Which addresses this covers
Howard County has no incorporated towns, so DILP permits the whole county: Columbia, Ellicott City, Elkridge, Clarksville, the Howard County parts of Laurel and Mount Airy and everywhere else.
| Search field in Accela (Building tab) | Use it for |
|---|---|
| Street No., Street Name, Zip | Every permit at a house |
| Permit Number | A number from your paperwork |
| Permit Type, Start Date, End Date | Narrowing a long list |
| License Type, State License Number, Name of Business | Permits a contractor pulled |
How to look up the permits on a Howard County address
- Open Accela Citizen Access and choose the Building tab. No account is needed to search.
- Enter the Street No. and Street Name. Leave the street type blank in case the county abbreviates it differently.
- Click Search and open each permit. In Howard County electrical, plumbing and HVAC work each get their own permit, so a kitchen remodel can show several.
- On each permit, read the status and the inspections to see whether the final passed.
- For a count over many years, filter the open data file by ZIP; it has no street address.
What statuses mean in the county's open file
The open file has no permit status or final inspection date. Its columns are permit number, category, type, file date, permit type, census tract, issue date, city, ZIP, sewer and water. So our pages count every permit as issued and show no finished share. For the status of one permit, Accela is the place to look.
When the record is not online
File a Maryland Public Information Act request. The county's Public Information Act page lists request forms by office (read 24 October 2026). Give the permit number from Accela if you have it.
What our Howard County pages add
Accela answers "what was permitted at this address". Our Howard County page counts the open file by kind of work, December 2023 to November 2025:
| Kind of work | Permits (Dec 2023–Nov 2025) | Last 12 months (Dec 2024–Nov 2025) |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical | 11,976 | 6,236 |
| Plumbing | 9,666 | 4,712 |
| HVAC | 3,024 | 1,674 |
| Solar | 2,095 | 1,420 |
| Garages, sheds & shade structures | 1,752 | 832 |
| Remodels & repairs | 1,275 | 655 |
| New homes | 1,014 | 366 |
| Additions | 996 | 508 |
| Pools & spas | 204 | 88 |
Permits by ZIP code shows where the work is: 21042 had 7,110 permits in the same window, 20723 had 4,541. The permit statistics page has the years and months, and browse permits lists the rows. Home improvement contractors in Maryland are licensed by the Maryland Home Improvement Commission; check the MHIC number from the permit there.
What this does not tell you
The county updates the file once a year, in December, so our counts stop at November 2025. It holds no permits issued between December 2022 and November 2023, which is why our window starts in December 2023. It names no contractor and has no value, status or final date. Commercial and sign permits are left out of our counts.
How we know this
Accela search fields were read on DILP's Accela Citizen Access Building search page, and the records route on the county's Public Information Act page, on 24 October 2026. Our counts are Howard County's open data permit file, read 19 October 2026: residential permits issued December 2023 to November 2025, countywide.
Numbers come from public permit records in 57 cities, data through October 19, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- How do I find out if a permit was pulled on my house in Howard County?
Open DILP's Accela Citizen Access site, choose the Building tab and enter the street number and street name. The search also takes a permit number, a permit type, a date range or a contractor's license number or business name. We opened the search form without logging in on 24 October 2026.
- Can I search Howard County permits by contractor?
Yes, in Accela: the Building search has License Type, State License Number, first and last name and Name of Business fields. The county's open data file names no contractor, so our pages cannot list firms.
- Are Howard County permits public record?
Yes. The county publishes issued permits in its open data file, updated once a year in December, and individual records in Accela Citizen Access. For anything else, file a Maryland Public Information Act request; the county's PIA page lists request forms by office.
- Does Howard County issue permits for Columbia and Ellicott City?
Yes. Howard County has no incorporated towns, so DILP issues permits for Columbia, Ellicott City, Elkridge, Clarksville and the Howard County parts of Laurel and Mount Airy.
- How many permits does Howard County issue?
33,773 residential permits from December 2023 to November 2025 in the county's open data file, about 16,886 a year. Electrical permits led with 11,976, then plumbing with 9,666.
Build your own list
Pick your city and the kind of work. Every firm with a permit on record, sorted by what you value.
Related guides
- Adams County, CO building permit search: the e-Permit Center, statuses and CORA
- Alachua County building permit search: Citizenserve, statuses and old records
- Anaheim building permit search: Anaheim NEXT and the Building Permit Report
- Arlington, VA building permit search: Permit Arlington lookups and FOIA requests
- Mecklenburg County building permit search: Charlotte permits, statuses and old records
- Memphis building permit search: the Develop901 Citizen Portal and the DPD permit file
- Howard County DILP Accela Citizen Access (2026-10-24)
- DILP now accepting electronic submissions — Howard County (2026-10-24)
- Building, Electrical, Fire, Grading, Mechanical, Plumbing & Sign Permits — Howard County Open Data (kvz2-j5cj) (2026-10-24)
- Public Information Act — Howard County (2026-10-24)
- Maryland Home Improvement Commission (2026-10-19)