Antrim County - Construction Code Department

Antrim County, Michigan (5 villages and 15 townships on the county building program)

county

203 E. Cayuga Street, Bellaire, MI 49615

Required

Required

The Antrim County Construction Code Department makes two written statements about reroofing that do not agree. Its 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list, under item 102, "R 907.1 REROOFING", says "New Roof Coverings shall not be installed on roofs with two or more applications of any type of roof covering." and then "A Building Permit is required to remove and replace existing roof covering. (OPTIONAL CONTACT OFFICE)." Its Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, adopted July 3, 2019, says "Section 105.2.2 of the Michigan Residential Code" provides that "application or notice to the Building Official is not required for ordinary repairs to structures. Therefore, a building permit is not required for re-roofing or re-siding for residential structure, except that new roof coverings shall not be installed on roofs with two or more applications of any type of roof covering." and "Ordinary repairs to structures, including residing and reroofing, may be made without permits, but such repairs shall not include the cutting away of any wall, partition or portion thereof, replacing a window or door, the removal or cutting of any structural beam or load bearing support". The record publishes the permit requirement as true because the department's own compliance list states it; the record does not decide which statement the department applies, and a roofer who skips the permit relies on the policy. The department's page also quotes the general permit clause: "R105.1 Required. Any owner or authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or structure" must "first make application to the Building official and obtain the required permit." The state's general permit rule applies: "before construction of a building or structure, the owner, or the owner's builder, architect, engineer, or agent, shall submit an application in writing to the appropriate enforcing agency for a building permit." The same state section says "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," without defining ordinary repairs. The department posts no building permit fee schedule: its building requirements sheet says "BUILDING PERMIT FEES - CONTACT THE BUILDING DEPARTMENT, BY CALLING (231) 533-8373." Antrim County Ordinance 01-05 makes a knowing violation of the state construction code act a municipal civil infraction "punishable by a fine of not more than $500.00 plus costs". Call the Inspection Request Line at (231) 533-3510 24 hours ahead to schedule an inspection; the inspector answers questions from 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM, Monday through Friday, at (231) 533-8373. The department is open to the public from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday through Friday, at 203 E. Cayuga Street, Bellaire, MI 49615. It serves the villages and townships the state's jurisdiction list assigns to the county, which has no cities.

2015 Michigan Residential Code. This is state law and it is the same in every Michigan city, village, township and county: the state construction code act says "This act and the code apply throughout the state," and the Michigan Residential Code rule adopts "the international residential code, 2015 edition" with the state amendments in R 408.30500 to R 408.30547g. A 2021 edition was filed with the secretary of state in 2025 but has not taken effect. On July 7, 2025 the Michigan Court of Claims entered a stipulated order in Home Builders Assoc et al. v LARA et al., and the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) says that while that order remains in place "the 2015 versions of the IRC and residential provisions of the IECC standards currently adopted, in part, by each rule set will remain valid and in effect." LARA's Statewide Jurisdiction List assigns building code enforcement in all 5 villages and 15 townships of Antrim County to the county. The Antrim County Construction Code Department's home page, read October 11, 2026, says "February 8, 2016 - New Residential Code 2015 begins.", and its residential plan review compliance list is headed "MICHIGAN RESIDENTIAL CODE 2015".

Required — Required on asphalt shingle roofs by state law. Michigan makes no amendment to the drip edge rule of the 2015 International Residential Code, Section R905.2.8.5, which applies as published: "A drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs." Segments overlap by at least 2 inches, the drip edge extends at least 1/4 inch below the roof sheathing and at least 2 inches back onto the deck, it is fastened at no more than 12 inches on center, and underlayment goes over it at the eaves and under it at the rakes. A reroof is held to the same rule, because "Materials and methods of application used for re-covering or replacing an existing roof covering shall comply with the requirements of Chapter 9" (R908.1). The Antrim County Construction Code Department's home page, Building Information page, Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list, building requirements sheet, building permit application and required inspections sheet were read for a local rule and state nothing further on drip edge. About drip edge

Required — Required everywhere in Michigan by state law. Michigan fills in the climatic design table of the 2015 code once for the whole state (Rule 516, Table R301.2(1)), and its ice barrier underlayment column reads Yes. The state footnote calls for Yes "for areas where the average daily temperature in January is 25 degrees Fahrenheit" or less, or where ice damming has caused damage. The base code then requires an ice barrier "for asphalt shingles, metal roof shingles, mineral-surfaced roll roofing, slate and slate-type shingles, wood shingles and wood shakes," running "from the lowest edges of all roof surfaces to a point not less than 24 inches (610 mm) inside the exterior wall line of the building" (R905.1.2). Detached accessory structures without conditioned floor area are exempt. On a tear-off, an existing ice barrier that is adhered to the deck may stay and be covered with an additional layer (R908.3, Exception). The Antrim County Construction Code Department's home page, Building Information page, Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list, building requirements sheet, building permit application and required inspections sheet were read for a local rule. The department's plan review compliance list restates the base rule at item 101: "All Sloped Roofs over heated buildings shall have an Ice Protection that consists of at least two layers of underlayment cemented together or of a self-adhering polymer modified bitumen sheet EXTENDING from the Eave's Edge to a Point at least 24 inches Inside the Exterior Wall Line." About ice & water barrier

Not required — No impact-resistance requirement under state law. The 2015 Michigan Residential Code was searched in full and has no hail or impact rating rule for roof coverings: the words hail, impact and UL 2218 do not appear in it, and none of them appears in the roof assemblies chapter of the base 2015 International Residential Code either. Michigan applies one code statewide ("This act and the code apply throughout the state."), and the act gives the power to amend it to the state director, who adopts the model codes "with amendments, additions, or deletions as the director determines appropriate." The Antrim County Construction Code Department's home page, Building Information page, Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list, building requirements sheet, building permit application and required inspections sheet were read for a local rule and state no impact rule.

Antrim County's own statements on reroofing differ. The Construction Code Department's 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list says "A Building Permit is required to remove and replace existing roof covering." and its Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, adopted July 3, 2019, says "a building permit is not required for re-roofing or re-siding for residential structure, except that new roof coverings shall not be installed on roofs with two or more applications of any type of roof covering." The policy adds "Any ordinary repair to roof sheathing will not require a permit if it is less than 4 square feet per area." No size or cost threshold is published beyond that. Under state law: "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure." (MCL 125.1510), without a definition of ordinary repairs. For a reroof, ask the department (231-533-8373) which statement it applies before starting.

Two layers at most, under state law. Michigan builds one- and two-family homes to the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which adopts the 2015 International Residential Code and makes no amendment to its reroofing section, Section R908; the Michigan rule set was searched in full and R908 does not appear in it. The base section therefore applies as the International Code Council publishes it. Section R908.3.1.1 lists the conditions under which a new roof may not be laid over an existing one, and the third is "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." One existing layer may be covered once; a roof that already carries two layers is torn off to the deck. The same section also bars covering a roof that is water soaked or too deteriorated to serve as a base, and covering "slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile." Locally, the Antrim County Construction Code Department's home page, Building Information page, Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list, building requirements sheet, building permit application and required inspections sheet were read, and the department's Re-Roofing & Siding Policy and plan review compliance list state the same two-layer rule as the base section: "New Roof Coverings shall not be installed on roofs with two or more applications of any type of roof covering." Of the 26 county ordinances the county lists, the only one on construction codes is Ordinance 01-05, which makes violations of the state construction code act municipal civil infractions; it was read in full and has no reroofing provision and amends nothing in Section R908. The county's zoning page says "Antrim County does not have a county-wide zoning ordinance".

State law, from the base code. Michigan makes no amendment to the roof sheathing section of the 2015 International Residential Code, Section R803, which does not appear in the Michigan rule set, so it applies as published. Lumber roof sheathing follows Table R803.1: over rafters or beams 24 inches apart it must be at least 5/8 inch net thick. Wood structural panels must be identified "for grade, bond classification and performance category by a grade mark or certificate of inspection issued by an approved agency," and their spans may not exceed "the values set forth in Table R503.2.1.1(1), or APA E30." For a shingle roof the base code adds that "Asphalt shingles shall be fastened to solidly sheathed decks" (R905.2.1), and on any reroof "The structural roof components shall be capable of supporting the roof covering system" (R908.2). The Antrim County Construction Code Department's home page, Building Information page, Re-Roofing & Siding Policy, 2015 Michigan Residential Code plan review compliance list, building requirements sheet, building permit application and required inspections sheet were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roof sheathing beyond the policy's line "Any ordinary repair to roof sheathing will not require a permit if it is less than 4 square feet per area."

6%, statewide, with no local add-on. This is state law: the General Sales Tax Act sets the tax "equal to 6% of the gross proceeds of the business," the Use Tax Act sets "a total combined rate equal to 6%," and the Michigan Department of Treasury says "Michigan does not allow city or local units to impose sales tax." On a roofing job the roofer is the taxpayer on materials, because the Use Tax Act counts as a consumer "A person acquiring tangible personal property if engaged in the business of constructing, altering, repairing, or improving the real estate of others." Nothing on the Antrim County Construction Code Department pages changes this.