Permitting Authorities / Township of Saugatuck - Building Department
Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Township of Saugatuck, MI?
Adopted code
Township of Saugatuck - Building Department
Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Township of Saugatuck, MI, issued by Township of Saugatuck - Building Department. In Saugatuck Township a reroof is permit work on the Building Department's own list: its FAQ says "You will likely need a permit to:" and includes "Re-roof your house", and advises "To confirm whether your project requires a permit, contact the Building and Permit Office before starting work." The application is the Building Permit Application Packet, available online, by mail or at the township office, and the packet says "NO WORK TO START PRIOR TO ISSUANCE OF BUILDING PERMIT". Its process chart says the Building Official "will review the application for compliance with the Michigan Building Code" and has the applicant submit plans to the Saugatuck Township Fire District before the permit issues. The township's Consolidated Fee Schedule (November 15, 2025) sets the building permit fee at "$100 base fee plus" "$4.00 per thousand dollars of project value", with up to five inspections included and additional inspections at "$100 each", and says "If a project is begun before a building permit is issued a $100 investigation fee will be added to the permit fee." Permit fees are "due prior to the issuance of the permit", and building permits are valid for one year from the issue date. Its Required Inspections sheet says "Schedule inspections at least 72 hours in advance" and lists the inspections for conventional, pre-manufactured and pole construction; it names no roofing inspection. To schedule one, call the township office at (269) 857-7721 and ask for the building inspector. Contractors working in the township also file its Contractor Registration Form with a copy of their state licence and a $15 fee. The township hall is at 3461 Blue Star Hwy, Saugatuck, and the City of Saugatuck is a separate building code unit not covered here.
Roof code checklist: Township of Saugatuck, MI
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
Township of Saugatuck, Allegan County, Michigan
Address
3461 Blue Star Highway, Saugatuck, MI 49453
Contact
- url: https://saugatucktownshipmi.gov/departments/building-rental-inspections/
- phone: 269-857-7721
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
- state_level: Michigan licenses residential maintenance and alteration contractors under the Occupational Code, and that licence "includes the following crafts and trades" among which it names roofing (MCL 339.2404(3)); "A person shall not engage in or attempt to engage in the practice of an occupation regulated under this act" without the licence (MCL 339.601(1)). MCL 339.2403 lists who may work without one, including a project whose "aggregate contract price for the labor, material, and any other items for the undertaking or project is less than $600.00". This record does not decide whether a given roofer falls inside an exemption.
- city_level: Saugatuck Township publishes a Contractor Registration Form that it says is "required for contractors performing work in Saugatuck Township". The form asks for the company's licence numbers, insurance and employer identifiers, and a copy of the contractor's valid state licence, with a $15 fee; it says "REGISTRATION WILL EXPIRE WHEN THE CONTRACTOR'S LICENSE($) EXPIRES." The registration depends on the state licence rather than setting a licence class of its own, and the township's Consolidated Fee Schedule lists the same "Contractor Registration Fee" at "$15 (valid until expiration date of license)".
Permit process note
In Saugatuck Township a reroof is permit work on the Building Department's own list: its FAQ says "You will likely need a permit to:" and includes "Re-roof your house", and advises "To confirm whether your project requires a permit, contact the Building and Permit Office before starting work." The application is the Building Permit Application Packet, available online, by mail or at the township office, and the packet says "NO WORK TO START PRIOR TO ISSUANCE OF BUILDING PERMIT". Its process chart says the Building Official "will review the application for compliance with the Michigan Building Code" and has the applicant submit plans to the Saugatuck Township Fire District before the permit issues. The township's Consolidated Fee Schedule (November 15, 2025) sets the building permit fee at "$100 base fee plus" "$4.00 per thousand dollars of project value", with up to five inspections included and additional inspections at "$100 each", and says "If a project is begun before a building permit is issued a $100 investigation fee will be added to the permit fee." Permit fees are "due prior to the issuance of the permit", and building permits are valid for one year from the issue date. Its Required Inspections sheet says "Schedule inspections at least 72 hours in advance" and lists the inspections for conventional, pre-manufactured and pole construction; it names no roofing inspection. To schedule one, call the township office at (269) 857-7721 and ask for the building inspector. Contractors working in the township also file its Contractor Registration Form with a copy of their state licence and a $15 fee. The township hall is at 3461 Blue Star Hwy, Saugatuck, and the City of Saugatuck is a separate building code unit not covered here.
Adopted code
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 names the Township of Saugatuck as a local building code enforcer. Section 8-26 of the township's Code of Ordinances designates the enforcing agency and names no edition, and the Building Department's page says its primary function is "the administration and enforcement of the State of Michigan Building, Electrical, Mechanical, and Plumbing Codes." Neither the codified chapter nor any current township permit page or form names an edition older than 2015.
Drip edge
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). Chapter 8 of the Saugatuck Township Code of Ordinances and the Building Department's FAQ and permit forms were read for a local rule and state nothing further on drip edge.
About drip edgeIce & water shield
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). Chapter 8 of the Saugatuck Township Code of Ordinances and the Building Department's FAQ and permit forms were read for a local rule and state nothing further on ice barrier.
About ice & water barrierImpact-resistant roofing
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." Chapter 8 of the Saugatuck Township Code of Ordinances and the Building Department's FAQ and permit forms were read for a local rule and state nothing further on impact resistance.
Repair permit threshold
Saugatuck Township's Building Department FAQ, read October 12, 2026, lists reroofing as permit work: under "What do I need a permit for?" it says "You will likely need a permit to:" and lists "Add or remove walls", "Change the use of a room", "Modify plumbing or piping", "Re-roof your house" and "Demolish part of a structure". The same answer says "Permits are typically required for projects that change the structure or use of a building or have the potential to create unsafe conditions" and lists the projects that "usually don't require a permit" as "Painting or minor cosmetic work", "Installing a new front door", "Replacing certain appliances or faucets" and "Building a small fence"; it names no roofing exemption and no size or dollar point below which a reroof needs no permit. It closes "To confirm whether your project requires a permit, contact the Building and Permit Office before starting work." 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.
Roof layer limit / recover
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 township's own building ordinance, Chapter 8 of the Saugatuck Township Code of Ordinances (Buildings and Building Regulations, Sections 8-1 through 8-112, codified through Ordinance No. 2021-02), was read in full: it designates the enforcing agency, sets fees by resolution, creates the construction board of appeals, regulates dangerous buildings, private water wells and rental dwellings; it has no reroofing provision and amends nothing in Section R908. The Building Department's pages state no layer rule.
Deck & sheathing requirements
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). Chapter 8 of the Saugatuck Township Code of Ordinances and the Building Department's FAQ and permit forms were read for a local rule and state nothing further on roof sheathing.
Sales & use tax
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." Nothing on the Saugatuck Township Building Department pages or in its fee schedule changes this.
Local roofing hub
Roof permits nearby: Allegan County
Related guides
Saugatuck Township's Building Department, at the township hall at 3461 Blue Star Highway in Saugatuck, issues building permits and schedules inspections with the township's building inspector and its electrical and mechanical/plumbing inspectors; its page says its primary function is "the administration and enforcement of the State of Michigan Building, Electrical, Mechanical, and Plumbing Codes." Section 8-26 of the township's Code of Ordinances designates the building official as the enforcing agency under the state construction code act, and the State of Michigan's jurisdiction list names the Township as its own building code enforcer. The City of Saugatuck is a separate municipality and is not covered by this record. Michigan's single state construction code applies, and for houses that is the 2015 Michigan Residential Code.
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