Building permits in Montgomery County, Maryland
Of the 13 common home projects we have verified in Montgomery County, 8 need a permit outright and 3 depend on size or scope. Click any project for the full rule, fee, and how to apply.
By Mario Bailey Last checked · 1 official source
Verified against official sources- Project types verified
- 13
- in Montgomery County
- Permits analysed
- 6,440
- in the last 12 months
- Median to issue
- 20 days
- application to issue
- Typical job value
- $26,000
- declared valuation
2 things Montgomery County does not make you permit
Worth knowing before you call anyone. Most jurisdictions we cover require all of these.
- Patio Permit
Ground-level patios are exempt; permit required only if patio includes a roof or cover structure
- Roof Replacement Permit
Roof covering replacement only is exempt; structural work requires a permit
Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services
- 2425 Reedie Drive 7th Floor Wheaton MD 20902
- Phone: 240-777-0311
- Official permit page
- Permit portal
- Official fee schedule
Look up a permit in Montgomery County
Montgomery County permit records are public, and you can check a property's permit history online.
What needs a permit in Montgomery County
Of the 13 common home projects we have verified in Montgomery County, 8 need a permit outright and 3 depend on size or scope. Click any project for the full rule, fee, and how to apply.
| Project | Permit needed? | Threshold | Typical fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bathroom Remodel Permit | It depends | Set locally | Filed as a residential Alteration Building Permit at $0.78 per sq ft of altered area... |
| Deck Permit | Permit required | Any size | $223.87 flat for an open unenclosed deck 500 sq ft or less, or $0.8830 per sq ft for... |
| Electrical Permit | Permit required | Any size | $111.94 minimum fee for a residential one or two family dwelling electrical permit... |
| EV Charger Permit | It depends | Permit requirements are set by the county, but the work is regulated statewide: every... | $62.19 for an Electrical Charging Station under Other Electrical Equipment, charged in... |
| Fence Permit | Permit required | Any size | $89.54 flat Fence Permit fee per DPS-Fees-ResConst-FY27.pdf effective 2026-07-01 |
| HVAC Permit | Permit required | Any size | Mechanical Permit minimum fee $80.84 for a residential one or two family dwelling... |
| Patio Permit | No permit needed | Exempt | No fee for a ground-level concrete or paver patio since no permit is required |
| Plumbing Permit | Permit required | Any size | See schedule |
| Pool Permit | Permit required | Any size | $360.68 for a private in-ground swimming pool including its fence per... |
| Roof Replacement Permit | No permit needed | Exempt | No fee for replacing only the roof covering since no permit is required |
| Shed Permit | Permit required | Any size | Priced as an Accessory Building: $136.80 flat for 200 sq ft or less, or $0.8830 per sq... |
| Solar Permit | Permit required | Any size | $261.18 flat for rooftop solar panels, with a reduced $130.59 fee for rooftop solar... |
| Water Heater Permit | It depends | It depends on the county | See schedule |
What you can build in Montgomery County
- Shed size, height and setback rules in Montgomery County (5 rules, each quoted from an official Montgomery County source)
- Fence size, height and setback rules in Montgomery County (4 rules, each quoted from an official Montgomery County source)
- Deck size, height and setback rules in Montgomery County (1 rule, each quoted from an official Montgomery County source)
- Pool size, height and setback rules in Montgomery County (4 rules, each quoted from an official Montgomery County source)
Planning a project in Montgomery County?
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Planning several things at once? Check your whole project
Schedule an inspection in Montgomery County
Permitted work is not finished until it passes inspection. DPS eServices schedule-an-inspection tool.
Schedule or request a Montgomery County inspection
When the portal will not take the date you need, the office still books by phone: 240-777-0311.
How often each check passes first time here, measured from Montgomery County's own published inspection records rather than estimated:
- final 72% of 16,764
- footing,piers, foundation 85% of 8,077
- framing or close in-add&alter 75% of 8,057
- permit notification sign 77% of 5,681
- insulation inspection 91% of 5,502
- wall bracing inspection 80% of 4,044
Checked . If the office has changed its process, report it.
Montgomery County permit fees compared with nearby Maryland localities
| Maryland locality | Deck Permit | HVAC Permit | Electrical Permit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County | $223.87 flat for an open unenclosed deck 500 sq ft or... | Mechanical Permit minimum fee $80.84 for a residential one... | $111.94 minimum fee for a residential one or two family... |
| Anne Arundel County | Building permits are valuation-based: "$0-$3,000 | $86.00"... | ...residential: "Heating and Air Conditioning |... | ...subpanel) | Any number of electrical devices |... |
| Baltimore County | ...07/01/26: Decks (Open Deck) (under 600 sf)... | ...HVAC System Only for commercial work only ($100.00... | ...upgrade, replacement or reconnection... |
| Howard County | $50 per structure (Miscellaneous Structures Accessory... | $50 non-refundable application fee | $50 non-refundable permit application fee, plus $50 for 25... |
Each cell is the opening clause of that Maryland jurisdiction's own fee schedule; the full wording and source sit on each permit page.
Montgomery County permit questions, answered from the data
- Do you need a permit in Montgomery County?
- For most projects, yes. Of the 13 permit types we have verified for Montgomery County, 8 always require a permit (for example a deck permit), 3 depend on size or scope (a bathroom remodel permit, for instance), and 2 need no permit at all in Montgomery County. Each Montgomery County permit type's page states the exact rule and its source.
- How much does a permit cost in Montgomery County?
- Montgomery County publishes a fee for 13 of the 13 permit types we cover, each quoted on its page from the jurisdiction's own schedule (linked on every page that carries one). Fees are set by Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services; we do not estimate or mark them up.
- Where do you apply for a permit in Montgomery County?
- Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services issues permits in Montgomery County, with an online portal for applications, plan uploads and status checks, and takes questions at 240-777-0311. The Montgomery County official page and portal are linked in the office section above.
- How long does a permit take in Montgomery County?
- A median of 20 days from application to issue in Montgomery County, measured across 6,440 issued residential permits, from the jurisdiction's open records rather than a published goal.
How the Montgomery County pages were verified. 13 permit types, 19 distinct official sources, most recently checked . Every rule is read from Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services or the applicable code and cited on its page; anything we could not confirm for Montgomery County is marked rather than estimated. How we verify.
Real permit outcomes in Montgomery County
- Median to issue
- 20 days
- 6,440 permits
- Typical job value
- $26,000
- declared valuation
Based on 6,440 residential permits issued in Montgomery County between 2025-07-12 and 2026-07-12: the median declared project value was $26,000; permits typically took 20 days to issue.
Source: Montgomery County residential building permits (open data), fetched . Figures are medians of actual issued-permit records, not a quote.
Permitting activity in Montgomery County
In 2025, Montgomery County authorized permits for 1,411 new residential housing units (804 single-family, 607 in multi-family buildings), valued at $272M , down from 3,656 the year before. That works out to about 1.3 permits per 1,000 residents. It is a useful gauge of how busy the local permit office is.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2025 annual data · population 1,074,582.
About Montgomery County
Montgomery County has about 405,127 housing units. The median home is valued at $615,200, against a median household income of $128,733. About 65% of homes are owner-occupied, and the typical home was built around 1980. Older housing stock usually means more renovation, electrical, and plumbing permits.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year.