Permitting Authorities / City of Hamtramck - Building Department
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Hamtramck, MI?
Adopted code
City of Hamtramck - Building Department
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Hamtramck, MI, issued by City of Hamtramck - Building Department. The City of Hamtramck's Building Department has published nothing specific to reroofs; its permit application says "Building work shall not be started until the permit has been issued by the City of Hamtramck" and "All installations shall be in compliance with the Michigan Building Codes." The state's general rule is the one that applies: before construction of a building or structure, an application is submitted to the enforcing agency for a building permit, and "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," without a definition of ordinary repairs (MCL 125.1510). The City's Free Roof Replacement Program form, for homeowners the program selects, says the homeowner agrees "to cooperate with program representatives for site inspections and permitting." The department says nothing else about roof permits, so a roofer should ask it. The city's current fee schedule (July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026) lists a building permit application fee of $50 (non-refundable), a permit fee of $100 for construction value of $1 to $1,000 and $100 plus $15 per thousand dollars or part thereof above $1,000, a plan review fee of $75 for residential alterations, a $75 re-inspection fee, and an additional fee for work started without a permit equal to the permit fee. Contractors and homeowners apply through the city's BS&A online permit portal, and a homeowner doing the work on a home they live in signs the city's Homeowner Permit Affidavit. The Building Department is at 3401 Evaline Street, Mezzanine, Hamtramck, MI 48212 (313-800-5233 ext. 814); the City Hall page lists hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Tuesday. Its permit application says an inspector will respond to an inspection request within two business days to schedule it, and that a permit lapses if the authorized work is not commenced within 180 days after issuance.
Roof code checklist: Hamtramck, 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 Hamtramck, Michigan
Address
3401 Evaline Street, Hamtramck, MI 48212
Contact
- url: https://hamtramckcity.gov/departments/building/
- phone: 313-800-5233 ext. 814
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Michigan licenses residential maintenance and alteration contractors under the Occupational Code, and that licence "includes the following crafts and trades" among which it names roofing (MCL 339.2404(3)); "A person shall not engage in or attempt to engage in the practice of an occupation regulated under this act" without the licence (MCL 339.601(1)). MCL 339.2403 lists who may work without one, including a project whose "aggregate contract price for the labor, material, and any other items for the undertaking or project is less than $600.00". This record does not decide whether a given roofer falls inside an exemption.
- city_level: The City publishes a Contractor Registration Form and an information sheet (updated 6/6/2016) that list a $15.00 registration fee for building contractors; the sheet asks for a driver's license, MESC number, Federal ID number and a "State Residential Builder's License", and the form says "only the contractor and the following names will be allowed to obtain permits" and asks that it be signed and notarized. The city's Homeowner Permit Affidavit says no other person may be hired for the work "unless that person is licensed by the State of Michigan and registered with the City of Hamtramck."
Permit process note
The City of Hamtramck's Building Department has published nothing specific to reroofs; its permit application says "Building work shall not be started until the permit has been issued by the City of Hamtramck" and "All installations shall be in compliance with the Michigan Building Codes." The state's general rule is the one that applies: before construction of a building or structure, an application is submitted to the enforcing agency for a building permit, and "A building permit is not required for ordinary repairs of a building or structure," without a definition of ordinary repairs (MCL 125.1510). The City's Free Roof Replacement Program form, for homeowners the program selects, says the homeowner agrees "to cooperate with program representatives for site inspections and permitting." The department says nothing else about roof permits, so a roofer should ask it. The city's current fee schedule (July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026) lists a building permit application fee of $50 (non-refundable), a permit fee of $100 for construction value of $1 to $1,000 and $100 plus $15 per thousand dollars or part thereof above $1,000, a plan review fee of $75 for residential alterations, a $75 re-inspection fee, and an additional fee for work started without a permit equal to the permit fee. Contractors and homeowners apply through the city's BS&A online permit portal, and a homeowner doing the work on a home they live in signs the city's Homeowner Permit Affidavit. The Building Department is at 3401 Evaline Street, Mezzanine, Hamtramck, MI 48212 (313-800-5233 ext. 814); the City Hall page lists hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Tuesday. Its permit application says an inspector will respond to an inspection request within two business days to schedule it, and that a permit lapses if the authorized work is not commenced within 180 days after issuance.
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 Hamtramck as its own building code enforcer. The Building Department's permit application says "All installations shall be in compliance with the Michigan Building Codes" and names no edition, and its page, fee schedule and forms name no edition either. The City's Code of Ordinances is published in the American Legal code library, and its codified building provisions were not read for this record, which states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code for the reasons above.
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 City of Hamtramck's Building Department page, permit application and 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). The City of Hamtramck's Building Department page, permit application and 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." The City of Hamtramck's Building Department page, permit application and fee schedule were read for a local rule and state nothing further on impact resistance.
Repair permit threshold
The City of Hamtramck publishes no size or cost threshold for roof work. Its Building Department page, permit application, fee schedule and forms name no roofing work, and its permit application says "Building work shall not be started until the permit has been issued by the City of Hamtramck." The application lists the purpose of the project as new building, addition, alteration, repair or other, and carries the applicant's attestation that it "complies with the requirements of MCL 125.1510". 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 small roof repair, call the Building Department at 313-800-5233 ext. 814 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." The City of Hamtramck's Building Department page, permit application, fee schedule and forms were read and state no layer rule; the City's codified building provisions were not read for this record.
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 City of Hamtramck's Building Department page, permit application and 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 City of Hamtramck's Building Department page or fee schedule changes this.
Local roofing hub
More roof permit pages in Michigan
Related guides
The City of Hamtramck's Building Department, at 3401 Evaline Street in Hamtramck, issues building permits, takes contractor registrations and schedules inspections for the city, 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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