County profile

Verified

Phillips County

Small plains county with agricultural context and possible affordability upside.

County-level verifiedParcel review requiredRV cautionLand availability signal

Profile boundary

County Profiles Do Not Approve Parcels

This profile summarizes county-level signals. Before relying on a parcel, verify current rules with planning, zoning, building, environmental health, water, road, fire, title, and local professionals.

Read disclaimer

At a glance

Fast Read

County-level discovery summary for alternative housing research. Use this as a shortlist signal, then verify the specific parcel and code path.

Verify first
Overall

Mixed discovery fit

Phillips County has a Freedom Score of 54. Its strongest profile signals are Tiny homes (3/5) and Off-grid living (3/5).

Best use case

Northeast Plains affordability research

Best initial fit: Northeast Plains affordability research, Small-county direct-contact research, Solar-oriented rural buyers. Check county planning materials before making parcel assumptions.

Land signal

20/100 affordability score

$33,592 per acre snapshot with 8 active land listings and a 4/5 availability signal.

Caution

RV living needs extra review

Contact county before purchase

Trust strip

Source Snapshot

Fast source context for this county profile. Use the full source trail below for links, citations, and parcel-level verification reminders.

Data status
Land snapshotsourced
Jun 3, 2026

LandSearch

Broadbandsourced
2024

Census Reporter ACS 2024 5-year table B28002

Public landsourced
2026

Colorado State Basemap GIS public land layers

Solar periodsourced
2001-2020

NASA POWER 2001-2020 solar irradiance climatology

County citationssourced
1

Planning, zoning, building, and profile links

Best Fit

Northeast Plains affordability researchSmall-county direct-contact researchSolar-oriented rural buyersAgricultural land research

Pros

  • Official Colorado.gov AccessGov building permit form is available
  • Rural plains context
  • Potential affordability and solar candidate
  • Useful for direct county verification

Cons

  • Public online planning/zoning detail is sparse
  • County staff confirmation is needed for most alternative-housing questions
  • Water, septic, and access need parcel review
  • RV and tiny-home rules are not deeply documented online

Alternative Housing Ratings

derived

Verified county-level discovery scores

Tiny Homes
3/5
RV Living
2/5
Off Grid
3/5
Container Homes
2/5
ADUs
2/5

Alternative Housing Notes

Tiny Homes

Phillips County is a small northeast plains direct-contact county. A Colorado.gov AccessGov building permit form is available, but public planning/zoning detail is sparse, so tiny homes need county confirmation of zoning, land use, building classification, water, septic, and access.

RV Living

RV living should be scored conservatively. The public permit form does not authorize permanent RV residence, so county or town confirmation is required.

Off Grid

Phillips may be relevant for agricultural plains affordability research, but off-grid feasibility depends on direct county review of building permits, land use, water, septic/OWTS, access, and utilities.

Container Homes

Container homes should be treated as restrictive unless county staff confirms an approved building and land-use path.

ADUs

ADU feasibility in Phillips County depends on zoning or land-use classification, primary dwelling status, septic or utility capacity, water, access, and municipal or subdivision rules.

Land Affordability

sourced

Sourced market snapshot

Price/Acre Estimate
$33,592
Active Land Listings
8
Availability Score
4/5
Affordability Score
20/100

Source: LandSearch snapshot from June 3, 2026. LandSearch average price per acre and active property count; not a true median acre price.

How to read source layers

Population Context

sourced

Sourced Census estimate

Population
4,488
Population Density
6.5 / sq mi

Population uses 2024 U.S. Census county estimates. Density is computed from county land area in the imported GeoJSON boundary data.

Water and Septic

draft

Parcel-level verification needed

Water

Verify water service, well eligibility, water rights, hauled water/cistern rules, and adequacy requirements at parcel level before relying on Phillips County for homesteading or off-grid use.

Septic

Verify septic/OWTS feasibility, soils, setbacks, and county or health-department review before assuming residential or RV occupancy is possible in Phillips County.

Climate, Utilities, and Access

derived

Mixed sourced and derived layers

Snowfall
29.8"
Precipitation
19"
Growing Season
199 days
Broadband
7/10
Solar
7/10
Public Land
149
Recreation Access
2/5
Federal Public Land
0
State Public Land
149
Local Public Land
0

Public land source: Colorado State Basemap GIS public land layers snapshot from 2026. County-clipped GIS estimate using State Wildlife Areas. Includes federal lands, Colorado state parks, Colorado state wildlife areas, and Denver parks where applicable. Wilderness designation layers are excluded to avoid double-counting overlapping federal ownership.

Broadband Subscription
83%
Cable/Fiber/DSL
64.3%
Satellite
13.9%
No Internet
10.1%

Broadband source: Census Reporter ACS 2024 5-year table B28002 snapshot from 2024. Broadband score is a county-level ACS household broadband subscription proxy, not parcel-level service availability. Score is based on the percentage of households with broadband of any type.

Annual Solar Resource
4.74 kWh/m²/day
Winter Solar
2.59 kWh/m²/day
Summer Solar
6.98 kWh/m²/day

Solar source: NASA POWER 2001-2020 solar irradiance climatology for 2001-2020. County-centroid solar proxy using NASA POWER ALLSKY_SFC_SW_DWN annual all-sky surface shortwave downward irradiance. This is a county-level solar resource estimate, not a parcel-level PV design study.

Source glossary and data layer notes

Red Flags

  • Contact county before purchase
  • Do not rely only on the building permit form
  • Verify zoning, land use, water, septic, and access
  • Check town and subdivision rules

Source Trail

County office links, sourced data layers, and profile citations used to build this county-level research summary.

Source glossary

Research Status

sourced

County-level profile reviewed; parcel-level confirmation still required

This profile is currently marked verified. It is ready for county comparison and early research, but legal claims and parcel-specific decisions should still be verified against county code, planning offices, and local experts.

County FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Phillips County a good county for alternative living?

Phillips County has a Freedom Score of 54, which makes it useful for county-level discovery. Treat that score as a shortlist signal, then verify zoning, building, water, septic, access, and covenant rules for the specific parcel.

Can you live in a tiny home in Phillips County?

Phillips County has a tiny home score of 3/5. That score does not approve a tiny home by itself; it means the county is worth researching through planning, zoning, building code, sanitation, and parcel-specific rules.

Can you live in an RV on land in Phillips County?

Phillips County has an RV living score of 2/5. RV rules often depend on duration, construction status, sanitation, water, zoning district, and whether the land is inside a subdivision or municipality.

Is Phillips County good for off-grid living?

Phillips County has an off-grid score of 3/5. Off-grid feasibility still depends on legal access, septic or OWTS approval, water options, fire risk, winter access, and whether a lawful dwelling can be permitted.

How affordable is land in Phillips County?

Phillips County has a land affordability score of 20/100 based on the current county-level dataset. Use this for comparison only, because actual parcel prices can vary by road access, utilities, terrain, water, covenants, and listing quality.

Who is Phillips County best suited for?

Based on the current profile, Phillips County is best suited for Northeast Plains affordability research, Small-county direct-contact research, Solar-oriented rural buyers. The best fit can change once you narrow from county-level research to a specific property.

What should I verify before buying land in Phillips County?

Before buying, confirm zoning, building permits, legal access, road maintenance, water rights or well eligibility, septic feasibility, wildfire requirements, floodplain issues, mineral rights, and any HOA, POA, subdivision, or covenant restrictions.

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