Barndominium Builders in New Market, TN

Barndominium builders in New Market are building in one of the quieter corners of Jefferson County. The town counted 1,349 people in the 2020 census, nearly the same as the 1,334 counted in 2010, on about 4.2 square miles of land. It sits in the valley of Lost Creek, a west-flowing tributary of the Holston River, at roughly 1,073 feet. Knoxville is about 24 miles to the southwest, Jefferson City about 3 miles to the northeast, and Morristown about 19 miles out. That is the draw: a farm-country address with an easy run into Knoxville on U.S. 11E.

What sets New Market apart

New Market was settled in 1788 and incorporated in 1911. In 1977 it reincorporated, citing concern about annexation by Jefferson City, which borders it on the east. Population has barely moved in a decade, so the land around town still reads as farmland, not subdivision. That is good for anyone hoping to find a few acres with room for a shop, equipment parking and a home under one roof.

A quick checklist for a New Market homesite

• Confirm whether the parcel is inside town limits or in unincorporated Jefferson County.
• Check the zoning district. The county names A-1 and R-1 on its zoning page.
• Confirm at least 50 feet of frontage on a county road, which the county requires for every lot.
• Book the septic site evaluation before anything else.
• Pull the flood status at the county zoning office if any part of the lot is near Lost Creek or a branch.
• Get a survey or plat; the building department asks for one with every house permit.

Valley-floor lots and creek bottoms

A lot in a creek valley is usually flatter and easier to pad than a ridge lot, but the low spots collect water. Jefferson County gives flood zone status only in person from FEMA maps at its office in Dandridge. On a valley-floor tract we look for the high, well-drained part of the lot for both the slab and the drain field, and we grade the pad so storm water moves away from the shop doors.

The septic evaluation, step by step

Tennessee requires a permit to construct a septic system. After you apply, a TDEC environmental scientist visits the lot to decide what system it needs. To be ready: stake the property lines no more than 200 feet apart on long runs, stake the corners of the house pad, and mow or bush-hog the area. Leave the ground undisturbed. The state may ask for a site plan or a soils map from a private soil consultant, and it says a complete application can take up to 45 days. Jefferson County lists the approved septic permit as one of the documents for a house permit, so this step really does come first.

Clay, chert and limestone

Two USDA soil series found in the Ridge and Valley of Tennessee show the range: Fullerton is very deep, well drained and cherty, formed in cherty limestone residuum; Talbott is clayey, moderately slowly permeable, and can have limestone bedrock 20 to 40 inches down, sometimes with karst features. One lot can hold both conditions. We plan footings and slab prep around what the site actually shows once it is opened up.

Using the A-1 rules to your advantage

In Jefferson County's A-1 district a lot needs 40,000 square feet when septic is approved. Detached accessory buildings must sit beside or behind the house and stay 5 feet from side and rear lines, and only one dwelling unit is allowed per property. Putting the shop and the living quarters in one building is the simplest way to get both on a modest tract without fighting the accessory-building placement rules. Structures used strictly for agriculture are exempt from a building permit, but a barndo with a kitchen and bedrooms is a house.

A note of history

On September 24, 1904, two passenger trains collided head-on near New Market; accounts of the death toll range from 54 to 113. The rail line and U.S. 11E still frame the town, and the highway is what makes New Market practical for commuting to Knoxville or Jefferson City.

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