Directional Real Estate signs no more than 4 square feet in size and posted only from Friday at 6 PM until Sunday at 8 PM. Such signs shall be located no less than 4 feet from the back of curb, and shall not interfere with clear sight triangles at driveways or intersections.
Un-illuminated temporary signs which advertise the sale, rental or lease of the premises on which the sign is located, limited to give square feet in total area for residential uses, and 32 square feet in total area for commercial or industrial properties. Any such sign shall not be placed in any right-of-way or situated so as to interfere with sight distance, shall be limited to one sign per street frontage and 6 feet in height and shall be removed within ten days of the sale, lease or rental of the property advertised or within five days of the date the ‘sold’ sign added or affixed;
Signs directing and guiding traffic on private property that do not exceed two square feet in surface area or two feet in height and that bear no advertising matter; Violation Fees for Garner- $25 per day after receipt of a citation notice.
Contact for the Town of Garner
Jennifer Collins—919-772-4688


Town of Holly Springs
Ordinance 02-15 Sec 4-1011

Home for Sale Directional Signs
Weekend directional signs relating to homes for sale that are not associated with a Residential Subdivision Under Construction (see below) shall be permitted under the following guidelines:
Each home for sale shall be allowed a total of six (6) directional signs which direct traffic to the individual home for sale such as “For Sale” or “Open House” directional signs. Such signs shall be located within the boundaries of the subdivision in which the home is located.
Temporary right-of-way sign permits are not required for such Home for Sale signs.
Signs directing the public to or informing the public of the location of a home for sale or open house are permitted only between the hours of 8:00 p.m. local time on Friday and 5:00 a.m. Local time on Monday.
Such signs may be no larger than six (6) square feet in size and no higher than three and one-half (3-1/2) feet from grade to the top of the sign.
Such signs when located in areas other than within the residential subdivision shall be located no less than five (5) feet from the street pavement or curb, whichever is more, provided that they comply with the Sight Distance Requirements at driveways and street/alley intersections. Weekend directional signs relating to homes for sale that are not associated with a Residential Subdivision Under Construction (see below) shall be permitted under the following guidelines:
Within residential subdivisions, such signs shall be permitted to be located between the street and the sidewalk within the public right-of-way provided that they comply with the Sight Distance Requirements at driveways and street/alley intersections. No more than one (1) sign per home shall be located at a single corner or spaced closer than 500’ apart.
Violation/Fees
Violation of this section shall subject the offender to a civil penalty of $50.00 per violation. Each day continuing violation shall be a separate and distinct offense.
Contact for the Town of Holly Springs
Chuck Queen—919-857-2914

Town of Knightdale
UDO Article 21.5.6
Signs Exempt from Issuance of a Sign Permit

The following signs are exempt from the requirement for issuance of a sign permit under this Article provided such signs will conform to specific provisions below and all other applicable requirements of this chapter.
Real Estate signs advertising the sale, rental, or lease of the premises on which the signs are located, provided such signs do not exceed one sign per zoning lot or one sign per each separately owned individual residential or commercial unit on a single zoning lot and provided such signs do not exceed four (4) sq. ft. of sign area for property zoned residential and sixteen (32) sq. ft. for property zoned non-residential. Such signs shall be removed within (7) days after sale, rental, or lease of the premises. New Construction– one (1) per subdivision allowed, and provided such signs do not exceed sixteen (16) sq. ft. and one (1) “for sale” sign allowed on each lot.
Off Premise Signs shall be allowed, provided that:
There shall be no more than 3 total off premise signs. Signs with balloons or other moving parts are prohibited.
Violations/Fees
1sr warning citation ($0), 2nd citation ($100.), 3rd citation is ($250) within 6 months of 2nd citation.
Contact for the Town of Knightdale
Chris Scott-919-217-2243

Town Of Morrisville
Zoning Ordinance-Article “X” Sections 4-3 & 6.2.1, 6.2.2, & 6.2.3
One (1) sign advertising for rent, lease or sale of dwellings of residential zones provided that the sign shall not be illuminated.
Temporary Residential Directional Signs are allowed on weekends only to direct the public to the following:
Single-family and multi-family residential signs for developments that are under construction.
Multi-family residential development with units available for sale or lease by the property manager or builder. Individual single-family, town homes or condominium units offered for sale by the owner or his/her agent.
All temporary residential directional signs are subject to the following requirements:
The color, location, or design or any sign shall not resemble or conflict with traffic control signs or signals.
The property to which the public is being directed is located within the municipal limits or extra-territorial jurisdiction of the Town of Morrisville.
Signs may be no larger than six (6) sq. ft. in area and no higher than forty-two (42) inches from grade to the top of the sign. Signs shall not interfere with visibility at intersections or railroad crossings.
Signs shall not be placed on private property without the written permission of the property owner.
Permitted only between the hours of 3:00 p.m. local time on Friday and 5:00 a.m. local time on Monday.

Page Signs shall be freestanding & self-supporting and may be located in a public road right-of-way, but shall not be attached to any utility structure, tree, fence, or other public or private sign structure.
Signs shall be placed at least five (5) ft. from the edge of the pavement of any roadway except on internal residential subdivision streets, where signs can be placed between the street and sidewalk provided that they do not interfere with or obstruct a motorist’s view of pedestrian or vehicular traffic.
One (1) sign per open house, auction or sale, or development project may be placed in the vicinity of a street intersection. A maximum of two (2) signs may be permitted in the vicinity of an intersection of a major or minor thoroughfare if needed to provide visibility for two directions of travel.
Except as provided in (I) above, any two signs referring to the same property shall be separated by at least five hundred (500) feet. Weekend directional signs advertising a residential development under construction, or a multi-family development with units available for sale or lease by the property manager or builder shall satisfy the following conditions in addition to (a) through (I) above.
Issuance of a permit for the calendar year is required prior to placement of each sign. The maximum number of permits that may be issued for any given development is as follows:
i. A development under construction that will contain fewer than 200 residential units may be issued a maximum of six (6) off-premises directional sign permits to direct traffic to the project.
ii. A development under construction that will contain two hundred (200) or more residential units may be issued up to eight (8) off-premises directional sign permits to direct traffic to the project. The Planning Dept. may consider requests for additional permits up to a maximum of ten (10) upon finding a unique need based on the size of the project and its location relative to exiting roadways. For purposes of this section, subdivisions or developments within an approved master plan or planned development shall be collectively treated as a single development project, and sign copy shall reference the name of the planned development or master plan, not an individual development or neighborhood.
iii. An existing multi-family development with units for sale or lease by the property manager or builder may be issued a maximum of four (4) permits.
The fee for each permit shall be $25.00 if issued on or before June 30th and $12.50 if issued July 1 or later. All such permits shall expire on December 31st of the year of issuance.
A sticker shall be provided to the applicant for each permit issued. Said sticker shall be affixed to each sign as evidence of permit approval. Any sign not displaying a valid sticker shall be a violation of this ordinance, and subject to a fine of $50.00 per day.
No Balloons permitted
Violations/Fees
Any sign not displaying a valid sticker shall be a violation of this ordinance, and subject to a fine of $50.00 per day.
Contact for the Town of Morrisville
John Barnard– 919-463-6198

City of Rolesville
UDO Section 11.1– General Regulations

No sign or sign structure shall be erected or constructed to interfere with vision clearance as defined in Sec. 9.1.

Sec 9.1: Visibility at Intersections:
On a corner lot, nothing shall be erected, placed, planted, or allowed to grow in such a manner as materially to impede vision between a height of two and one-half (2 1/2) and ten (10) feet in a triangular area formed by a diagonal line between two (2) points on the curb line twenty-five (25) feet from where they intersect or where there are no curb lines, on the right of way lines, twenty (20) feet from where they intersect.
No ground sign structure may be placed in the right-of-way.
Section 11.1.2 General Regulations
No ground sign structure may be placed in the right of way
Section 11.3 Off-site advertising signs
Off-site signs are prohibited—no permits granted.
No signs with moving, revolving or rotating parts, flashing, blinking or rotating lights or balloons are permitted.
Section 11.5 Permitted Signs
Residential: Such signs shall not exceed six (6) sq. feet in area and three (3) ft. in height. Permitted use in residential districts.
Commercial: Such signs shall not exceed thirty-two (32) sq feet in area. Permitted use in O&P, C, MU, and I.
New Construction: sixteen (16) sq. ft at each entrance and four (4) ft. individual “For Sale” sings on each lot for sale.
Fines are $200.00 for each violation per day.
Contact for the Town of Rolesville
Brian Hicks-919-556-3506


Wake Forest Sign Ordinance
Zoning Ordinance Article VI Sec. 4

B Prohibited Signs in all Districts
Any sign that may constitute a traffic hazard
Any sign which contains, employs or utilizes lights or lighting which rotates, flashes, moves or alternates except otherwise approved time and temperature signs.
Off-premise signs such as billboards
C. Signs allowed in all districts exempted from
Permit issuance:
5. Real Estate signs advertising the sale, rental or lease of the premise on which said sign is located, provided such signs do not exceed one (1) sign per street frontage; and do not exceed four (4) square feet in area per display surface for a residential premise; or sixteen (16) sq. ft. in area per display surface for a non-residential premise or residential premises exceeding two (2) acres, and are removed immediately after sale or lease of the premise.
10. Generic, non-advertising, directional realty signs not exceeding tow (2) square feet in size on private property with the owner’s permission be permitted.
Enforcement Note: Signs illegally placed in the public right-of-way are confiscated and destroyed after one week. Signs illegally placed on private property are cited and given 10 days per citation to correct the violation. Fee structure is as follows:
1st warning citation ($0), 2nd citation ($25), 3rd citation ($40), All subsequent citations are $50 per day
Contact for the Town of Wake Forest
Bill Summers-919-556-7284


Town Of Wendell
Zoning Code Sec 154.111.J

(J) Real Estate Signs:
Signs advertising the sale, rental, or lease of the premises on which the sign is located, provided such signs do not exceed one (1) sign per street frontage, and do not exceed three (3) sq. ft. in area per display surface for a residential premise.
Real Estate signage are not to be located in any right-of-way.
For properties in excess of one (1) acre, signs may not exceed thirty-two (32) sq. ft. of aggregate signage per street frontage. Signs are to be located a minimum of ten (10) ft. off of the right-of-way.
Citation Schedule:
Offense-Warning Citation Fine -$0 First occurrence of a violation on a given tract of land.
Offense-First Citation Fine-$25V Violation no corrected with a 14 day period following issuance of a warning violation. Offense-Second Citation Fine-$50 Violation no corrected within the next 10 day period following issuance of the first citation. Offense-Third & subsequent citation Fine-$100
Initial violation not corrected within each subsequent 10 day period following issuance of a
second or subsequent citation.
Contact for the Town of Wendell
Chris Hills-919-365-4444


City Of Zebulon
Zoning Code

Article XI Sec. 152.254
Real Estate signs are allowed provided that they are placed on the property that is for sale.
No off-site real estate signs are allowed unless the parcel is land locked and the sign is placed on the nearest parcel with road frontage, with the permission of the property owner.
Real estate signs are not to exceed five (5) sq. ft. in size or 42 inches in height except for lots equal to or greater than 3 acres where signs are not to exceed forty-two (42) sq. ft. total and two signs are permitted. One offsite sign may not exceed five (5) sq. ft. in size and is only permitted to remain in place between 4 PM Friday until 7 PM Sunday.

Signs placed on the public rights-of-way or on utility poles are prohibited.

Violations/Citations
Warning—$0—First Occurrence
First -$50—not corrected after 14 days
Second—$75—not corrected with 10 days
Third & Subsequent—$100—Initial violation not corrected within each subsequent 10 days
Contact for the Town of Zebulon
Mark Hetrick-919-269-7455 ext 268