Village of Germantown, Wisconsin - Building Inspection Services

Village of Germantown, Wisconsin

city

N112 W17001 Mequon Road, Germantown, WI 53022

Required

Required

Applications are made on the Village Building Permit Application, a one-page form that asks for the project address, description of work, size, height, zoning district, setbacks and estimated cost, and carries separate lines for the contractor credential number and expiry and for the dwelling contractor qualifier number and expiry. Signing it grants the building inspector permission "to enter the premises for which this permit is sought at all reasonable hours and for any proper purpose to inspect the work which is being done," and commits the applicant, under SPS 320.10(4), to receive inspection results by email at the address given. The form warns that separate electrical, plumbing and heating permits may be required. The Building Inspection office is open Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the Village publishes a narrower window for reaching an inspector directly - 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. - with all inspections to be scheduled before 4 p.m. for next-day service, on 262-346-4460. Village Code Section 14.05(7) allows the Building Inspector to waive the filing of plans "for alterations, repairs or moving" where the character of the work is sufficiently described in the application. WATCH THE CLOCK ON AN ISSUED PERMIT: Section 14.05(11) provides that a building, electrical or plumbing permit "shall lapse and be void unless the permitted work is commenced within 6 months, or no significant progress has been made within one year, from the date of issuance thereof," and a lapsed permit costs 50 percent of the original fee to reissue. Cancel before any plan review or inspection work has been done and 75 percent of the fee is refunded.

THE VILLAGE ADOPTS THE STATE CODES BY REFERENCE AND WRITES NO CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS OF ITS OWN. For a house the operative provision is Village Code Section 14.07(2): chs. SPS 320 to 326 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code are adopted by reference and "shall apply to all new one-family and 2-family dwellings and all additions to existing and new one-family and 2-family dwellings," and separately "shall pertain to all remodeling or alterations in existing one-family and 2-family dwellings." Section 14.07(1) adopts chs. SPS 361 to 366 for public buildings, multifamily dwellings and places of employment, expressly including "Any future amendments, revisions and modifications." Section 14.15, "Adoption of state codes," adds that upon the Village becoming a certified municipality the dwelling and commercial chapters together with the State Electrical Code, State Plumbing Code, State Flammable Liquids Code and State Well Drilling Code "are hereby adopted by reference and the Building Inspector shall enforce the provisions thereof," and adopts a further list of administrative code chapters "and subsequent revisions" for municipal enforcement. So there is no local edition year to check for a dwelling: the currently published text of the Wisconsin uniform dwelling code governs. ONE STRUCTURAL ODDITY WORTH KNOWING WHEN READING THE CODE YOURSELF: the dwelling-code adoption sits inside a section headed "CONSTRUCTION OF COMMERCIAL AND OTHER PUBLIC BUILDINGS." It is not misplaced by accident - Section 14.05(5) sends the reader there for houses in terms, providing that plans for all new one-family and two-family dwellings "shall comply with the provisions of all applicable building codes (see Section 14.07)". Section 14.07 was last amended by Ordinance #17-2020; the Village Code is codified through Ordinance No. 05-2026, adopted March 2, 2026. THE VILLAGE HAS FULL DELEGATED AUTHORITY FROM THE STATE. It announces that as of February 25, 2021 it "has been granted delegated authority by the WI Department of Safety & Professional Services (DSPS) to conduct all commercial building, HVAC, Plumbing, Fire Suppression & Fire Sprinkler System plan review and inspection services." Day-to-day permit processing, plan review and inspection are performed for the Village by a contracted inspection firm working out of Village Hall on the Village line; the permits and the code are the Village own. A NOTE ON WHERE LOCAL AUTHORITY STOPS, BECAUSE WISCONSIN DRAWS THAT LINE HARDER THAN MOST STATES. Wis. Stat. 101.65(1) lets cities, villages, towns and counties exercise jurisdiction over the construction and inspection of new dwellings by ordinance, but 101.65(1c) provides that they "may not make or enforce an ordinance under sub. (1) that is applied to a dwelling and that does not conform to this subchapter and the uniform dwelling code." It then goes a step further than a plain preemption clause: if a contract between the municipality and an owner requires the owner to comply with a non-conforming ordinance, "the owner may waive the provision, and the provision, if waived, is void and unenforceable." So a local roofing rule that departs from the state dwelling code is not merely unenforceable against the municipality - the owner can strike it out of a contract.

Not required — No drip edge is required by code here, and the reason is that Wisconsin never adopted the International Residential Code rule that most other states rely on for it. SPS 321.28, "Weather protection for roofs," was read in full - general drainage and fasteners, underlayment for shingles, asphalt shingles, ice dam protection, other roof coverings, reroofing, and every flashing paragraph - and no provision requires a drip edge at an eave or a rake. The only drip-edge language anywhere in the Wisconsin dwelling construction chapter is a masonry chimney cap rule, which is not a roof-edge requirement. PRACTICAL POINT FOR A BID: drip edge may still be required as a matter of the shingle manufacturer's printed instructions, and SPS 321.28(3)(a)3. makes those instructions binding for asphalt shingles, so read the wrapper before leaving it off. On the Village side, Chapter 14 of the Village Code was read in full and the words drip edge do not appear in it, and neither does any other roof-edge or roof-flashing requirement. About drip edge

Required — STATE-SET AND SLOPE-CONDITIONED - read the trigger carefully, because it is narrower than the International Residential Code rule used in most other states. Wis. Admin. Code SPS 321.28(4)(a) requires that "Shingled or shake roofs that extend over a heated area of a dwelling or attached garage and that have a slope of 4:12 or less shall be provided with ice dam protection in the form of sheet metal or a product labeled as meeting the requirements of ASTM D 1970." SPS 321.28(4)(b) sets the extent: the protection "shall extend at least 30 inches up the roof slope from the roof edge and at least 12 inches up the roof slope beyond the inner face of the exterior wall." The trigger is the roof slope, not the climate zone or a design temperature, so a roof steeper than 4:12 is not covered by the requirement at all - although the shingle manufacturer's instructions may still call for it, and SPS 321.28(3)(a)3. makes those instructions binding for asphalt shingles. Germantown adds nothing to this - Chapter 14 of the Village Code was read in full and contains no ice barrier or ice dam provision. AND GERMANTOWN HAS CLOSED THE OLDER-HOUSE HALF OF THE SCOPE QUESTION THAT HANGS OVER MOST WISCONSIN REROOFS, WITHOUT EVER NAMING A DATE. Statewide, SPS 320.05(1) provides that the uniform dwelling code does not apply to dwellings "the construction of which was commenced prior to the effective date of this code, or to additions or alterations to such dwellings" - the code took effect June 1, 1980, while the enabling statute, Wis. Stat. 101.615, draws the line at initial construction commenced on or after December 1, 1978. Both dates are reported because the statute and the rule state the cut-off differently. The same rule carries a note saying the chapters "may be adopted by a municipality to apply to any additions or alterations to existing dwellings," and that is exactly what Germantown has done. Village Code Section 14.07(2) adopts the code twice over: at (a) chs. SPS 320 to 326 "shall apply to all new one-family and 2-family dwellings and all additions to existing and new one-family and 2-family dwellings," and at (b) they "shall pertain to all remodeling or alterations in existing one-family and 2-family dwellings." Subsection (b) reaches existing dwellings as a class rather than dwellings built after a cut-off, so the age of the house does not take a Germantown job outside the Village-enforced dwelling standards. WHAT IS NOT CLOSED HERE IS THE OTHER HALF. SPS 320.05(3) provides that the code does not apply "to repairs or maintenance to dwellings or dwelling units," and SPS 320.07(61) defines a repair to include "the replacement of existing fixtures, systems or equipment with the equivalent fixture, system or equipment," which is a fair description of a like-for-like tear-off - while SPS 321.28(6) regulates reroofing by name. Germantown adopts the code for "remodeling or alterations" and does not except SPS 320.05(3), so whether a straight like-for-like reroof is an alteration or a repair is a question for the building inspector on the job. Ask before pricing the work. About ice & water barrier

Not required — NO MID-ROOF OR ROOF-COVERING INSPECTION STAGE IS PUBLISHED, AND THE VILLAGE PRINTS ITS WHOLE LIST ON ONE PAGE SO THIS CAN BE CHECKED. The Germantown "INSPECTIONS REQUIRED" sheet states "The following inspections are required to be made during construction" and lists, in full: footing, foundation, service (optional), rough electrical, rough under floor plumbing, rough plumbing, drain tile, rough framing, insulation, exterior plumbing, final electrical, final plumbing and final. None of those is a tear-off, underlayment, deck or roof-covering stage; the rough framing stage comes after rough plumbing and electrical and before insulation, and on a reroof the final is the operative inspection. The ordinance runs the same way: Village Code Section 14.05(10) provides for inspection at completion of the foundation forms, again when ready for lath and plaster or before paneling is applied, and a final inspection of all new buildings, alterations and existing buildings put to new uses. PRACTICAL POINTS: inspections must be scheduled before 4 p.m. for next-day service on 262-346-4460, and the sheet notes that where belongings are in the structure the inspectors will not enter without an escort.

Not required — No impact-resistance or hail-rating mandate applies here. The statewide Wisconsin uniform dwelling code carries none: ch. SPS 321, which holds the construction standards for one- and two-family dwellings, contains no occurrence of UL 2218, Class 4, Class IV or FM 4473 anywhere, roof coverings included, and SPS 321.28(5) sends any covering the section does not otherwise address to "the manufacturer's instructions or a national standard recognized by the department," which sets no impact class. Impact-resistant shingles are an insurer-driven upgrade in this market, not a code obligation. ONE CAUTION FOR READING PAPERWORK ON A WISCONSIN JOB: a Class A, B or C designation, or a reference to ASTM E108 or UL 790, is a FIRE rating and says nothing about hail, and ASTM D3161 or D7158 is a WIND rating. Only UL 2218 or FM 4473 answers impact. On the Village side, Chapter 14 of the Village Code was read in full and contains no UL 2218, Class 4, Class IV or FM 4473 requirement, and the published permit form, inspection sheet and fee schedule set no shingle rating. What Germantown does require is that unlisted materials clear the Village first: Section 14.11, "NEW METHODS AND MATERIALS," is the provision to raise if a product is not addressed by the adopted codes.

A REROOF NEEDS A PERMIT IN GERMANTOWN, AND THE FEE SCHEDULE IS WHAT SETTLES IT. The 2026 Community Development Building Inspection Services fee schedule, under the heading "CONSTRUCTION (RESIDENTIAL 1 & 2-FAMILY ONLY)," carries a line reading simply "Reroofing" at $68.77 - a flat fee, not a value calculation - immediately above the identical "Siding" line and below "Fence." A jurisdiction that prints a flat reroofing permit fee is charging for a permit it expects to issue. The ordinance behind it is Village Code Section 14.05(1), "PERMIT REQUIRED": no new building or structure "or any part thereof, shall hereafter be erected, or ground broken for the same, or enlarged, altered, moved, demolished or used within the Village, except as herein provided, until a permit therefor shall first have been obtained by the owner, or his authorized agent, from the Building Inspector." WHERE THE LINE FALLS FOR A SMALL REPAIR IS NOT A NUMBER, IT IS THE INSPECTOR JUDGMENT. Section 14.05(9), "MINOR REPAIRS AND ALTERATIONS," provides that the Building Inspector "may authorize minor repairs or alterations which do not change the occupancy area, structural strength, fire protection, exits, light or ventilation of the building without requiring a building permit to be issued." That is a discretion to waive, not a threshold a contractor can apply for itself, and it does not displace the reroofing fee line - so the safe reading is that a reroof is permit work and a small patch is a phone call. THE PENALTY FOR GETTING THIS WRONG IS PRINTED ON THE APPLICATION FORM IN CAPITALS: "NOTE: TRIPLE FEES FOR WORK STARTED BEFORE OBTAINING A PERMIT." The fee schedule confirms it as a standing charge rather than a discretionary sanction.

STATE-SET, AND WISCONSIN STATES IT AS A PRESSURE RATHER THAN AS A WIND SPEED - do not go looking for a mph figure, because the uniform dwelling code does not publish one. Wis. Admin. Code SPS 321.02(1)(c) provides that "Dwellings shall be designed and constructed to withstand either a horizontal and uplift pressure of 20 pounds per square foot acting over the surface area or the wind loads determined in accordance with ASCE 7-05, Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures," and the code adds its own note that ASCE 7-05 "allows for substantial reduction from 20 psf as applied to the surface area." The roof-specific figures are in SPS 321.27(3), "UPLIFT AND SUCTION FORCES": roofs "shall withstand a pressure of at least 20 pounds per square foot acting upward normal to the roof surface," and "Roof overhangs, eaves, canopies and cornices shall withstand an upward wind pressure of at least 20 pounds per square foot applied to the entire exposed area." SPS 321.27(3)(b) adds the anchorage rule that roof framing members spanning more than 6 feet from the outermost edge of the roof "shall be permanently fastened to the top plate of load bearing walls using engineered clips, straps or hangers." For the shingles themselves the code sets a fastening count rather than a wind class: SPS 321.28(3)(a)4. requires at least 4 fasteners per strip shingle or 2 per interlocking shingle unless the manufacturer specifies otherwise, and SPS 321.28(3)(a)1. requires a self-sealing adhesive strip with an average bond strength of at least 1.5 pounds per 3.75 inches of shingle width at 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Germantown publishes no local wind figure and Chapter 14 of the Village Code contains none.

STATE-SET. Germantown writes no reroofing layer rule of its own - Village Code Chapter 14, the Building Code, was read in full, all twenty-eight of its numbered sections from 14.01 through 14.17, and it contains no layer limit, no recover rule and no shingle provision - so the statewide rule governs unmodified. The statewide rule is SPS 321.28(6), "REROOFING," which provides that new roof coverings may not be installed over existing roof coverings where any of three conditions exist: the existing roof or roof covering "is water-soaked or has deteriorated such that it is inadequate as a base for additional roofing"; the existing roof "is wood shake, slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile"; or the existing roof "has 2 or more applications of any type of permanent roof covering." So the ceiling is two total layers, and fewer than that where the deck is wet or deteriorated or the existing covering is one of the listed materials. A complete tear-off to the deck is not restricted by that rule at any layer count. There is no local route past two layers of the kind a few Wisconsin municipalities publish, so a roof already carrying two applications is a tear-off in Germantown. AND GERMANTOWN HAS CLOSED THE OLDER-HOUSE HALF OF THE SCOPE QUESTION THAT HANGS OVER MOST WISCONSIN REROOFS, WITHOUT EVER NAMING A DATE. Statewide, SPS 320.05(1) provides that the uniform dwelling code does not apply to dwellings "the construction of which was commenced prior to the effective date of this code, or to additions or alterations to such dwellings" - the code took effect June 1, 1980, while the enabling statute, Wis. Stat. 101.615, draws the line at initial construction commenced on or after December 1, 1978. Both dates are reported because the statute and the rule state the cut-off differently. The same rule carries a note saying the chapters "may be adopted by a municipality to apply to any additions or alterations to existing dwellings," and that is exactly what Germantown has done. Village Code Section 14.07(2) adopts the code twice over: at (a) chs. SPS 320 to 326 "shall apply to all new one-family and 2-family dwellings and all additions to existing and new one-family and 2-family dwellings," and at (b) they "shall pertain to all remodeling or alterations in existing one-family and 2-family dwellings." Subsection (b) reaches existing dwellings as a class rather than dwellings built after a cut-off, so the age of the house does not take a Germantown job outside the Village-enforced dwelling standards. WHAT IS NOT CLOSED HERE IS THE OTHER HALF. SPS 320.05(3) provides that the code does not apply "to repairs or maintenance to dwellings or dwelling units," and SPS 320.07(61) defines a repair to include "the replacement of existing fixtures, systems or equipment with the equivalent fixture, system or equipment," which is a fair description of a like-for-like tear-off - while SPS 321.28(6) regulates reroofing by name. Germantown adopts the code for "remodeling or alterations" and does not except SPS 320.05(3), so whether a straight like-for-like reroof is an alteration or a repair is a question for the building inspector on the job. Ask before pricing the work.

STATE-SET. The statewide rule is Wis. Admin. Code SPS 321.27(9), "ROOF SHEATHING, BOARDS AND PLANKING," read in full. For structural panels, SPS 321.27(9)(a) provides that "The allowable loads and spans for structural sheathing shall be in accordance with the grade stamp on the panel" - Wisconsin sets no minimum panel thickness of its own and defers to the stamp, so a roofer replacing decking should match the stamp to the rafter spacing rather than to a table. For board decking, SPS 321.27(9)(b) allows roof boards at least 5/8 inch thick for solid sheathing and 3/4 inch for spaced sheathing where rafters are 24 inches on centre or closer, and requires tongue-and-groove boards at least 1.5 inches thick where rafter spacing is greater than 24 inches on centre. SPS 321.27(9)(c) covers roof planks, which must be tongue-and-groove or splined and at least 2 inches nominal. Nothing in the section states a trigger for replacing sound decking on a reroof; what forces sheathing off is the separate reroofing rule, SPS 321.28(6)(a), which bars covering a deck that is water-soaked or deteriorated. Germantown adds nothing: Chapter 14 of the Village Code was read in full and contains no sheathing, decking or fastening provision.

5.5% on materials. Wisconsin state sales and use tax is 5%, and Washington County levies the half-point county tax on top of it, at 0.50% with an effective date of January 1999 - county code 66 on the chart. The figures are from the Department of Revenue sales tax rate chart, Guidance Document Number 100047, dated January 16, 2026. No municipal sales tax applies here - the Department states that "The city of Milwaukee is the only municipality that imposes a city sales and use tax" - and no premier resort area tax applies, because this municipality is not among the ten the Department lists as having adopted one. ONE BOUNDARY POINT THAT IS EASY TO GET WRONG HERE, BECAUSE GERMANTOWN SITS ON A COUNTY LINE. The Village lies almost entirely in Washington County at 5.5%, but Milwaukee County immediately south is at 5.9% - the state 5% plus a 0.90% county tax effective January 2024, the only county rate in Wisconsin above half a point - and the 2% city of Milwaukee sales tax applies only inside the city of Milwaukee itself. Source the material to the job address rather than to the yard. HOW THE TAX FALLS ON A ROOFING JOB MATTERS MORE THAN THE RATE. Wisconsin treats a roof as real property: the Department of Revenue contractor guidance, Publication 207, answers it by name in its item chart, listing "Roofs" as real estate for residential installation, residential repair, commercial installation and commercial repair alike. The roofing contractor is therefore the consumer of what it installs. It pays sales or use tax when buying shingles, underlayment and other materials, and the same publication states that a contractor performing a real property construction activity "is not permitted to collect sales tax from its customers on its sales price from sales of real property construction activities," so neither labour nor materials are taxed on the reroofing contract itself. The exception runs the other way: Publication 207 lists "Selling lumber, roofing materials or other tangible personal property, without installation" as an example of the contractor acting as a retailer, which is a taxable retail sale. So the rate is a cost input on the material purchase rather than a line on the homeowner invoice.