Family Division

A division of unplatted land which is made for the purpose of a single inter vivos gift or sale to the landowner’s spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent or grandchild in accordance with the provisions of this section.

In order to divide a parcel of land, the Land Use and Development Code would require the property owner to either proceed through the subdivision process or qualify for an exempt division of land. The Family Division is an exempt division of land that enables a property owner to convey a newly created parcel to family members without all of the requirements associated with the subdivision process. Approvals from the applicable Highway District and Health District are still required, in addition to other agencies with jurisdiction, as applicable.

Requirements for a Minor Subdivision that are not required for a Family Division are as follows:

• Photos of the site
• Narrative
• Subdivision Plat
• Groundwater Quantity Report or Will-Serve Letter from a Water District or Water Association
• A conceptual site disturbance and stormwater plan, conceptual engineering plan, or geotechnical analysis when otherwise required
• Wetlands delineation when otherwise required

Requirements for a Family Division are as follows:

• Legal documentation to verify familial status (i.e. birth certificate, adoption certificate, court order, etc.)
• Site Map of parcel configuration and Existing Built Features Map
•  Legal confirmation of acreage. Each grantor is responsible for demonstrating that each resulting parcel will meet the minimum acreage (4.50 acres net, 5.00 acres gross). The minimum acreage in the Agricultural and Rural zones within the Coeur d’Alene Tribe Reservation boundaries is 10 acres.
• Title Report prepared within 6 months of submittal of application
• Proof of physical and legal access (i.e. recorded easement) from parent and resulting parcels to nearest public road 
• Approval of an approach permit from the highway district with jurisdiction for each resulting parcel
• Acknowledgement from Panhandle Health District indicating that a location has been identified and approved that can meet the wastewater disposal requirements, or approval from the applicable sewer district with jurisdiction if a connection is proposed.
• Unrecorded conveyance deed or similar instrument that will be used to execute the proposed subdivision

• The land must be unplatted. This means that the land has not previously been established through the formal subdivision process via county review and the recordation of a plat creating lots and blocks.
• The parcel must have been legally created. The parcel was created via deed on or prior to November 17, 1995; or created via subdivision exemption. Such parcels cannot be in conflict with any provision of the Land Use and Development Code.
• The parcel must not have previously been divided for the purpose of a gift or sale by a prior owner pursuant to the Family Division process.
• The parcel has been retained by the same owner for the previous three (3) years, except as may be allowed in the provisions of the Family Division.
• Each resulting parcel must be created with the minimum parcel size of five (5.00) gross acres (4.50 acres net), or ten (10.00) acres in the Coeur d’Alene Tribe Reservation.
• There is legal and physical access to a public road.
• There are no deed restrictions or Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CCRs) that prohibit further division of the parcel.
• There are no active code violations unless the Family Division corrects the violation.

The Code states that no grantor may create more than four parcels pursuant to the Family Division in their lifetime.

Yes. The grantor and any assignees are still obligated to comply with the requirements of all agencies with jurisdiction prior to development permits. This may include but not limited to the requirements of fire districts, water districts, FEMA, etc.

The parcel is subject to any standards set forth by the applicable Area of City Impact agreement, unless explicitly waived by the city with jurisdiction and Kootenai County.

• For parcels in an A Zone*, a Letter of Map revision (LOMR) shall be submitted with the application. A LOMR is a Federal requirement and provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) once a flood study has been approved. Parcels created pursuant to the Family Division are not exempt from this requirement.
• For parcels in the AE Zone**, no additional documentation is required.

*Floodplain designated A zones refers to areas that are prone to flooding, but where a base flood risk has not been established.

**Floodplain designated AE zones refers to areas that are at high risk for flooding and are typically associated with a 1% annual chance of flooding, also known as the base flood or 100-year flood.

Parcels created pursuant to this process and conveyed to family, cannot be re-divided pursuant to the Family Division. Parcels created pursuant to this process that are retained by the original owner may be re-divided through the Family Division if there is sufficient acreage and does not exceed the number of Family Divisions allotted during the grantor’ lifetime.

A Road Naming Application will need to be applied for and approved prior to the creation of parcels pursuant to the Family Division.

Contact Kootenai County Community Development to request a pre-application meeting with a planner. Planning Staff will confirm that the parcel was legally created and eligible for permits. Then, a planner will meet with you to discuss the application requirements, process, fees, and timeline.

Yes. Pre-Application meetings include preliminary research conducted by Community Development Staff to determine eligibility for a Family Division, and the opportunity for the Applicant to discuss their proposal with a County Planner.