This is the cheapest square footage you can add — if it is finished legally. We are a licensed contractor in Maryland (MHIC #111971) — we pull the permits through the Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services, coordinate the licensed trades, and hand you a written line-item scope before demolition starts.
A finished basement needs a building permit and, in almost every case, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits alongside it. Two code requirements decide whether the space is legal: any room used for sleeping needs proper emergency egress, and habitable space needs a minimum finished ceiling height. The framing and rough-in inspection has to pass before insulation and drywall — get that wrong and the drywall comes back off.
Your Wheaton permit goes through the Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services. We pull it under our license and we hold the inspection schedule — you do not chase inspectors and you do not sign the application.
What we find in Wheaton homesWheaton is dense inside-the-Beltway housing — largely 1920s–1950s bungalows, capes and small colonials on tight lots, under Montgomery County jurisdiction. On these houses a kitchen or bath project is almost always an electrical project too, because the original service was never sized for a modern kitchen, and the original footprints are small enough that most projects become layout changes.
What's includedA planning range, not a quote. Your written line-item price comes after a free on-site walkthrough. HVAC, electrical and plumbing are performed by licensed trade partners.
A written, line-item scope for your basement finishing project. No design fee, no obligation.
By submitting you agree United Developers may call or text you about your request, including by autodialed/automated means and AI voice, at the number provided. Consent is not a condition of purchase. Msg/data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out.
Our Wheaton crews cover Silver Spring, Kensington, Aspen Hill, Glenmont and every ZIP in the area — 20902, 20906.
Yes. United Developers is a licensed contractor in Maryland (MHIC #111971) and works throughout Wheaton and Montgomery County, including 20902, 20906 and nearby Silver Spring, Kensington, Aspen Hill.
We do, under our license, through the Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services. A finished basement needs a building permit and, in almost every case, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits alongside it. Two code requirements decide whether the space is legal: any room used for sleeping needs proper emergency egress, and habitable space needs a minimum finished ceiling height. The framing and rough-in inspection has to pass before insulation and drywall — get that wrong and the drywall comes back off.
Most Wheaton projects land in the $32k – $100k range. That is a planning range for Montgomery County, not a quote — your written price comes after a free on-site walkthrough.
Yes. The walkthrough and the written scope are free and yours to keep whether or not you hire us. There is no design fee and no consultation invoice.
Only with proper emergency egress — that means a code-compliant egress window and window well, or a walkout. It is the single most common reason a basement bedroom fails inspection or gets flagged at resale. We settle it during design, before framing, because retrofitting egress into finished walls is expensive.