Howard County vs Baltimore County, MD Building Permit Fees (2026)
Howard County and Baltimore County are neighbors with very different fee mechanics. Howard meters square footage - $0.25 per square foot for additions, plus a $50 filing fee and a 10% technology fee. Baltimore County charges flat fees by size band - an addition is $85 up to 600 square feet and $130 over, with no technology fee. On additions, where both counties itemize, Baltimore County is consistently cheaper. The big caveat: Baltimore County's published fee schedule is dated 2018, so confirm current figures before relying on them.
For a 400 square foot addition, Howard County charges about $160 ($100 permit at $0.25/sq ft + $10 technology fee + $50 filing) while Baltimore County charges a flat $85 (up to 600 sq ft). For an 800 square foot addition, Howard is about $270 and Baltimore County a flat $130 (over 600 sq ft). Baltimore County's flat-by-size-band fees beat Howard's per-square-foot model on additions, but Baltimore County's schedule is dated November 2018 - verify before budgeting. New-home fees are not directly comparable because Baltimore County's residential per-square-foot rate is not published.
- Howard prices additions per square foot ($0.25/sq ft + $50 filing + 10% technology fee); Baltimore County charges flat by size band ($85 up to 600 sq ft, $130 over).
- A 400 sq ft addition: about $160 in Howard vs a flat $85 in Baltimore County.
- An 800 sq ft addition: about $270 in Howard vs a flat $130 in Baltimore County.
- Baltimore County's flat-by-size-band fees are cheaper for additions because they do not scale with each square foot and carry no technology fee.
- New construction is not directly comparable: Howard charges $0.25/sq ft (about $810 for a 2,400 sq ft house), while Baltimore County lists a Category D minimum of $231 with the residential per-square-foot rate unpublished.
- Neither county adds a statewide Maryland levy. Howard's schedule is current (July 1, 2025); Baltimore County's is dated November 26, 2018 - a source-age caveat applies to Baltimore figures.
Howard vs Baltimore County: Fee Structure Side by Side
| Fee Element | Howard County (DILP) | Baltimore County (PAI) |
|---|---|---|
| Addition | $0.25 / sq ft + $50 filing | $85 (≤600 sq ft) / $130 (over) |
| Deck | Priced per sq ft (no separate deck line) | $85 (≤600 sq ft) / $119 (over) |
| New 1-2 family dwelling | $0.25 / sq ft (+ $100 filing) | Category D, $231 minimum (per-sq-ft rate unpublished) |
| Residential solar | Electrical trade permit (separate) | Flat $79 |
| Fence | Confirm with DILP | Flat $25 (residential) |
| Technology fee | 10% of permit fee | None |
| State levy | None (Maryland) | None (Maryland) |
| Fee schedule effective | July 1, 2025 (FY2026) | November 26, 2018 (verify current) |
Baltimore County's flat-by-size-band model means a 200 sq ft and a 600 sq ft addition pay the same $85; Howard's per-square-foot model charges more as the addition grows. Baltimore County's schedule dates to November 2018 - older than any other verified Maryland county on this site - so confirm figures with PAI before relying on them.
Shared-Assumption Worked Examples
Each example assumes the same addition size for both counties. Trade permits are excluded on both sides.
Example 1: Room Addition - 400 sq ft
| Fee Component | Howard County | Baltimore County |
|---|---|---|
| Building permit fee | 400 × $0.25 = $100.00 | Flat $85.00 (≤600 sq ft) |
| Filing fee | $50.00 | included |
| Technology fee (10%) | $10.00 | $0.00 |
| Total | $160.00 | $85.00 |
Note: Baltimore County's flat $85 (any addition up to 600 sq ft) is well below Howard's $160. Baltimore figures are from a November 2018 schedule.
Example 2: Larger Addition - 800 sq ft
| Fee Component | Howard County | Baltimore County |
|---|---|---|
| Building permit fee | 800 × $0.25 = $200.00 | Flat $130.00 (over 600 sq ft) |
| Filing fee | $50.00 | included |
| Technology fee (10%) | $20.00 | $0.00 |
| Total | $270.00 | $130.00 |
Note: Baltimore County's flat $130 (any addition over 600 sq ft) stays well under Howard's per-square-foot total, and the gap widens as the addition grows.
A new 2,400 sq ft house is about $810 in Howard County ($600 permit at $0.25/sq ft + $60 technology fee + $100 filing + $50 guaranty). Baltimore County lists residential new construction under Fee Category D with a $231 stated minimum, but its actual per-square-foot residential rate is not published on the fee schedule, so a true head-to-head total cannot be computed. We do not publish a single Baltimore County new-home figure here. Both counties also assess large separate impact and school charges on new homes, excluded throughout.
Which County Is Cheaper for Your Project?
| Scenario | Lower Fee | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Addition up to 600 sq ft | Baltimore ($85 vs $160 at 400 sq ft) | Flat fee does not scale with size; no technology fee |
| Addition over 600 sq ft | Baltimore ($130 vs $270 at 800 sq ft) | Flat $130 stays fixed; Howard keeps charging per sq ft |
| New 1-2 family dwelling | Not directly comparable | Baltimore's residential per-sq-ft rate is unpublished |
| Confidence / currency | Howard (FY2026 schedule) | Baltimore's published schedule dates to November 2018 |
| Solar / fence | Baltimore lists flat fees ($79 / $25) | Howard routes solar through a separate electrical permit |
On additions, Baltimore County is the cheaper of the two at every comparable size, because its flat fees ignore square footage and it adds no technology fee. The trade-off is currency: Howard's FY2026 schedule is current, while Baltimore County's is dated November 2018, so its figures should be confirmed with PAI before you rely on them.
Practitioner Insight
For additions, this comparison has a clear winner: Baltimore County's flat fees - $85 up to 600 square feet, $130 over - are simply lower than Howard County's per-square-foot charge of $0.25 plus a $50 filing fee and a 10% technology fee, and the gap grows as the addition gets bigger. Baltimore County's flat-by-size-band approach also makes budgeting trivial: there is no square-footage math, and a 200 or 600 square foot addition pays the same fee. Two cautions keep this from being a slam dunk. First, Baltimore County's published fee schedule is dated November 26, 2018, the oldest of any verified Maryland county on this site, so the $85 and $130 figures should be confirmed with the Department of Permits, Approvals and Inspections at 410-887-3900. Second, new construction is genuinely not comparable: Howard's $0.25/sq ft yields a clean number, but Baltimore County only publishes a Category D $231 minimum without the residential per-square-foot rate, so we do not put a Baltimore new-home total head-to-head. Howard County's schedule (410-313-2455) is current as of July 1, 2025.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
-
Howard County DILP - FY26 Building Permit Fee Schedule Effective July 1, 2025 - Howard County, MD
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Baltimore County PAI - Building Permit Fee Schedule Effective November 26, 2018 - Baltimore County, MD - verify current
See each county's full fee page, or compare more Maryland jurisdictions.