Jurisdiction
Borough of Narberth, Pennsylvania
Address
100 Conway Avenue, Narberth, PA 19072
Contact
- url: https://www.narberthpa.gov/departments/building_and_zoning/index.php
- phone: 610-664-2840
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Permit process note
Narberth Borough publishes a dedicated roofing permit application. The Borough's Permits & Applications page lists a "ROOFING PERMIT APPLICATION" among its permit forms. That Borough of Narberth "PERMIT APPLICATION" for "Roofing" (2026) carries a fee worksheet of "$100.00 Residential" and "$200.00 Commercial" plus a $10.00 admin fee, says that all permits must be obtained before work starts, and comes with a "ROOF PERMIT APPLICATION ADDENDUM" of "RE-ROOFING SPECIFICATIONS" and a roofing affidavit asking the number of existing layers, the layers to be removed and the number of squares to be installed. Under state law, Act 45 says the Act "shall not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" (section 104(b)(5) and (6)), and of a municipal ordinance that adds to the code, section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). In practice, expect the Borough to require a permit for a reroof. The form asks the contractor to certify "that, if the existing roof is to be removed, all decayed sheathing that may exist will be replaced," and the Borough's pages state no penalty figure for roof work begun without a permit. Chapter 240 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 902, June 14, 2004; amended in its entirety by Ord. No. 1013, January 16, 2019) elects to administer and enforce the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, and Section 240-2 adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as the Building Code of Narberth Borough." Ord. No. 1072, enacted July 16, 2026 and listed by the code publisher as a new law not yet codified, amends Section 240-1 to adopt "The 2021 (IRC) International Residential Code" and the other 2021 codes, with local amendments; none of its International Residential Code amendments touches Chapter 9 or Section R803. Section 240-5 keeps in force "All building code ordinances or portions of ordinances which were adopted by Narberth Borough on or before July 1, 1999, and which equal or exceed the requirements of the code," and Section 240-8 leaves fees to resolution of Borough Council. The Borough's FAQ lists for any permit a "Completed and paid contractor registration through Narberth Borough," payment in full and a completed application, and gives a review timeline of "Residential permits: 15 business days." Applications are uploaded to the Borough's MyGov portal or brought to the Borough Municipal Building, Monday through Friday, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm; the Borough office is at 610-664-2840. Read for this record: Chapter 240 of the Borough Code, Construction Codes, Uniform, in full; Ord. No. 1072 of 2026 in full; every page of a search of the whole Borough Code for "roof" and for "reroofing"; the Borough's Building & Zoning, Permits & Applications, Building & Zoning FAQs and MyGov pages; and its 2026 Roofing and Building permit applications. The Borough's 2026 fee schedule is linked from its Permits & Applications page but opens only behind a sign-in page, and was not read.
Adopted code
The 2021 International Residential Code, as adopted by the State in the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (UCC). 34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7) adopts "The 'International Residential Code of 2021,' except that:" followed by the State's list of exclusions and modifications, effective January 1, 2026 (55 Pa.B. 7701). None of the State's changes touches Chapter 9, Roof Assemblies, or Section R803, Roof Sheathing, so those apply as the International Code Council publishes them. Work on existing buildings is also pointed to the State's existing-building code: "The repair, alteration, change of occupancy, addition and relocation of existing buildings must comply with Chapter 34 of the 'International Building Code of 2021' or with the 'International Existing Building Code of 2021'" (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)). The UCC is the minimum everywhere in the state: "no municipality may propose or enact any ordinance which is less than the minimum requirement of the Uniform Construction Code" (Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, section 503(b)). The Act also lists work it "shall not apply to", including "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" or to "Repairs to residential buildings," in each case "except as might be required by ordinances" kept in force under section 303(b)(1) or adopted under section 503 (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6); 34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)). The Act defines a repair as "The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose of its maintenance." So whether the code's roofing rules reach a given house reroof depends on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Narberth Borough in Montgomery County runs a Building & Zoning Department at Borough Hall, 100 Conway Avenue, whose page lists a Building Inspector/Zoning Officer/Code Enforcement Officer and a Building Inspector/Code Enforcement officer from Yerkes Associates, and takes permit applications through its online portal or at the Borough Municipal Building. Chapter 240 of the Borough Code (Ord. No. 902, June 14, 2004; amended in its entirety by Ord. No. 1013, January 16, 2019) elects to administer and enforce the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, and Section 240-2 adopts the Uniform Construction Code "as the Building Code of Narberth Borough." Ord. No. 1072, enacted July 16, 2026 and listed by the code publisher as a new law not yet codified, amends Section 240-1 to adopt "The 2021 (IRC) International Residential Code" and the other 2021 codes, with local amendments; none of its International Residential Code amendments touches Chapter 9 or Section R803. Section 240-5 keeps in force "All building code ordinances or portions of ordinances which were adopted by Narberth Borough on or before July 1, 1999, and which equal or exceed the requirements of the code," and Section 240-8 leaves fees to resolution of Borough Council. The Building & Zoning page says "STARTING THURSDAY, JANUARY 1 ST , 2026, THE 2021 UNIFORM CONSTRUCTION CODE (UCC) AND INTERNATIONAL CODES SHALL GO INTO EFFECT FOR ALL PERMIT REVIEWS."
Impact-resistant roofing
Not required — No impact-resistance requirement under state law. The State's adoption of the 2021 International Residential Code (34 Pa. Code 403.21) contains no hail or impact rule, and it makes no change to the code's roof assemblies chapter, which itself has no UL 2218, Class 4 or hail-impact requirement for roof coverings. A municipality could add one only by an ordinance that equals or exceeds the Uniform Construction Code under Act 45 section 503, filed with the Department of Labor and Industry; none of the filings on the Department's register of municipal code change ordinances mentions hail or impact resistance. An owner may still choose an impact-rated roof covering. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Narberth Borough in Montgomery County runs a Building & Zoning Department at Borough Hall, 100 Conway Avenue, whose page lists a Building Inspector/Zoning Officer/Code Enforcement Officer and a Building Inspector/Code Enforcement officer from Yerkes Associates, and takes permit applications through its online portal or at the Borough Municipal Building. Chapter 240 of the Borough Code and Ord. No. 1072, read in full, add no impact-resistance rule; no UL 2218 or Class 4 requirement appears in them or on the Borough's roofing application.
Repair permit threshold
Narberth Borough publishes a dedicated roofing permit application. The Borough's Permits & Applications page lists a "ROOFING PERMIT APPLICATION" among its permit forms. That Borough of Narberth "PERMIT APPLICATION" for "Roofing" (2026) carries a fee worksheet of "$100.00 Residential" and "$200.00 Commercial" plus a $10.00 admin fee, says that all permits must be obtained before work starts, and comes with a "ROOF PERMIT APPLICATION ADDENDUM" of "RE-ROOFING SPECIFICATIONS" and a roofing affidavit asking the number of existing layers, the layers to be removed and the number of squares to be installed. Under state law, Act 45 says the Act "shall not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as might be required by ordinances in effect pursuant to section 303(b)(1) or adopted pursuant to section 503" (section 104(b)(5) and (6)), and of a municipal ordinance that adds to the code, section 503(c) says "An ordinance under this subsection shall not be effective nor enforceable unless subsections (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (i) have been satisfied." This record does not decide whether the municipality's requirement is one adopted under section 503 or kept in effect by section 303(b)(1). In practice, expect the Borough to require a permit for a reroof. The form asks the contractor to certify "that, if the existing roof is to be removed, all decayed sheathing that may exist will be replaced," and the Borough's pages state no penalty figure for roof work begun without a permit. State law sets no square-footage or percentage threshold for roof work; any threshold is set locally. The Uniform Construction Code "does not apply to" "Alterations to residential buildings which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress, except as required by ordinances in effect under sections 303(b)(1) or 503 of the act" or to "Repairs to residential buildings, except as required by ordinances in effect under sections 303(b)(1) and 503 of the act" (34 Pa. Code 403.1(b)(8) and (9)), and "A permit is not required for the exceptions listed in § 403.1(b) (relating to scope) and the following, if the work does not violate a law or ordinance" (34 Pa. Code 403.62(c)). For houses the regulation adds: "An ordinary repair does not require a permit." Its list of work that is not an ordinary repair names cutting away a load-bearing wall, "The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load-bearing support," changes to a required means of egress, and new or relocated piping, wiring or mechanical work (34 Pa. Code 403.62(d)); roofing is not named. A municipality may require more: under Act 45 section 503(c) it "may enact ordinances pursuant to this section which adopt additional code requirements for alterations or repairs to residential buildings," after a public hearing and after filing the proposed ordinance with the Department of Labor and Industry. These rules concern a "Residential building," which the regulation defines as "Detached one-family and two-family dwellings and townhouses which are not more than three stories above grade plane in height with a separate means of egress and their accessory structures" (34 Pa. Code 401.1). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Narberth Borough in Montgomery County runs a Building & Zoning Department at Borough Hall, 100 Conway Avenue, whose page lists a Building Inspector/Zoning Officer/Code Enforcement Officer and a Building Inspector/Code Enforcement officer from Yerkes Associates, and takes permit applications through its online portal or at the Borough Municipal Building. No Borough text read for this record sets an area or cost threshold for roof work; the roofing application names none.
Roof layer limit / recover
Two layers at most where the state code reaches the job. Pennsylvania adopts the 2021 International Residential Code without changing its reroofing section, R908 (34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7); the State's list of changes names no Chapter 9 section). Section R908.3.1.1 says "A roof recover shall not be permitted where any of the following conditions occur," and the third condition is "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering." So one existing layer may be covered once, and a roof that already has two layers is torn off to the deck. The same section also bars a recover "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" and "Where the existing roof covering is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile." The existing-building code the State also adopts, the 2021 International Existing Building Code (34 Pa. Code 403.21(f)), carries the same three conditions in Section 705.2.1.1. These rules bind work the Uniform Construction Code reaches. The Act does not apply to "Repairs to residential buildings" or to alterations that make no structural change, "except as might be required by ordinances" (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6)), so whether R908 binds a particular house reroof turns on that exclusion and on the municipality's own ordinances. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Narberth Borough in Montgomery County runs a Building & Zoning Department at Borough Hall, 100 Conway Avenue, whose page lists a Building Inspector/Zoning Officer/Code Enforcement Officer and a Building Inspector/Code Enforcement officer from Yerkes Associates, and takes permit applications through its online portal or at the Borough Municipal Building. Chapter 240 and Ord. No. 1072 change nothing in the code's reroofing provisions. The Borough's roofing application addendum lists under "RE-ROOFING SPECIFICATIONS" "Maximum of two asphalt, fiberglass or low slow roofing systems are permitted" and "New roof may not be installed over any of the following systems: slate, wood shake, asbestos, or clay tile."
Deck & sheathing requirements
State rules from the base code, where the state code reaches the job. Pennsylvania adopts the 2021 International Residential Code without changing Section R803, Roof Sheathing (34 Pa. Code 403.21(a)(7); the State's changes to Chapter 8 are to ridge framing and attic ventilation). 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 "shall 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 "shall not exceed the values set forth in Table R503.2.1.1(1) or APA E30." For shingles, "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 and the material and equipment loads that will be encountered during installation of the roof covering system" (R908.2). These rules bind work the Uniform Construction Code reaches; the Act does not apply to "Repairs to residential buildings" or to alterations that make no structural change, "except as might be required by ordinances" (Act 45 section 104(b)(5) and (6)). Act 45 section 104(b)(5) excludes alterations "which do not make structural changes or changes to means of egress" and says only that "a structural change does not include a minor framing change needed to replace existing windows or doors"; 34 Pa. Code 403.62(d)(2) lists "The removal or cutting of any structural beam or load-bearing support" as not an ordinary repair. Neither names roof sheathing; this record does not decide whether replacing it is either. Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Locally, Narberth Borough in Montgomery County runs a Building & Zoning Department at Borough Hall, 100 Conway Avenue, whose page lists a Building Inspector/Zoning Officer/Code Enforcement Officer and a Building Inspector/Code Enforcement officer from Yerkes Associates, and takes permit applications through its online portal or at the Borough Municipal Building. Chapter 240 and Ord. No. 1072 change nothing in the code's roof sheathing provisions. The Borough's roofing application addendum calls for roof sheathing of at least one-half inch over rafters 16 inches on center, and says "Wood shingle roof will serve as the roof deck providing the shingles are in good condition," and the contractor certifies "that, if the existing roof is to be removed, all decayed sheathing that may exist will be replaced."
Sales & use tax
6% Pennsylvania sales and use tax, with a local tax added on purchases made in Allegheny County (1%) and Philadelphia (2%). On a reroof the roofer pays the tax on the materials and does not add it to the homeowner's bill. The Department of Revenue says: "The Pennsylvania sales tax rate is 6 percent. By law, a 1 percent local tax is added to purchases made in Allegheny County, and 2 percent local tax is added to purchases made in Philadelphia." Roof work is a construction activity: the rule's list of items "presumed to become a permanent part of real estate" includes "Roofing (repairs)" (61 Pa. Code 31.11). For construction activities, "A contractor shall pay tax upon the purchase price ... of all property, including materials, equipment, components and supplies, which he furnishes and installs" (61 Pa. Code 31.12(a)(1)), and the rule's example says the contractor "does not charge sales tax on this transaction to his customer. The contractor may include the tax he must pay in his bid proposal but not as a separately stated item." Apart from limited exceptions set out in the rule, the same holds on jobs for tax-exempt owners: "a contractor erecting a building, repairing a roof, replacing a door for a governmental agency, ... school district, charitable or religious organization, and the like, shall pay tax upon the property which he consumes" (61 Pa. Code 31.13(a)). Everything above is Pennsylvania state law, the same in every municipality. Narberth Borough is in Montgomery County. The Borough's permit pages and roofing application say nothing on sales tax.