Permitting Authorities / City of Harrisonburg - Building Inspections Division
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Harrisonburg, VA?
Adopted code
City of Harrisonburg - Building Inspections Division
No, Harrisonburg, VA does not require a permit for like-for-like roof replacement (City of Harrisonburg - Building Inspections Division). Shingles only: the City says no permit is needed to replace the shingles on a single-family home, duplex or townhouse, and requires a roofing permit for all other roofing work. Its Building Permit page reads: "A roofing permit is required for all roofing work. Exception: A permit is not required to replace shingles on single-family homes, duplexes, or town homes." The statewide rule behind it, Virginia Construction Code Section 108.2 item 14.5, exempts "Replacement of an unlimited amount of roof covering or siding in Group R-3, R-4 or R-5 provided the building or structure is not in an area where the nominal design wind speed is greater than 100 miles per hour (44.7 meters per second) and replacement of 100 square feet (9.29 m 2 ) or less of roof covering in all groups and all wind zones." Item 14.6 exempts only "Replacement of 256 square feet (23.78 m 2 ) or less of roof decking" in those groups, so larger deck replacement is permit work. Two exceptions let the building official require a permit: "for the installation of replacement siding, roofing and windows in buildings within a historic district designated by a locality pursuant to Section 15.2-2306 of the Code of Virginia" and "for any items exempted in this section which are located in a special flood hazard area." Harrisonburg has mapped flood hazard areas (the City Code lists its effective FIRM panels, effective 02/06/2008), so check a flood-zone address with the Division before starting. An owner may always ask for a permit: "when an owner or an owner's agent requests that a permit be issued for any of the following, then a permit shall be issued and any related inspections shall be required." The work must meet the code with or without a permit. Where a permit is needed, apply on the LAMA Permit Portal (https://permits.harrisonburgva.gov/), by emailing the Roofing Permit Application to [email protected], or in person at Community Development, 409 S Main St, 2nd Floor. The application asks for the roofing type (asphalt shingles, fiberglass shingles, rubber roof, metal, single-ply membrane or built-up), whether the old roof is being removed, and whether the roof has been inspected for asbestos; the City requires an asbestos questionnaire with permit applications for existing buildings, and an asbestos inspection certificate for structures built before January 1, 1985 that are being renovated or demolished. Contractors need a registration code for the portal (540-432-7700). Fees under City Code Sec. 11-1-11: "Value: $0.00—$2,000.00: Sixty dollars ($60.00)"; above that, "Sixty dollars ($60.00) for the first two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) plus six dollars ($6.00) for each additional one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or fraction thereof", plus "A nonrefundable state levy fee of two (2) percent". Under City Code Sec. 11-1-14, "If any person commences work before obtaining the required permits from the city, that person shall be subject to twice the application fee.".
Roof code checklist: Harrisonburg, VA
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 Harrisonburg, Virginia
Address
409 S Main St, 2nd Floor, Harrisonburg, VA 22801
Contact
- url: https://www.harrisonburgva.gov/building-inspections
- phone: 540-432-7700
- email: [email protected]
Roofing permit required
Not required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Virginia licenses contractors through the Board for Contractors (DPOR). Code of Virginia Section 54.1-1100, as amended in 2025: "'Class C contractors' perform or manage construction, removal, repair, or improvements when (i) the total value referred to in a single contract or project is over $1,000 but less than $30,000, or (ii) the total value of all such construction, removal, repair, or improvements undertaken by such person within any 12-month period is less than $250,000." Larger jobs fall in the Class B and Class A tiers. Roofing work is licensed under the Board's classifications and specialties, including "Roofing contracting" (ROC), defined in 18VAC50-22-30 as "the service that provides for the installation, repair, removal, or improvement of materials common to the industry that form a watertight, weather resistant surface for roofs and decks." Section 54.1-1111 makes anyone applying for a building permit furnish "either (i) satisfactory proof to such official or authority that he is duly licensed or certified under the terms of this chapter to carry out or superintend the same, or (ii) file a written statement that he is not subject to licensure or certification as a contractor or subcontractor pursuant to this chapter." Section 54.1-1101 A says the chapter does not apply to "7. Any person who performs or supervises the construction, removal, repair, or improvement of no more than one primary residence owned by him and for his own use during any 24-month period". Some older pages give a $10,000 floor for Class C; that figure predates the 2025 amendment.
- city_level: Harrisonburg adds no contractor licence of its own. Its Building Inspections page says "Contractors must have a DPOR license specific to their contracting specialty (Commercial/Residential Building Contractor, Plumbing, Mechanical, etc.)" and "Contractors must also have a City of Harrisonburg Business License." The information the City requires on a building permit application includes "The contractor's complete name, present mailing address, phone number, copy of state class "A", "B", or "C" contractor's registration, and city business license number", and the Roofing Permit Application asks for the contractor's DPOR registration number, licence class and Harrisonburg business license number. A business licence is a local tax registration, not a trade credential. Contractors filing through the LAMA Permit Portal need a registration code from Community Development (540-432-7700), and the portal's list of approved contractors "contains contractors with current credentials for the contractor type in the LAMA permitting system." For owners doing their own work, the City reprints the Section 54.1-1101 exemptions and adds: "It should also be understood that when an applicant constructs, or re-models their own residence, they are required to reside in that same structure for a period of not less than 24 months. A person or business, such as a LLC, performing alterations or house flipping that involves work requiring a permit are required to be licensed as a contractor." City Code Sec. 11-1-17's insurance certificate applies to electrical, mechanical and plumbing contractors, not roofers.
Permit process note
Shingles only: the City says no permit is needed to replace the shingles on a single-family home, duplex or townhouse, and requires a roofing permit for all other roofing work. Its Building Permit page reads: "A roofing permit is required for all roofing work. Exception: A permit is not required to replace shingles on single-family homes, duplexes, or town homes." The statewide rule behind it, Virginia Construction Code Section 108.2 item 14.5, exempts "Replacement of an unlimited amount of roof covering or siding in Group R-3, R-4 or R-5 provided the building or structure is not in an area where the nominal design wind speed is greater than 100 miles per hour (44.7 meters per second) and replacement of 100 square feet (9.29 m 2 ) or less of roof covering in all groups and all wind zones." Item 14.6 exempts only "Replacement of 256 square feet (23.78 m 2 ) or less of roof decking" in those groups, so larger deck replacement is permit work. Two exceptions let the building official require a permit: "for the installation of replacement siding, roofing and windows in buildings within a historic district designated by a locality pursuant to Section 15.2-2306 of the Code of Virginia" and "for any items exempted in this section which are located in a special flood hazard area." Harrisonburg has mapped flood hazard areas (the City Code lists its effective FIRM panels, effective 02/06/2008), so check a flood-zone address with the Division before starting. An owner may always ask for a permit: "when an owner or an owner's agent requests that a permit be issued for any of the following, then a permit shall be issued and any related inspections shall be required." The work must meet the code with or without a permit. Where a permit is needed, apply on the LAMA Permit Portal (https://permits.harrisonburgva.gov/), by emailing the Roofing Permit Application to
[email protected], or in person at Community Development, 409 S Main St, 2nd Floor. The application asks for the roofing type (asphalt shingles, fiberglass shingles, rubber roof, metal, single-ply membrane or built-up), whether the old roof is being removed, and whether the roof has been inspected for asbestos; the City requires an asbestos questionnaire with permit applications for existing buildings, and an asbestos inspection certificate for structures built before January 1, 1985 that are being renovated or demolished. Contractors need a registration code for the portal (540-432-7700). Fees under City Code Sec. 11-1-11: "Value: $0.00—$2,000.00: Sixty dollars ($60.00)"; above that, "Sixty dollars ($60.00) for the first two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) plus six dollars ($6.00) for each additional one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or fraction thereof", plus "A nonrefundable state levy fee of two (2) percent". Under City Code Sec. 11-1-14, "If any person commences work before obtaining the required permits from the city, that person shall be subject to twice the application fee."
Adopted code
The 2021 Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code (13VAC5-63), effective January 18, 2024. For detached one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses, Section 310.6.1 of the Virginia Construction Code applies "The provisions of the IRC for detached one-family and two-family dwellings and townhouses as amended by VCC Section 310.8, also referred to as the Virginia Residential Code (VRC)"; work on existing buildings falls under Part II, the Virginia Existing Building Code, whose reroofing section reads "602.3.2.1 Reroofing. Materials and methods of application used for recovering or replacing an existing roof covering shall comply with Chapter 15 of the VCC, except as modified by Section 302.1 and this section." The statewide code supersedes local building codes (Code of Virginia Section 36-98: "Such building code shall supersede the building codes and regulations of the counties, municipalities and other political subdivisions and state agencies."). Harrisonburg City Code Sec. 11-1-1(a) adopts it: "The Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code (USBC) ... is hereby adopted and made a part of this chapter as fully as though set out herein, and is hereby made applicable within the city and shall be enforced pursuant to its terms by the department of planning and community development, division of building inspection. All future amendments to the above-referenced Code as enacted after the effective date of this section, are adopted and made a part of this section as fully as though set out herein and are hereby made applicable within the city." The Building Inspections Division's own page says "The City of Harrisonburg enforces the 2021 Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code, and 2021 family of the International Codes". Title 11 of the City Code (Building Code Regulations), read in full as codified through the Ordinance of August 11, 2026, adds no technical roofing provision of its own; Sec. 11-1-1(c) sets the City's climatic and geographic design criteria table.
Ice & water shield
Not required — Harrisonburg's own design criteria table, City Code Sec. 11-1-1(c) ("Climatic and Geographic Design Criteria" for the City of Harrisonburg, section last amended by an Ordinance of January 11, 2022), answers "No" under "Ice Barrier Underlayment Required". The Building Inspections Division's current design-criteria statement does not address an ice barrier. Virginia's amendments to the IRC that make up the 2021 Virginia Residential Code contain no ice-barrier provision, and City Code Title 11 contains none. Manufacturer instructions may still call for it.
About ice & water barrierImpact-resistant roofing
Not required — Neither Virginia's 2021 statewide code as published in 13VAC5-63 (the Virginia Construction Code, the state's amendments to the IRC that make up the Virginia Residential Code, and the Virginia Existing Building Code) nor Harrisonburg's City Code Title 11, which adopts that statewide code and adds no technical roofing provision, amends the roof-covering provisions to require impact resistance; no UL 2218 or Class 4 impact requirement appears in either, and the City's design criteria table and the Building Inspections Division's design-criteria statement list none. A Virginia locality cannot add one, because the statewide code supersedes local building codes (Code of Virginia Section 36-98).
Repair permit threshold
Statewide permit exemption, Virginia Construction Code Section 108.2 (2021 edition): "application for a permit and any related inspections shall not be required for the following ... 14. Ordinary repairs that include the following: ... 14.5. Replacement of an unlimited amount of roof covering or siding in Group R-3, R-4 or R-5 provided the building or structure is not in an area where the nominal design wind speed is greater than 100 miles per hour (44.7 meters per second) and replacement of 100 square feet (9.29 m 2 ) or less of roof covering in all groups and all wind zones. 14.6. Replacement of 256 square feet (23.78 m 2 ) or less of roof decking in Group R-3, R-4 or R-5 unless the decking to be replaced was required at the time or original construction to be fire-retardant-treated or protected in some other way to form a fire-rated wall termination." The same section's two Exceptions: "1. Application for a permit may be required by the building official for the installation of replacement siding, roofing and windows in buildings within a historic district designated by a locality pursuant to Section 15.2-2306 of the Code of Virginia." and "2. Application for a permit may be required by the building official for any items exempted in this section which are located in a special flood hazard area." The owner keeps the right to a permit: "when an owner or an owner's agent requests that a permit be issued for any of the following, then a permit shall be issued and any related inspections shall be required." The exemption does not relax the code itself ("this section shall not be construed to exempt such activities from other applicable requirements of this code"). The City of Harrisonburg's Building Permit page applies it in its own words, under the heading "Roofing Permit": "A roofing permit is required for all roofing work. Exception: A permit is not required to replace shingles on single-family homes, duplexes, or town homes." So on a house, duplex or townhouse, replacing the shingles needs no permit; other roofing work (another covering such as metal, membrane or built-up, and roofing on other buildings) is permit work under the City's statement and uses the City's Roofing Permit Application. Replacing more than 256 square feet of roof decking falls outside item 14.6 and needs a permit. The City's design criteria give wind speed only as an ultimate figure (the City Code's table says "105 mph (ultimate)"; the Division's page says "Ultimate wind speed is 115 mph"), not the nominal design wind speed item 14.5 uses; the record does not convert either figure, and rests the answer on the Division's own statement that shingle replacement on these homes needs no permit. The City's enacted permit fee schedule (City Code Sec. 11-1-11) has no roofing line; roofing permits are priced on the value of the work like other building permits.
Wind design criteria
Harrisonburg publishes two statements of its design wind speed, both given as ultimate figures, and they differ. City Code Sec. 11-1-1(c), the "Climatic and Geographic Design Criteria" for the City of Harrisonburg (section last amended by an Ordinance of January 11, 2022), gives Wind Design Speed "105 mph (ultimate)", with Topographic Effects "No", Special wind region "No" and Wind-borne debris zone "No". The Building Inspections Division's current page says "Ultimate wind speed is 115 mph, frost depth is 24 inches, seismic category is B, and the ground snow load is to be calculated in accordance with ASCE 7-22 as stated in §1608.2 of the Virginia Construction Code (VCC) as this jurisdiction is in a case study area." The City Code table gives a ground snow load of 42.5 psf. The record does not choose between the two wind figures; confirm the figure with the Division (540-432-7700) before a wind-rated design. The same page gives the City's minimum roof loads: "Roof live load is 30 pounds per square foot minimum, non-reduced. Roof dead load is 10 pounds per square foot, non-reduced. Note: These are minimum design loads. Loads exceeding these minimums shall require a registered design professional to address the actual loads." Virginia's amendment to the residential code's wind section (R301.2.1) adds elevation-based speeds for "localities in special wind regions, near mountainous terrain, and near gorges".
Deck & sheathing requirements
Harrisonburg cannot amend the statewide code, and its City Code Title 11, read in full, adds no roof deck or sheathing provision. Virginia's amendments to the IRC that make up the 2021 Virginia Residential Code (13VAC5-63-210) do not amend the roof sheathing section (R803), so the base 2021 IRC roof sheathing provisions apply unmodified to work under that code; the record points to that section and does not restate it. For reroofing an existing house the Virginia Existing Building Code adds "602.3.2.2 Structural and construction loads. Structural roof components shall be capable of supporting the roof covering system and the material and equipment loads that will be encountered during installation of the systems." The one Virginia rule written for decking on a reroof is the permit line in Virginia Construction Code Section 108.2 item 14.6: only "Replacement of 256 square feet (23.78 m 2 ) or less of roof decking" in Group R-3, R-4 or R-5 buildings is exempt from a permit, so replacing more decking than that is permit work in Harrisonburg.
Sales & use tax
5.3% general sales and use tax in the City of Harrisonburg (Virginia Tax, "Sales Tax Rates by Locality" workbook, "January 1, 2026 - Present" sheet: Harrisonburg, code 51660, General Sales 0.053). That is the 4.3% state tax (Code of Virginia Section 58.1-603) and the 1% local option tax (Section 58.1-605); Virginia Tax's rates page gives 5.3% for "Everywhere else", outside the localities it names at 7%, 6.3% and 6%. The City of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County are separate localities with their own rows; use the Harrisonburg row. Virginia treats the roofing contractor as the consumer of the materials: "Unless otherwise noted, the law treats every contractor as the user or consumer of all tangible personal property furnished to the contractor or by the contractor in connection with real property construction, reconstruction, installation, repair, and similar contracts" (23VAC10-210-410). So the roofer pays the tax on shingles and other materials when buying them and "does not pass the sales or use tax on to anyone else as a tax"; "If a supplier of a contractor doing work in Virginia does not collect the Virginia tax from the contractor, the contractor will be liable for the use tax on the contractor's purchases from the supplier." Repair and full replacement are treated alike. Local rate changes take effect only on the first day of a calendar quarter.
Local roofing hub
More roof permit pages in Virginia
Related guides
The Building Inspections Division of the City of Harrisonburg Department of Community Development is the building department for the independent City of Harrisonburg, Virginia. It reviews plans and issues building, roofing and trade permits and inspects work under the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code, through the City's LAMA Permit Portal, by email and at its City Hall office. Harrisonburg is an independent city, separate from Rockingham County.
Hail reports near Harrisonburg, VA
- Reports, last 24 months
- 3
- Largest, last 24 months
- 1.75 in May 15, 2025
- Most recent
- May 15, 2025 1.75 in
- Reports, last 5 years
- 7
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database and daily storm reports (reports since the start of the current year are preliminary), within 10 miles of Harrisonburg, VA (Census point). Data through Sep 30, 2026. A report is an observation, not a damage record.
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