Sharon, Massachusetts Building Permit Guide

In Sharon, the Building Division at 217R South Main Street (781-784-1525, ext. 2310) issues building, electrical, plumbing and gas permits, which are filed online through the Town’s OpenGov portal. Work on a one- or two-family home costs a $75 base fee plus $11 per $1,000 of construction value, plus a technology fee of $5 to $15, and new buildings fall under the Municipal Opt-in Specialized Energy Code that Town Meeting adopted with an effective date of January 1, 2025.

What requires a building permit in Sharon?

Sharon, a town of about 18,800 residents (Census estimate, 2025), prices its permits by job type, and its fee page names the work the Building Division permits: new and existing one- and two-family construction, commercial buildings (which in Sharon include residential buildings of three or more units), reroofing and siding, residential and commercial mechanical and HVAC work, wood stoves, signs and tents. Swimming pools, detached garages and stables carry their own setback rules in the division’s FAQs. The division’s own answers also mark two limits: a one-story detached shed, playhouse or similar structure of no more than 200 square feet needs no building permit, and a fence over 6 feet tall needs a permit, which the Town issues at the Department of Public Works.

What Sharon decides and what the state holds

780 CMR, the State Building Code, is written by the Board of Building Regulations and Standards and Sharon cannot amend it. The Town sets its own permit fees under Chapter 148 of its General Bylaws, its Zoning Bylaw, its wetlands bylaw (Chapter 262), four local historic districts and a demolition delay bylaw (Chapter 174), and an in-building radio bylaw for larger buildings (Chapter 125). It also chose its energy code path: Stretch in 2017, then the Specialized Energy Code from 2025.

Sharon building department: who handles permitting

The Building Division issues and inspects building, electrical, plumbing and gas permits. Its FAQs name David Abbott as the Building Inspector (781-784-1525, ext. 2313). The building inspector keeps office hours by appointment only; the plumbing and gas inspector and the electrical inspector have no office hours, so questions for them go through the division’s main line.

Street opening permits and right-of-way work are approved by the Town Engineer, not the Building Division, and the Engineering staff also witness percolation tests for septic design.

Sharon permit types and the approvals that come first

Applications are made in the OpenGov portal, where each permit carries a technology fee to cover the software: $5 when the permit fee is $50 or less, $10 between $50.01 and $200, and $15 above $200.01. The division posts the workers’ compensation affidavit for building permits and an installation requirements sheet for energy storage systems.

Residential permits

New and existing one- and two-family work is charged the same rate, $75 plus $11 per $1,000, and reroofing, siding and residential HVAC follow that formula too. Detached garages must be 10 feet from property lines and other structures (an attached garage meets the house setbacks). An in-ground pool must sit 20 feet from any leaching field, cesspool, seepage pit or septic tank and 10 feet from buildings and lot lines, and may not go in the front setback; above-ground pools need 10 feet all round. Pool fences must be at least 4 feet high and permanent, with self-closing gates latching at 4 feet and no gap over 4 inches. Stables need 50 feet from neighboring dwellings, lot lines and the street, and short-term rentals pay $200 for an annual inspection.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles residential permit filing, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

Sharon treats buildings with three or more units as non-residential and charges $75 plus $16 per $1,000. Under Chapter 125, new buildings and existing buildings renovated under the existing-building chapter of 780 CMR must include an in-building public safety radio system that reaches 95% of each floor; one- and two-family dwellings and wood-frame buildings without metal construction or underground parking are exempt, and no certificate of occupancy issues until the system complies. Annual inspections cost $75, or $100 for alcohol licensees.

The radio system must deliver a signal of at least -95 dBm in 95% of each floor, including stairwells, both to and from the Sharon Fire and Police dispatch centers and Norfolk County Fire Dispatch; it must run on its own batteries for at least 12 hours, its amplifiers sit in two-hour protected space in watertight NEMA 4 cabinets, and the owner must test it at least once every 12 months and send the results to the Fire or Police Department. The cost and upkeep stay with the building owner, including after a sale.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit expediting through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Zoning: house setbacks are in the Town’s zoning dimensional spreadsheet; relief goes to the Zoning Board of Appeals on its application for hearing, and the division asks that ZBA questions be sent by email.
• Conservation Commission: the Commission administers the Wetlands Protection Act and the Sharon Wetlands Bylaw from the Community Center, 1 Community Center Drive (781-784-1511).
• Board of Health (Title 5): septic plans go through the Health Department (781-784-1500, ext. 1143); perc tests need 48 hours’ notice to Engineering, and a Title 5 inspection report, required when property changes hands, is valid for two years.
• Historic districts: work that changes the exterior of a building in one of the four local historic districts needs a certificate from the Historic District Commission, which has 50 days to decide. District 1 covers the church, parsonage and library parcels around North Main and High Streets; District 2 is Cobb’s Tavern at 41 Bay Road; District 3 is the former Wilber School at 75 South Main Street with 21 South Pleasant Street; and District 4, added by the May 2025 Town Meeting, is the William R. Mann House at 228 East Street.
• Right-of-way: any digging in the public way needs an $85 street opening permit, possible bonding under Article 35A, and a $100 Sharon contractor’s license under Article 35B.

Sharon building permit fees

The Building Division’s Permit Fees page carries the current schedule; it shows no adoption date, and Chapter 148 of the General Bylaws provides for a published Town fee schedule under state law. Every fee-paid permit also carries the technology fee.

For example, an $80,000 addition to a single-family house costs $75 plus 80 × $11, or $955, and because that is over $200.01 the $15 technology fee brings the payment to $970. A $12,000 reroof is $75 plus 12 × $11, or $207, plus $15.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical, plumbing and gas permits are filed in the same portal and inspected by Sharon’s own inspectors. The three trades share one fee formula, with a higher base for new construction than for work on an existing building:

A $10,000 electrical job in an existing house is $75 plus 10 × $12, or $195, plus the $10 technology fee. Electricians, plumbers and gas fitters hold state licenses and pull their own permits; the building permit itself goes to a Construction Supervisor License holder (with Home Improvement Contractor registration for work on an existing owner-occupied home) or to an owner using the state code’s homeowner exemption.

How to apply for a Sharon building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The building official must issue the permit or deny it in writing within 30 days of filing (780 CMR 105.3.1). In Sharon, a file can also wait on decisions from other boards: a Conservation order, a Historic District Commission certificate, a Historical Commission demolition finding, or Board of Health septic review. Energy compliance documents must match the Specialized code for new buildings, and the office’s appointment-only hours mean questions are best raised before filing.

Inspections in Sharon

All inspections are by appointment, booked by calling 781-784-1525. Each trade inspects in its own window: building inspections Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 10 am to 1 pm and Friday from 9 am to noon; electrical Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7 to 10 am; plumbing and gas Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 12:30 to 3:30 pm. Engineering inspections need 24 hours’ notice. A re-inspection costs $75 and an evening, weekend or holiday inspection $250. A finished project closes with a $75 full occupancy permit; a temporary occupancy permit is $150 for three months, and larger buildings covered by the radio bylaw must pass the Fire and Police coverage test first.

Sharon building and energy code

Sharon enforces the 10th edition of 780 CMR. The Annual Town Meeting of May 1, 2017 adopted the Stretch Energy Code (Chapter 125, Article III), and the Annual Town Meeting of May 6, 2024 added § 125-25, which adopts the Municipal Opt-in Specialized Energy Code (225 CMR 22 and 23 with Appendices RC and CC) with an effective date of January 1, 2025; the Building Division’s energy code page still describes only the 2017 vote. The demolition delay bylaw covers buildings at least 100 years old or of unknown age, buildings on or in a National Register area, and those in the Historical Commission’s Cultural Resources Inventory. The Commission makes an initial finding within 14 days; after a hearing, a building found preferably preserved cannot be demolished for 12 months. Demolishing without a permit risks a fine of up to $300 a day and a two-year bar on building permits for the site. FEMA lists Sharon as a participating community in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective July 8, 2025.

Massachusetts has one State Building Code, 780 CMR, for every city and town; towns cannot rewrite it, though many opt into a stricter energy code. The trades run under their own state codes. Massachusetts rules

Sharon permit search and official resources

Permits filed online are kept in the OpenGov portal. For older records, the Building Division points property owners to a shared Google Drive with folders by property, holding past septic plans and permits; not every property has a folder, and contents vary. Anything else can be requested from the division ($40 for plan research) or through a public records request.

• Sharon Building Division
• Sharon OpenGov online permits
• Sharon permit fees
• Building Division FAQs: setbacks, pools, sheds, fences, street openings
• Sharon Stretch Energy Code page
• Sharon General Bylaws (Chapters 125, 148, 174, 262)
• Workers’ compensation affidavit (Building Department)
• Energy storage system installation requirements
• Zoning Board of Appeals application for hearing
• Conservation Commission
• Health Department
• FEMA Community Status Book, Massachusetts
• Massachusetts State Building Code (780 CMR)

Sharon building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in Sharon, MA?

The Building Division at 217R South Main Street (781-784-1525, ext. 2310). It also issues electrical, plumbing and gas permits.

Can I walk in to see the building inspector?

No. Office hours are by appointment only, Monday to Thursday, 8 to 9:30 am and 2 to 4:30 pm.

How much is a building permit for an addition in Sharon?

$75 plus $11 per $1,000 of value, plus the technology fee; an $80,000 addition comes to $970.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Not for a one-story detached shed of 200 square feet or less, but it must still be 10 feet from property lines and other structures.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

Fences over 6 feet tall need a permit from the Department of Public Works.

Which energy code applies to a new house in Sharon?

The Specialized Energy Code, under bylaw § 125-25, effective January 1, 2025.

How long can the Town delay demolishing an old house?

12 months from the Historical Commission’s finding, if the building is at least 100 years old (or inventoried) and found preferably preserved.

Where can I find old septic plans or permits?

On the Building Division’s shared Google Drive folders by property, or by asking the division.

Simplify Sharon permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Massachusetts. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Sharon permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.