Permitting Authorities / Buena Vista Charter Township - Community Development (Building Department)
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Charter Township of Buena Vista, MI?
Adopted code
Buena Vista Charter Township - Community Development (Building Department)
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Charter Township of Buena Vista, MI, issued by Buena Vista Charter Township - Community Development (Building Department). In Buena Vista Charter Township the Building Department is managed under the Community Development Department, and the department says "please direct all development inquiries to the Building Official." Its building permit packet says roofing is inspected: "Roofing" and "Roofing Inspections require picture submittable of the roof deck prior to and after installation of ice/water sheild and application of all required underlayments." The packet says "It is the permit holders' responsibility to call for inspections, prior to the construction being covered" and to call the inspector's number on the permit "at least two (2) days prior to the time you need an inspection." For fees it says "Building permit fees may be obtained from the BVCT by calling the Inspections Division,(989) 754-6536", and the township's fee schedule prices building permits on total valuation of work. The Community Development page says development-related fees are paid in person by cash or check at the Township Hall. Plumbing, mechanical and electrical work need separate applications: the building permit application says "SEPARATE APPLICATIONS MUST BE COMPLETED FOR PLUMBING, MECHANICAL, AND ELECTRICAL WORK PERMITS". The township's building permit application, fee schedule and requirements sheet are on its Forms page.
Roof code checklist: Charter Township of Buena Vista, MI
Each row comes from the sourced record on this page; full wording is in the table below. "Not published" means no official source for that item was found when the record was last verified.
Jurisdiction
Charter Township of Buena Vista, Michigan
Address
3945 East Holland Avenue, Saginaw, MI 48601
Contact
- url: https://bvct.org/department/community_development/index.php
- phone: 989-754-6536
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Michigan licenses residential builders and residential maintenance and alteration contractors under the Occupational Code (MCL 339.601, 339.2401 to 339.2404); this record does not decide whether a given roofer falls inside an exemption.
- city_level: The township's Forms page lists a Contractor Registration form, titled Buena Vista Charter Township Application for Contractor's License Registration, that asks for the state license number, insurance and workers compensation information and charges a local licensing registration fee for building contractors. The township pages read for this record do not say in terms who must register.
Permit process note
In Buena Vista Charter Township the Building Department is managed under the Community Development Department, and the department says "please direct all development inquiries to the Building Official." Its building permit packet says roofing is inspected: "Roofing" and "Roofing Inspections require picture submittable of the roof deck prior to and after installation of ice/water sheild and application of all required underlayments." The packet says "It is the permit holders' responsibility to call for inspections, prior to the construction being covered" and to call the inspector's number on the permit "at least two (2) days prior to the time you need an inspection." For fees it says "Building permit fees may be obtained from the BVCT by calling the Inspections Division,(989) 754-6536", and the township's fee schedule prices building permits on total valuation of work. The Community Development page says development-related fees are paid in person by cash or check at the Township Hall. Plumbing, mechanical and electrical work need separate applications: the building permit application says "SEPARATE APPLICATIONS MUST BE COMPLETED FOR PLUMBING, MECHANICAL, AND ELECTRICAL WORK PERMITS". The township's building permit application, fee schedule and requirements sheet are on its Forms page.
Adopted code
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 names the Township of Buena Vista as its own building code enforcer. The township's Community Development page, building permit packet and fee schedule, read October 11, 2026, name no residential code edition. The township's ordinances are hosted on a Documents-On-Demand site that did not open for this record, so no codified building chapter was read.
Drip edge
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 township's building permit packet, fee schedule and Community Development page were read for a local rule and state nothing further on drip edge.
About drip edgeIce & water shield
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 township's building permit packet says "Roofing Inspections require picture submittable of the roof deck prior to and after installation of ice/water sheild and application of all required underlayments." and its pages state nothing further on ice barrier.
About ice & water barrierImpact-resistant roofing
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 township's building permit packet, fee schedule and Community Development page were read for a local rule and state nothing further on impact resistance.
Repair permit threshold
Buena Vista Charter Township treats roofing as inspected permit work. The Requirements for Obtaining Building Permits sheet in its Inspections Division building permit packet, whose pages are marked 05/15, says under inspections: "Roofing" and "Roofing Inspections require picture submittable of the roof deck prior to and after installation of ice/water sheild and application of all required underlayments." The sheet states no size, square or dollar point below which roof work needs no permit, and the township's Building Permit & Inspection Fees schedule (REV 3/04/19) prices permits on the total valuation of the work with no roofing line. The state part: Michigan's construction code act says "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure." (MCL 125.1510) without defining ordinary repairs. For a small repair, call the Inspections Division at (989) 754-6536 before starting.
Roof layer limit / recover
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 township's building permit packet, fee schedule and Community Development page state no layer rule. The township's ordinances are hosted on a Documents-On-Demand site that did not open for this record, so no township ordinance was read, and this record declares no layer classification.
Deck & sheathing requirements
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 township's building permit packet, fee schedule and Community Development page were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roof sheathing.
Sales & use tax
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 township's Community Development page, building permit packet or fee schedule changes this.
Local roofing hub
More roof permit pages in Michigan
Related guides
Buena Vista Charter Township's Community Development Department manages the township's Building Department from the Administration Building at 3945 East Holland Avenue, and its Inspections Division takes building permit applications and calls for inspections. The township's requirements sheet for building permits names roofing inspections, and the State of Michigan's jurisdiction list names the township as its own building code enforcer. Michigan's single state construction code applies, and for houses that is the 2015 Michigan Residential Code.
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