Mount Clemens, Michigan Building Permit Guide

The City of Mount Clemens issues its own building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits through the Community Development Department at City Hall, One Crocker Boulevard (586-469-6800), and provides inspections in partnership with SAFEbuilt; Brian Tingley is the Community Development Director. Under the department’s fee schedule (revised June 13, 2023), a building permit costs $75 up to $1,000 of value and $75 plus 1% of the full value on larger jobs, and the permit fee and bond are paid with two separate checks.

What requires a building permit in Mount Clemens?

The city’s August 2026 list of common projects needing a city permit is the clearest guide. It covers building work, every trade and several jobs in the public right-of-way, and the city adds that the list is not exhaustive and that one project may need more than one permit.

A certificate of occupancy is also required before a vacant building is re-occupied and whenever a commercial building changes owner or use.

What Mount Clemens decides and what the state holds

The state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List shows Mount Clemens enforcing the building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing codes itself, and Macomb County runs no building program. The city chooses how to staff its program (it partners with SAFEbuilt for inspections), sets its own fees, administers its zoning ordinance through the Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals, runs a Historic District Commission, and requires rental registration and vacant-building registration.

Mount Clemens building department: who handles permitting

Permits are handled by the Community Development Department; its inspection page says the city, in partnership with SAFEbuilt, provides building, rental and vacant-property inspections. Trade inspectors keep office hours at City Hall from 8 to 9 a.m., Tuesday to Thursday. The Planning and Zoning staff in the same department review site development proposals for the Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals.

Mount Clemens permit types

The city posts separate fillable applications for building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits, a zoning and sign permit, a dumpster or portable storage permit and a water meter application, plus guidance sheets on decks, pools and spas, stairs and guards, fences, residential accessory buildings and egress windows. The building application states that trade work needs its own application and that the permit fee and the bond must be paid by two separate checks.

Residential permits

• Repairs and alterations to a one- or two-family home carry plan review of $100 when the cost is $2,000 or less, or $200 plus 0.5% of the value from $2,001 up, on top of the building permit.
• New houses pay a flat $200 plan review plus the value-based building permit.
• Zoning permits for fences, sheds, driveways and patios are $75 each with a $100 refundable bond; a residential drive approach or curb cut is $175 with a $200 bond.
• Sheds and garages. A shed takes a zoning permit and a garage a building permit, each with two copies of a plot plan and drawings. Under Section 4.2 of the zoning ordinance, a lot may have no more than two accessory buildings, together no larger than 20% of the lot; detached ones may be no taller than 18 feet, may not sit in a front yard, and must stay 3 feet from lot lines, 5 feet from an alley or overhead wires and 10 feet from the house. Each needs a foundation or a rat wall 24 inches deep, cannot be built before the house is enclosed, and comes with a signed affidavit that it serves the home; the first inspection is an open trench before concrete.
• Fences. A zoning permit with two copies of a plot plan, a post-hole inspection and a final. Fences must be at least 3 feet high and no higher than 6 feet in or next to a residential district (8 feet elsewhere), are not allowed in a required front open space except a decorative wire fence up to 42 inches on a corner lot’s side street, and within 15 feet of where a driveway meets the property line must be no more than 36 inches high and not block the view; the finished side faces the neighbor.
• Owners. The inspection page says licensed Michigan contractors must pull permits for remodels, additions and business properties, but the building application includes a homeowner affidavit for building work an owner installs personally in the home they live in or are about to occupy. Ask Community Development which applies before you file as an owner.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial, industrial and institutional work, including buildings with three or more homes, pays plan review of $500 plus 0.5% of value. Fire protection plans have gone to a third-party reviewer (FSCI, Fire Savvy or ICC) since December 1, 2022; once approved, two sets go to the Fire Department for the Fire Marshal’s sign-off, and only then can the permit be applied for. A commercial certificate of occupancy inspection is $300.

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

• Conceptual review. The city offers free conceptual development review meetings and an online guide to development for larger projects.
• Site plan review. New commercial, industrial or multiple-family projects pay $750, new parking or outdoor storage areas $600, and special land use (which includes site plan review) $1,000; engineering review of a site plan is at least $1,000 or 1.5% of site construction cost.
• Variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals charges $250 for a one- or two-family home and $500 for commercial property.
• Historic district. A certificate of appropriateness from the Historic District Commission is $50.
• Right-of-way. Street openings and other right-of-way work cost $250 plus a $750 bond; county roads need a Macomb County Department of Roads permit.
• Soil erosion. Macomb County Public Works issues soil erosion permits in the city.

Mount Clemens permit costs and fees

Fees come from the Community Development Department Fee Schedule, revised June 13, 2023 and posted as the approved 2023 schedule. A performance bond is required for every building permit and demolition.

Worked example from the schedule: a $30,000 renovation of a house costs $75 plus 1% of $30,000 ($300), or $375, for the building permit and $200 plus 0.5% of $30,000 ($150), or $350, for plan review, making $725 in fees. The bond is 0.5% of $30,000, or $150, paid by a separate check, and electrical, mechanical or plumbing permits are extra.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits are city permits with their own applications. New contractors email their company details and current state license to the city, are set up in BS&A and receive a web PIN to link their account for online permits; registration is $15 for electrical, mechanical and plumbing contractors.

• Inspection days. Electrical, plumbing and mechanical inspections are done Tuesday to Thursday, 9 a.m. to noon; building inspections run Monday to Friday.
• Electrical. Each item is priced on the schedule, for example a 240-volt circuit at $15 and a permanent home generator with an automatic transfer switch at $50.
• Mechanical. Heating equipment is priced by BTU rating and water heaters by type; the schedule also lists commercial kitchen hoods ($150) and residential solar heating panels ($20 each).
• Plumbing. A $35 application fee and $15 registration, then $12 per fixture, $20 for a storage water heater, $50 for a sewer up to 10 feet and $45 for an underground inspection.

How to apply for a Mount Clemens building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The application asks that every section be filled in and that plans show the required information to avoid delay. Fire protection work cannot be permitted until both the third-party reviewer and the Fire Marshal have approved the plans. Work started before a permit is issued is charged the permit fee plus a $75 investigative fee.

Inspections and certificates in Mount Clemens

Inspection requests go by email to inspections@mountclemens.gov, at least 24 hours before the date you want, with the address and permit number. Building inspectors work Monday to Friday; trade inspectors Tuesday to Thursday mornings. Mechanical final inspections, re-inspections and special inspections are each $50.

Rental homes must be registered every year and hold a certificate of compliance: the city mails invoices each September, payment is due by November 30 for the following year, registration is $75 per unit, and units are inspected every two years between 9 and 11 a.m. on weekdays. A building left vacant for 30 days must be registered ($500 a year for a residential structure), and it needs a certificate of occupancy before anyone moves back in. Certificate of occupancy inspections are $200 for a one- or two-family home and $300 for other buildings.

Michigan building code in Mount Clemens

Mount Clemens enforces the state code in all four trades and posts a list of the building codes it applies on its inspection page. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists the city (community 260124) as a participating National Flood Insurance Program community, with flood maps dated December 30, 2020.

Michigan enforces one statewide construction code under the Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act (1972 PA 230); local units cannot amend it, and enforcement sits with the city, village or township, a county program or the state Bureau of Construction Codes, sometimes split by trade. Michigan rules

Mount Clemens permit search and official resources

The city links a public records search on BS&A Online from its website. For permit files that are not online, the City Clerk serves as the city’s Freedom of Information Act coordinator and keeper of public records, and the Clerk’s page explains how to file a request.

• Mount Clemens inspections, rental and vacant registration
• Applications, forms and permits
• Common projects that require a city permit (2026)
• Building permit application
• Community Development fee schedule (rev. June 13, 2023)
• Residential accessory building regulations
• Fence requirements
• Planning and Economic Development
• City Clerk and FOIA
• BS&A public records search
• Macomb County soil erosion coverage map
• Macomb County Department of Roads permits
• Michigan Statewide Jurisdiction List
• FEMA Community Status Book, Michigan

Mount Clemens building permit FAQs

How much is a building permit in Mount Clemens?

$75 for work valued up to $1,000, and $75 plus 1% of the full value on larger jobs, plus plan review and a performance bond; a $30,000 home renovation is $725 in fees and a $150 bond.

How do I schedule an inspection?

Email inspections@mountclemens.gov at least 24 hours ahead with the address, permit number and requested date.

Can a homeowner get a permit?

The building application has a homeowner affidavit for work the owner installs in the home they live in or are about to occupy, while the inspection page says licensed contractors must pull permits for remodels and additions; ask Community Development first.

Do I need a permit to replace my roof or windows?

Yes. The city’s common-projects list includes replacing a roof, windows or siding.

How are fire protection plans reviewed?

By a third-party reviewer (FSCI, Fire Savvy or ICC), then by the Fire Marshal, before the permit application can be filed.

Do rental homes need a city certificate?

Yes. Rentals are registered yearly at $75 per unit, hold a certificate of compliance and are inspected every two years.

Who issues soil erosion permits for Mount Clemens sites?

Macomb County Public Works, whose soil erosion coverage map includes the city.

Simplify Mount Clemens permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Michigan. 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 Mount Clemens permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.