Skip to main content

Charles County vs Montgomery County, MD Building Permit Fees (2026)

Charles County and Montgomery County are both Maryland counties with no statewide percentage levy, but they reach a permit fee in completely different ways. Charles builds each permit up additively - an application fee, a plan review fee, inspection fees, plus engineering, environmental, and zoning reviews. Montgomery prices new construction and alterations per square foot, then adds a filing fee. On a new home Montgomery is actually the lower of the two; on a pool, Charles's component floor is lower. Neither is a simple flat-fee county.

Key Takeaways
  • Charles County uses an additive itemized model - application + plan review + inspection + engineering/environmental/zoning reviews - while Montgomery prices new construction at $0.767865/sq ft and alterations at $0.681345/sq ft, plus a filing fee.
  • On a new 2,400 sq ft home, Montgomery ($2,764.32) is lower than Charles (~$3,575), because Charles's $2,833 inspection minimum sets a high floor for new dwellings.
  • On an in-ground pool, Charles starts from about $243 (application + plan review + engineering) versus Montgomery's flat $313.64 - here Charles's component floor is lower.
  • On a standalone demolition, Montgomery's flat $156.82 beats Charles's roughly $243 additive floor.
  • Neither county adds a statewide Maryland levy. Charles lists a 5% Development Technology Fee whose application to building-permit totals is ambiguous on the schedule, so it is not added here. Montgomery has no standard technology fee.
  • Charles County's schedule is current (FY26, effective July 1, 2025); Montgomery's published DPS schedule carries an FY2022 printed date. Charles totals are additive build-up estimates whose inspection line items vary by project - confirm both with the counties.
Use the Fee Calculator Maryland Hub

Charles vs Montgomery: Fee Structure Side by Side

Fee Element Charles County Montgomery County (DPS)
Fee model Additive itemized (app + review + inspection + eng) Per square foot + filing-fee floor
New construction $0.75/sq ft inspection, $2,833 min + components $0.767865/sq ft + 50% filing
Interior alteration / basement $115 app + $0.19/sq ft review ($139 min) + inspections $0.681345/sq ft + $286.60 floor
In-ground pool from $243 (app + review + eng) $313.64 flat
Demolition from $243 (app + review + eng) $156.82 flat
Technology fee 5% (base ambiguous - not added) None (optional 25% expedited review)
State levy None (Maryland) None (Maryland)
Fee schedule effective FY26, July 1, 2025 (current) Printed FY2022 (verify current)

Scope note: Both counties' figures are the building-permit side only. Trade permits (electrical, plumbing, mechanical), impact and excise charges on new homes, and zoning approvals are excluded from both. Charles County totals are additive build-up estimates - the schedule does not fully specify which inspection line items apply to every project type, so totals that include inspections are presented as floors. Charles lists a 5% Development Technology Fee whose base is ambiguous and is not added here. Montgomery's per-square-foot fees add the filing-fee floor shown and carry an FY2022 source-age caveat.

Shared-Assumption Worked Examples

Each example assumes the same project for both counties. Charles totals that include inspections are floors (build-up estimates); Montgomery totals are per-square-foot plus the filing fee.

Example 1: New Detached House, 2,400 sq ft

Fee Component Charles County Montgomery County
Permit build-up $115 app + $456 review + $2,833 inspection + $171 eng/env/zoning + $50 guaranty 2,400 × $0.767865 = $1,842.88 + $921.44 filing
Total (building-permit side) ~$3,575 $2,764.32

Note: Montgomery is about $811 lower here. Charles's total is driven by its $2,833 new-dwelling inspection minimum (the $0.75/sq ft inspection rate at 2,400 sq ft is $1,800, below the minimum, so the $2,833 floor applies). The 5% Charles Development Technology Fee is excluded (ambiguous base). Both counties also assess large separate impact, excise, and school facility charges, excluded here.

Example 2: In-Ground Pool

Fee Component Charles County Montgomery County
Permit build-up $58 app + $139 pool plan review + $46 Tier 1 eng $313.64 flat (includes fence)
Total from $243 $313.64

Note: Charles's component floor of $243 is below Montgomery's flat $313.64, but Charles may add pool inspection line items on top, so $243 is a starting point. Montgomery's $313.64 is an all-in flat pool fee that includes the required barrier fence. Pool equipment electrical is a separate trade permit in both counties.

Example 3: Standalone Demolition

Fee Component Charles County Montgomery County
Permit build-up $58 app + $139 demo plan review + $46 Tier 1 eng $156.82 flat
Total from $243 $156.82

Note: Montgomery's flat $156.82 demolition fee is lower than Charles's roughly $243 additive floor. Utility disconnects and asbestos surveys are separate and excluded in both counties. See our Montgomery demolition guide for the full Montgomery breakdown.

Which County Is Cheaper for Your Project?

Scenario Lower Fee Why
New house Montgomery ($2,764 vs ~$3,575) Charles's $2,833 new-dwelling inspection minimum sets a high floor
In-ground pool Charles (from $243 vs $313.64) Charles's component floor is below Montgomery's flat fee (inspections may add)
Standalone demolition Montgomery ($156.82 vs ~$243) Montgomery's flat demolition line is below Charles's additive floor
Predictable single number Montgomery Per-SF + flat lines vs Charles's component build-up with variable inspections
Source currency Charles (FY26 current) Montgomery's published schedule carries an FY2022 printed date

Practitioner Insight

This is not a "one county is always cheaper" comparison - it depends entirely on the project. Charles County's additive model front-loads a high inspection minimum on new dwellings ($2,833 before anything else), so a new home costs more there than in Montgomery, where the per-square-foot rate plus a 50% filing fee lands at $2,764. But for smaller discrete projects like a pool, Charles's component floor (application + plan review + engineering, about $243) can dip below Montgomery's flat fees. The harder problem with Charles is predictability: its schedule does not spell out every inspection line that applies to each project type, so an all-in total is a build-up estimate, not a single published number. Montgomery is more predictable - a per-square-foot rate and a handful of flat lines - but its published schedule is the older of the two, carrying an FY2022 printed date. Confirm current rates with both: Charles County Planning & Growth Management at 301-645-0692 (FY26 schedule) and Montgomery County DPS at 240-777-0311 (FY2022 printed schedule).

Frequently Asked Questions

It depends on the project. On a new 2,400 sq ft home Montgomery is lower (about $2,764 vs $3,575 in Charles, where a $2,833 inspection minimum applies). On a standalone demolition Montgomery is also lower ($156.82 vs about $243). But on an in-ground pool, Charles's component floor (from about $243) is below Montgomery's flat $313.64. Charles builds permits up additively; Montgomery prices per square foot plus a filing fee.
Charles County uses an additive itemized fee model - an application fee, a plan review fee, inspection fees, and engineering/environmental/zoning reviews are summed. The schedule does not fully specify which inspection line items apply to every project type, so an all-in total is a build-up estimate. We show the components we can verify (application + plan review + engineering) as a floor, marked "from," rather than implying a single published number.
Neither county adds a statewide Maryland levy - Maryland has no equivalent of Virginia's 2% USBC levy. Charles County lists a 5% Development Technology Fee, but the schedule does not make clear whether it applies to building-permit and inspection totals or only to development-review fees, so we do not add it. Montgomery has no standard technology fee, though it offers an optional 25% expedited plan review.
Charles County charges a new single-family dwelling inspection fee of $0.75 per square foot with a $2,833 minimum. At 2,400 sq ft that minimum applies, and once you add the application, plan review, engineering, and guaranty-fund components the total is about $3,575. Montgomery's $0.767865/sq ft rate plus a 50% filing fee lands at $2,764.32 for the same house - lower, because it has no comparable high inspection floor.
Charles County's schedule is current - FY26, effective July 1, 2025. Montgomery County's published DPS schedule carries an FY2022 printed date, so it is the older of the two and source-age flagged. Confirm current rates with both before relying on them. See the Charles County and Montgomery County pages for full detail.

Sources

Official Sources
Next Step

See each county's full fee page, or compare more Maryland jurisdictions.

Verify current fees with each county before budgeting or filing. Charles County Planning & Growth Management: 301-645-0692 (FY26 schedule). Montgomery County DPS: 240-777-0311 (FY2022 printed schedule). Confirm current rates with both.
Disclaimer: All fee information on PermitPrice is informational only and not an official permit quotation. Actual fees are determined by each county at the time of application. Charles County totals are additive build-up estimates whose inspection line items vary by project; the 5% Charles Development Technology Fee is excluded (ambiguous base). Impact, excise, and school facility charges and trade permits are excluded from the figures on this page. Montgomery's schedule carries an FY2022 source-age caveat.

Written by: Munib Ur Rehman

Data verified against official fee schedule documents.