Permitting Authorities / City of Ecorse - Building Department
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Ecorse, MI?
Adopted code
City of Ecorse - Building Department
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Ecorse, MI, issued by City of Ecorse - Building Department. In Ecorse a reroof is permit work on the Building Department's own page: "A permit is usually required for the following but not limited to", and the list includes Roofs, after the advice to "verify if a permit is required for your project". The fee schedule (February 2024) lists "UTILITY USES (ROOF, SHED, PRIVATE GARAGES, DECKS, ETC.)" as "Covered under Building Permit", so the permit is priced as building work: an admin fee of $75, then $30 to $1,000 of value and "$11.00 per $1,000.00 of value" from $1,001 to $50,000 (Appendix D of the City Code). The department says "Work can only begin once an approved permit is issued by the building department", "Permit plan reviews are done on Tuesdays", and permits "must be hung in a visible window or door". Applications are made online at the city's BS&A portal, or in person at the building department offices at 3869 W. Jefferson Avenue, second floor, Monday to Friday, "from 8:30 a.m. to noon, and then from 1:00pm to 4:30 p.m.", and inspections are scheduled at 313-386-3636. The department advises that "If you have a contractor it is best to have them obtain all required permits and order all required inspections", and its Homeowners Affidavit lets the owner of a single-family home do the work if the owner applies for and secures a permit.
Roof code checklist: Ecorse, 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
City of Ecorse, Michigan
Address
3869 W. Jefferson Avenue, Ecorse, MI 48229
Contact
- url: https://ecorsemi.gov/services/building.php
- phone: 313-386-3636
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Permit process note
In Ecorse a reroof is permit work on the Building Department's own page: "A permit is usually required for the following but not limited to", and the list includes Roofs, after the advice to "verify if a permit is required for your project". The fee schedule (February 2024) lists "UTILITY USES (ROOF, SHED, PRIVATE GARAGES, DECKS, ETC.)" as "Covered under Building Permit", so the permit is priced as building work: an admin fee of $75, then $30 to $1,000 of value and "$11.00 per $1,000.00 of value" from $1,001 to $50,000 (Appendix D of the City Code). The department says "Work can only begin once an approved permit is issued by the building department", "Permit plan reviews are done on Tuesdays", and permits "must be hung in a visible window or door". Applications are made online at the city's BS&A portal, or in person at the building department offices at 3869 W. Jefferson Avenue, second floor, Monday to Friday, "from 8:30 a.m. to noon, and then from 1:00pm to 4:30 p.m.", and inspections are scheduled at 313-386-3636. The department advises that "If you have a contractor it is best to have them obtain all required permits and order all required inspections", and its Homeowners Affidavit lets the owner of a single-family home do the work if the owner applies for and secures a permit.
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 City of Ecorse as its own building code enforcer. Section 11-30 of the City Code (Ord. of 1-31-12) designates the Building Official as the enforcing agency under the state act, and Sections 11-31 and 11-32 refer to the Michigan Building Code and to Table R301.2(1) of the Michigan Residential Code without naming an edition. The building code article of Chapter 7 has been removed from the City Code, and Section 7-116 adopts the 2021 International Property Maintenance Code, which is not a dwelling code. The Building Department page names no residential code edition and says "If there is a question about what current building codes are in effect, please call (313) 386-3636".
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). Chapter 7 of the City Code, the Building Department page and the fee schedule 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). Chapter 7 of the City Code, the Building Department page and the fee schedule were read for a local rule and 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." Chapter 7 of the City Code, the Building Department page and the fee schedule were read for a local rule and state nothing further on impact resistance.
Repair permit threshold
The Ecorse Building Department's page says "please check with the building department at 313-386-3636 and verify if a permit is required for your project" and then lists "A permit is usually required for the following but not limited to", with Roofs among the items; its fee schedule (February 2024) prices roof work under building permits, with the heading "UTILITY USES (ROOF, SHED, PRIVATE GARAGES, DECKS, ETC.)" and the rate "Covered under Building Permit". The department publishes no statement that an ordinary reroof needs no permit. 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.
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 City of Ecorse Code of Ordinances (codified through the ordinance of November 25, 2025) was read in full for Chapter 7 (Buildings and Building Regulations), Chapter 11 (Flood Damage Prevention), Chapter 14 (Housing) and Appendix D (Fee Schedule). The building code article of Chapter 7 has been removed from the Code, and none of those chapters has a reroofing provision or amends anything in Section R908. The Building Department page states no layer rule.
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). Chapter 7 of the City Code, the Building Department page and the fee schedule 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 Ecorse Building Department page or fee schedule changes this.
Local roofing hub
More roof permit pages in Michigan
Related guides
The City of Ecorse Building Department, on the second floor of the city offices at 3869 W. Jefferson Avenue, issues the city's building permits and runs its inspections, and permits are applied for online through the city's BS&A portal. Section 11-30 of the City Code designates the city's Building Official as the enforcing agency under the state construction code act, and the State of Michigan's jurisdiction list names the City 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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