City of Middletown, Ohio - Building Inspection Division

City of Middletown, Ohio. Middletown straddles Butler and Warren counties, which matters for sales tax — the two counties are at different rates and one of them changes on 2026-10-01 — but not for code, since the Residential Code of Ohio is a statewide rule.

city

Middletown, OH

Not required

Residential Code of Ohio, Ohio Administrative Code Chapter 4101:8, effective July 1, 2019. Ohio adopts its residential code as a statewide administrative rule rather than leaving the edition to each jurisdiction: the Ohio Board of Building Standards promulgates it under Ohio Revised Code section 3781.10 and it governs one, two and three family dwellings throughout the state. Roof assemblies are Chapter 4101:8-9-01, and its section numbers carry no "R" prefix, so the reroofing rule is section 908 and the asphalt shingle rules are section 905. Ohio law does permit a local authority to add to the state code where the addition does not conflict: Ohio Revised Code section 3781.01(B) provides that the state residential building code "does not prevent a local governing authority from adopting additional regulations governing residential structures that do not conflict with the state residential building code," subject to a Board of Building Standards conflict review. Middletown states the residential track first-party rather than leaving it to be inferred: "The Residential Code of Ohio regulates the construction of one, two and three-family residential dwellings and accessory buildings. All other types of buildings are regulated by the Ohio Building Code." The City's building codes are codified locally at Section 1404.04, which is published on a vendor platform this project cannot read, so no local amendment has been read either way and none is asserted. The City makes one point worth passing to a homeowner: "Codes apply whether a professional contractor or a 'do-it-yourselfer' does the work."

Not required — Ohio does not prescribe a drip edge, which is a real departure from the model code the rest of the state code follows. The International Residential Code sets a drip edge requirement at R905.2.8.5 with dimensions, an overlap and a fastening schedule. Ohio replaced that text entirely, and the whole of Residential Code of Ohio section 905.2.8.5 now reads: "Drip edge. Refer to Sections 903.1 and 905.1." Neither of those sections carries drip edge language of its own; what they do is make the manufacturer's instructions binding. Section 903.1 requires roof assemblies to "be designed and installed in accordance with this code and the approved manufacturer's instructions," and section 905.1 that "Roof coverings shall be applied in accordance with the applicable provisions of this section and the manufacturer's installation instructions." So the state code imposes no drip edge of its own, while the shingle manufacturer's published installation instructions do carry code force, and most asphalt shingle instructions require one. Omitting a drip edge against those instructions remains a violation in Ohio, by way of 903.1 and 905.1 rather than by way of a drip edge section. About drip edge

Required — Required, and required across the whole state rather than in a mapped zone. Residential Code of Ohio section 905.1.2 conditions the ice barrier on a local history of ice damming "as designated in Table 301.2(1)", and Ohio's own Table 301.2(1) makes that designation statewide: the ICE BARRIER UNDERLAYMENT REQUIRED column reads "Yes", and note h to the table states that "all jurisdictions in Ohio have a history of local damage from the effects of ice damming." There is therefore no per-city determination to look up. The barrier "shall consist of not fewer than two layers of underlayment cemented together, or a self-adhering polymer-modified bitumen sheet shall be used in place of normal underlayment and extend 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," measured along the slope from where the projected outside face of the wall meets the deck. On roofs of 8:12 or steeper it "shall also be applied not less than 36 inches (914 mm) measured along the roof slope from the eave edge." One exception travels with it: "Detached accessory structures and roof assemblies terminating at a vertical wall over unconditioned floor areas." It applies to asphalt shingles, metal roof shingles, mineral surfaced roll roofing, slate and slate-type shingles, wood shingles and wood shakes. About ice & water barrier

Not required

NOT PUBLISHED FOR ROOFING SPECIFICALLY, though the City's general permit statement is broad and a reroof may well fall inside it. Middletown says: "Permits are required for new construction, additions, alterations and remodeling, including swimming pools, decks and sheds." A reroof is arguably an alteration, but the City never says so, and roofing appears nowhere on its Building Inspection pages. That silence cannot safely be read either way in Ohio, where cities split on this question in both directions and say so explicitly when they mean to. Ask the Building Inspection Division before bidding; the City actively invites it, "encourag[ing] anyone who is contemplating a building project to contact them about the code requirements and numbers of sets of plans that must be submitted." Two things that do apply once a permit is in play: the work ends with an inspector approving the final project and issuing a certificate of occupancy, and the Division can send email notification when a permit is finalized or in violation if you give it your name, email and the permit address.

115 mph ultimate design wind speed, set statewide. Ohio fills in the wind column of Table 301.2(1) of the Residential Code of Ohio once for the whole state rather than leaving it to each jurisdiction, and the WIND DESIGN Speed (mph) entry is 115. Exposure category is not fixed by the table; note d directs that "Wind exposure category shall be determined on a site-specific basis in accordance with Section 301.2.1.4." Ohio has struck three of the model table's wind entries outright, recorded in notes k, l and m: topographic wind speed-up effects, unusual wind conditions and wind-borne debris zones are all deleted, so no wind-borne debris protection applies in Ohio. For the shingles themselves, section 905.2.4 sets wind resistance by ASTM D7158, with an exception that "Asphalt shingles not included in the scope of ASTM D7158 shall be tested and labeled in accordance with ASTM D3161." Both are wind standards; neither speaks to impact.

Two total layers. The default is a full tear off and a recover over one existing layer is the exception; a recover over two or more layers is not allowed. Residential Code of Ohio section 908.3, Roof replacement: "Roof replacement shall include the removal of existing layers of roof coverings down to the roof deck," with an exception permitting an existing ice barrier membrane adhered to the deck to stay and be covered with an additional layer of ice barrier membrane. Section 908.3.1 then permits a recover in four listed situations, the first being where the new covering is installed in accordance with the roof covering manufacturer's approved instructions. Section 908.3.1.1, Roof recover not allowed, sets the bar: "A roof recover shall not be permitted 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 slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. 3. Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." Ohio's rule has three conditions and none is a hail exposure condition, so unlike the older model code editions still in force in some states there is no case here in which a single existing layer must come off on hail grounds alone. Under section 908.5 aggregate surfacing "shall not be reinstalled," and existing flashings, edgings, outlets and vents "shall be replaced where rusted, damaged or deteriorated."

Solid sheathing is required under asphalt shingles. Residential Code of Ohio section 905.2.1, Sheathing requirements: "Asphalt shingles shall be fastened to solidly sheathed decks." Ohio states this without the plank-width alternative some states write in, so spaced or skip sheathing will not carry an asphalt shingle roof here. Section 908.2 additionally requires that the structural roof components "be capable of supporting the roof covering system and the material and equipment loads that will be encountered during installation," and section 908.3.1.1 bars a recover over a deck that will not serve as a base, which is the provision that catches deteriorated sheathing found once the old covering is off.

6.50% in the Butler County portion of the city and 6.75% in the Warren County portion, and BOTH figures move if the address is in Warren after 2026-10-01. Middletown straddles the two counties, Ohio levies its local sales tax at county level with no municipal add-on, so which county the job sits in decides the rate. Butler County is 6.50% — the state's 5.75% plus 0.75% — at county code 09, and it is not changing. Warren County is currently 6.75%, the state's 5.75% plus 1.00%, and the Ohio Department of Taxation publishes the change explicitly: its rate-change table lists "Warren County 283 6.75% ... Semiannual/Quarterly for July 1 thru September 30, 2026" and "Warren County 83 7.25% ... Semiannual/Quarterly for October 1 thru December 31, 2026." So the Warren portion of Middletown goes to 7.25% on October 1, 2026, a rise of half a point, and Warren is the only Ohio county changing on that date. A job in the Warren portion that straddles that date should be priced against the rate in force when the sale occurs. Confirm which county an address sits in before quoting; do not assume the Butler figure across the city.