Lake County - Building Department

Lake County, Michigan (2 villages and 15 townships on the county building program)

county

800 Tenth Street, Suite 110, Baldwin, MI 49304

Required

Required

Lake County prices roof work as its own permit type: the fee schedule, revised 06/23/20, lists "RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL ROOFING FEES" at a $100.00 application fee plus $.10 per square foot for "Roof replacement per square foot," and a separate commercial roofing line at $110.00 plus $.10 per square foot, or $50.00 plus $.05 per square foot for a "Re-roof (singles only)". Its residential building fee line, $100.00 plus $.22 per square foot, covers "New Homes, Additions, and ALL Alterations," and the building permit application lists "Repair" among the types of work. The department says "Applications will only be accepted by USPS Mail or submitted in person" and "Permits cannot be completed online." Its Required Documentation sheet asks applicants to "PLEASE TRY TO APPLY FOR YOUR BUILDING PERMIT 2 WEEKS PRIOR TO STARTING DATE" and says "LAKE COUNTY SNOW LOADS ARE 50# AND 60# IN MOST AREAS" in its truss certification item. To schedule an inspection, call 231-745-2722: "This office requires a minimum of a 24-hour notice for all inspections." Additional inspections are $65.00 each on the fee schedule, and a lock-out or no-access visit is $60.00 plus a $10.00 fuel recovery fee. "All permits are valid for one year, and can be extended as needed in units of additional 180 days increments with a processing fee of $75.00 each extension." The office is at 800 Tenth Street, Suite 110, Baldwin, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and the handout says phones are not answered after 4:00 p.m. The department serves the units the state's jurisdiction list assigns to the county for building.

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 assigns building code enforcement in 2 villages and 15 townships of Lake County to the county. Lake County's building permit application (form revised 2/8/16), read October 11, 2026, says "I agree to conform to all applicable laws of the State of Michigan (2015 Michigan Building Code and Michigan Residential Code) and Lake County ordinances," and its Required Documentation sheet (dated 01/07/25) calls for "PROOF OF COMPLIANCE WITH CHAPTER 11 ENERGY EFFICIENCY OF 2015 M.R.C." Lake County's Rustic Sportsman's Cabin Ordinance (as amended March 14, 2012), Section 4, says roof assemblies of those cabins "shall be designed and installed in accordance with the 2009 MRC Michigan Residential Code"; this directory has not read that text, and whether the reference has any effect today is not decided here. This record states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state construction code act applies throughout the state ("This act and the code apply throughout the state," MCL 125.1508a) and which LARA says remains in effect while the Court of Claims order of July 7, 2025 stands.

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 Lake County Building Department's page, fee schedule, permit application and Required Documentation sheet were read for a local rule and state nothing further on drip edge. Lake County's Rustic Sportsman's Cabin Ordinance, Section 4, refers to the 2009 MRC for the roof assemblies of rustic cabins only; this field states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state act applies throughout the state and which Lake County's building permit application says applies ("2015 Michigan Building Code and Michigan Residential Code"); the 2009 MRC text was not read (see adopted_code). About drip edge

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 Lake County Building Department's page, fee schedule, permit application and Required Documentation sheet were read for a local rule and state nothing further on ice barrier. Lake County's Rustic Sportsman's Cabin Ordinance, Section 4, refers to the 2009 MRC for the roof assemblies of rustic cabins only; this field states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state act applies throughout the state and which Lake County's building permit application says applies ("2015 Michigan Building Code and Michigan Residential Code"); the 2009 MRC text was not read (see adopted_code). About ice & water barrier

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 Lake County Building Department's page, fee schedule, permit application and Required Documentation sheet were read for a local rule and state no impact rule.

No size or cost threshold is published. The Lake County Building Department's fee schedule, revised 06/23/20, has a "RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL ROOFING FEES" line that charges a $100.00 application fee plus $.10 per square foot for "Roof replacement per square foot," and none of the department's pages read for this record states a size, square or dollar point below which roof work 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. For a small roof repair, ask the department (231-745-2722) before starting.

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 Lake County Building Department's page, fee schedule, permit application, Required Documentation sheet and handout were read and state no layer rule. The only county ordinance linked on that page is the Rustic Sportsman's Cabin Ordinance, which sets rules for rustic cabins and says for them "Rolled roofing or other types of roofing will not be allowed"; no county building ordinance is published there, so no local amendment to Section R908 could be read. Lake County's Rustic Sportsman's Cabin Ordinance, Section 4, refers to the 2009 MRC for the roof assemblies of rustic cabins only; this field states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state act applies throughout the state and which Lake County's building permit application says applies ("2015 Michigan Building Code and Michigan Residential Code"); the 2009 MRC text was not read (see adopted_code).

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 Lake County Building Department's page, fee schedule, permit application and Required Documentation sheet were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roof sheathing. Lake County's Rustic Sportsman's Cabin Ordinance, Section 4, refers to the 2009 MRC for the roof assemblies of rustic cabins only; this field states the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which the state act applies throughout the state and which Lake County's building permit application says applies ("2015 Michigan Building Code and Michigan Residential Code"); the 2009 MRC text was not read (see adopted_code).

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." The same 6% applies throughout Lake County.