Permitting Authorities / City of Leesburg - Building Division
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Leesburg, FL?
Adopted code
City of Leesburg - Building Division
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Leesburg, FL, issued by City of Leesburg - Building Division. Re-roofing in Leesburg is permit work. The City's Building Services page lists two roofing permit types, "Roofing - ReRoof (RFR) and Roof Repairs (ROR)." A Re-Roof (RFR) application needs the permit application generated by the online permit system, the property record card (deed or tax bill), the City's Re-Roof Scope of Work Form, and a "Recorded and Certified Notice of Commencement (Job cost over $5,000) (before first inspection)"; a Roof Repairs (ROR) application adds the Florida Product Approval Form and "Truss engineering if truss damage / replacement." The City's building permit fee schedule (effective October 1, 2025) charges "Roofing - Residential $0.09 per sq. ft." against a residential minimum fee of $150, plus the 1.5% Florida Building Surcharge and 1.0% Florida Recovery Fund. "If any person commences work on a building or structure before obtaining necessary permits, they shall be subject to a penalty as specified. $250 or double the permit fee; Whichever is greater." The City's Roofing Scope of Work form (updated September 2025, FBC 8th Edition) asks whether the job is a re-cover or a tear-off and notes for a re-cover that "A city pre-inspection is required." The Building Division states that "Only current application forms indicating the" FBC 2023 (8th Edition) "will be accepted." Plans examination is not required for reroofs under the City's adopted administrative provisions. State law makes it "unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, or governmental entity to construct, erect, alter, modify, repair, or demolish any building within this state without first obtaining a permit" (section 553.79(1)(a), Florida Statutes).
Roof code checklist: Leesburg, FL
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 Leesburg, Florida
Address
204 N. 5th Street, Leesburg, FL 34748
Contact
- url: https://www.leesburgflorida.gov/my_city/departments/building/index.php
- phone: 352-728-9735
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Roofing contractor is a separately licensed trade in Florida. Section 489.105(3)(e), Florida Statutes, defines a "Roofing contractor" as "a contractor whose services are unlimited in the roofing trade," with a scope that includes "required roof-deck attachments; any repair or replacement of wood roof sheathing or fascia as needed during roof repair or replacement." Section 489.113(2) provides that a person "must be certified or registered in order to engage in the business of contracting in this state." A state-certified contractor may work statewide; under section 489.117(1)(b), "Registration allows the registrant to engage in contracting only in the counties, municipalities, or development districts where he or she has complied with all local licensing requirements, if any, and only for the type of work covered by the registration." Section 489.103(7) contains an owner-builder exemption for "Owners of property when acting as their own contractor and providing direct, onsite supervision themselves of all work not performed by licensed contractors," including one- and two-family residences for the owner's own occupancy or use and not offered for sale or lease; this record does not decide whether a particular reader falls within it.
- city_level: City Code section 7-20(l) provides that "All applicants for any type of permit under this chapter 7, article II, must be properly licensed and insured in accordance with State of Florida laws and regulations in effect at the time of the application, except that an owner-builder meeting all the criteria established by F.S. § 489.103. or any successor provision, may apply for a permit without licensure if he or she provides an owner-builder affidavit sworn to by the applicant and a notary public." The City's Contractor Registration Form lists the items "required when setting up your license with the City of Leesburg": a copy of the current state license, a certificate of liability insurance "(Minimum amount of $300,000)," and workers' compensation insurance or an exemption certificate, with the City of Leesburg Building Services shown as certificate holder. Under section 7-20(m), "The building division shall not accept any application from a person lacking the proper credentials."
Permit process note
Re-roofing in Leesburg is permit work. The City's Building Services page lists two roofing permit types, "Roofing - ReRoof (RFR) and Roof Repairs (ROR)." A Re-Roof (RFR) application needs the permit application generated by the online permit system, the property record card (deed or tax bill), the City's Re-Roof Scope of Work Form, and a "Recorded and Certified Notice of Commencement (Job cost over $5,000) (before first inspection)"; a Roof Repairs (ROR) application adds the Florida Product Approval Form and "Truss engineering if truss damage / replacement." The City's building permit fee schedule (effective October 1, 2025) charges "Roofing - Residential $0.09 per sq. ft." against a residential minimum fee of $150, plus the 1.5% Florida Building Surcharge and 1.0% Florida Recovery Fund. "If any person commences work on a building or structure before obtaining necessary permits, they shall be subject to a penalty as specified. $250 or double the permit fee; Whichever is greater." The City's Roofing Scope of Work form (updated September 2025, FBC 8th Edition) asks whether the job is a re-cover or a tear-off and notes for a re-cover that "A city pre-inspection is required." The Building Division states that "Only current application forms indicating the" FBC 2023 (8th Edition) "will be accepted." Plans examination is not required for reroofs under the City's adopted administrative provisions. State law makes it "unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, or governmental entity to construct, erect, alter, modify, repair, or demolish any building within this state without first obtaining a permit" (section 553.79(1)(a), Florida Statutes).
Adopted code
Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), Residential volume (2021 International Residential Code base), effective December 31, 2023, adopted statewide by the Florida Building Commission under Rule 61G20-1.001, Florida Administrative Code; section 553.73(6), Florida Statutes, provides that the code and each update "is deemed adopted for use statewide without adoptions by local government." City Code section 7-16 (as amended by Ord. No. 24-02, January 8, 2024) provides: "The 2023 Eighth Edition of the Florida Building Code, effective as of December 31, 2023, and associated texts, is adopted as the Building Code for the City of Leesburg, Florida," including the Building, Residential and Existing Buildings volumes. The modifications listed in section 7-16 restate and amend the code's administrative chapter (sections 101 through 116, covering scope, permits, plan review, inspections and unsafe structures); none is a technical amendment to Residential Chapter 9 or Building Chapter 15, and no local technical amendment registered with the Florida Building Commission for the 2023 code reaches those chapters.
Drip edge
Required — Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th Edition (2023), section R905.2.8.5 Drip edge: "Provide drip edge at eaves and gables of shingle roofs. Overlap to be a minimum of 3 inches (76 mm). Eave drip edges shall extend 1/2 inch (13 mm) below sheathing and extend back on the roof a minimum of 2 inches (51 mm). Drip edge shall be installed over the underlayment." The requirement is written for shingle roofs. The City's building standards article (City Code Chapter 7, Article II, read in full) does not amend it, and no registered local amendment reaches Residential Chapter 9. The City's Residential Re-roofing Inspection Affidavit asks for the "Drip edge materials, size, gauge, fastener type & spacing" and a close-up photo of the drip edge.
About drip edgeImpact-resistant roofing
Not required — Neither the City's building standards article (City Code Chapter 7, Article II, read in full, including the modifications to the Florida Building Code in section 7-16) nor any local technical amendment registered with the Florida Building Commission for the 2023 code reaches Residential Chapter 9 or Building Chapter 15; no UL 2218 or Class 4 impact requirement appears in the Florida Building Code, Residential Chapter 9, Building Chapter 15 or Existing Building Chapter 7 as they apply in Leesburg. The "impact-resistant coverings or systems" named in the City's plan review and inspection lists are protection for openings, not roof coverings, and Florida's shingle classes under section R905.2.6.1 (ASTM D3161, TAS 107, ASTM D7158) are wind ratings, not impact ratings.
Roof layer limit / recover
Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th Edition (2023), section R908.3 Recovering versus replacement: "New roof coverings shall not be installed without first removing all existing layers of roof coverings where any of the following conditions occur: 1. Where the existing roof or roof covering is water soaked or has deteriorated to the point that the existing roof or roof covering is not adequate as a base for additional roofing. 2. Where the existing roof covering is wood shingle or shake, slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. 3. Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." A single re-cover over one existing layer is therefore the most the code allows. The City's building standards article (City Code Chapter 7, Article II, read in full) states no layer limit of its own and does not amend section R908.3, and no registered local amendment reaches Residential Chapter 9. The City's Roofing Scope of Work form offers "Re-cover (New Roof over Existing Roof)" and notes that "A city pre-inspection is required."
Deck & sheathing requirements
Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th Edition (2023), section R908.7 Wind mitigation: "When a roof covering on an existing structure with a sawn lumber, wood plank or wood structural panel roof deck is removed and replaced, the following procedures shall be permitted to be performed by the roofing contractor: (a) Roof-decking attachment shall be as required by Section R908.7.1. (b) A secondary water barrier shall be provided as required by Section R908.7.2. Exception: Structures permitted subject to the Florida Building Code are not required to comply with this section." Section R908.1.1 (the 25 percent rule): "Not more than 25 percent of the total roof area or roof section of any existing building or structure shall be repaired, replaced or recovered in any 12-month period unless the roof covering on the entire existing roof system or roof section is replaced or recovered to conform to the requirements of this code," with an exception for roofs built, repaired or replaced under the 2007 Florida Building Code or later. In Leesburg, the City's Roofing Scope of Work form states: "Sheathing shall be re-nailed for any detached Single-Family home built prior to March 1, 2002." It calls for nailing equivalent to 8d nails at no more than 6 inches on center, citing Existing Building section 706.7.1 and Table 706.7.1.2. The City's Residential Re-roofing Inspection Affidavit asks "Was the roof sheathing evaluated for insufficient connections or any deterioration?", how much sheathing was replaced, and the fastener type and spacing. The City's building standards article does not amend these provisions.
Sales & use tax
7% combined: 6% Florida state sales and use tax plus Lake County's 1% discretionary sales surtax, which the Department of Revenue's Form DR-15DSS for calendar year 2026 lists as effective January 1, 1988, with an expiration date of December 31, 2032. Per the Department, the surtax "applies to the first $5,000 of the sales amount on the sale, use, lease, rental, or license to use any item of tangible personal property." Under Rule 12A-1.051, Florida Administrative Code, "Roofing work" is a real property contract, and "Contractors are the ultimate consumers of materials and supplies they use to perform real property contracts and must pay tax on their costs of those materials and supplies, unless the contractor has entered a retail sale plus installation contract"; such contractors "should charge no tax to their customers, regardless of whether they itemize charges for materials and labor in their proposals or invoices." The rate is the roofer's cost on materials, repair and replacement alike, not a tax charged to the homeowner.
Local roofing hub
More roof permit pages in Florida
Related guides
The permitting authority for the City of Leesburg. The City's Building Division (Building Services) takes building permit applications, including re-roof and roof repair permits, performs plan review and inspections, and registers contractors, through the City's online permit portal and its office at 204 N. 5th Street.
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