The Roofing Book

Permitting Authorities / City of Spartanburg - Building Inspections

Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Spartanburg, SC?

Adopted code

City of Spartanburg - Building Inspections

Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Spartanburg, SC, issued by City of Spartanburg - Building Inspections. Apply on the City's Residential Updates Building Permit Application, which the City says "should be used for additions, remodels, accessory structures, repairs, re-roofs, etc." and which carries a "Re-roof/Remove/Replace Shingles" work type. The application asks for the contract price, the contractor's SC LLR licence number and classification, and a plat or plot plan, and asks whether the property is in the Hampton Heights or Beaumont Village historic district and whether a certificate of appropriateness (COA) was approved. The City requires a current City of Spartanburg business license before it processes any permit. The Department asks applicants to "ensure the property for which you are submitting permits is actually located within the City limits of the City of Spartanburg"; property outside the city limits is permitted by Spartanburg County. The fee schedule doubles the permit fee "Where work for which a permit is required by the Building Code is started or proceeded prior to obtaining said permit". State law requires the permit office to see evidence of the contractor's Residential Builders Commission registration or licence, or of an exemption, before it issues the permit.

Roof code checklist: Spartanburg, SC

ItemAnswerCode citeSourceVerified
Permit to replace a roofYescityofspartanburg.org2026-09-26
Repair permit thresholdPublishedcityofspartanburg.org2026-09-26
Layer limit / roof-overPublishedR908.3.1.1codes.iccsafe.org2026-09-26
Deck & sheathingPublishedR803library.municode.com2026-09-26
Drip edgeNot published
Ice & water shieldNot published
Mid-roof inspectionNot published
Impact-resistant (Class 4) roofingNolibrary.municode.com2026-09-26
Wind design criteriaNot published
Adopted codePublishedSec. 8-3library.municode.com2026-09-26
Contractor license / registrationYesscstatehouse.gov2026-09-26
Sales & use taxPublishedST575.pdf2026-09-26

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 Spartanburg, South Carolina
Jurisdiction type
city
Address
440 S Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306
Contact
  • url: https://www.cityofspartanburg.org/241/Building-Inspections
  • phone: 864-596-2041
Permit portal
Permit portal
Roofing permit required
Required
Contractor registration required
Required
Registration details
  • state_level: Roofing is a named Residential Specialty Contractor classification of the South Carolina Residential Builders Commission: "Roofers: the installation, alteration and repair of materials common to the residential building industry that form a watertight, weather resistant surface for roofs and decks, including all accessories, flashing, valleys, gravel stops and roof insulation panels above the roof deck." A residential specialty contractor is one who contracts to do "construction work, repairs, improvement, or reimprovement which requires special skills and involves the use of specialized construction trades or craft, when the undertakings exceed five hundred dollars" (S.C. Code Section 40-59-20), and "all residential specialty contractors must be registered, by the commission" (Section 40-59-220(A)). When the cost of an undertaking for an individual property owner "exceeds five thousand dollars, the residential specialty contractor must obtain an executed bond" (Section 40-59-220). The permit office "shall refuse to issue a permit for an undertaking which requires licensure or registration under this chapter unless the applicant has furnished evidence that he is either licensed or registered in accordance with this chapter or exempt from the requirements of this chapter" (Section 40-59-280). Section 40-59-260 states that the chapter "does not apply to an owner of residential property who improves the property" where the owner "does the work himself, with his own employees, or with licensed contractors or registered entities or individuals" and the structure is for the owner's or family's own occupancy and not for sale or rent, and Section 40-59-270 states that the chapter "does not apply to a person licensed under Chapter 11" for that work.
  • city_level: The City's Residential Updates Building Permit Application asks for the contractor's "SC LLR License #" and "Classification(s)". For owners doing their own work it states: "If Owner Builder, the SC Residential Builders Commission requires you to file a disclosure statement with Spartanburg County Register of Deeds Office (366 N. Church Street)." The City's Disclosure Statement tells the owner-builder: "You may not hire an unlicensed person as your residential builder or specialty contractor." The application also asks "Do you have a current City of Spartanburg business license?" and states: "No permit will be processed before a business license is obtained, and your application will not be processed until you have a current license." The City business licence (Chapter 10 of the City Code) is a general business licence, not a contractor credential. The City's building chapter (Chapter 8 of the Code of Ordinances, read in full) sets its own registration only for electrical, heating and air conditioning, and plumbing work, and sets no roofing contractor licence or registration.
Permit process note
Apply on the City's Residential Updates Building Permit Application, which the City says "should be used for additions, remodels, accessory structures, repairs, re-roofs, etc." and which carries a "Re-roof/Remove/Replace Shingles" work type. The application asks for the contract price, the contractor's SC LLR licence number and classification, and a plat or plot plan, and asks whether the property is in the Hampton Heights or Beaumont Village historic district and whether a certificate of appropriateness (COA) was approved. The City requires a current City of Spartanburg business license before it processes any permit. The Department asks applicants to "ensure the property for which you are submitting permits is actually located within the City limits of the City of Spartanburg"; property outside the city limits is permitted by Spartanburg County. The fee schedule doubles the permit fee "Where work for which a permit is required by the Building Code is started or proceeded prior to obtaining said permit". State law requires the permit office to see evidence of the contractor's Residential Builders Commission registration or licence, or of an exemption, before it issues the permit.
Adopted code
City of Spartanburg Code of Ordinances Section 8-3, International codes enforced (Ord. No. 2023-003, 4-24-2023), adopts the International Building Code, "International Residential Building Code" and the other codes "as promulgated by the International Code Council and as required to be adopted by the South Carolina Building Codes Council, which most recent editions are on file in the office of the city building official, except as amended hereafter." The rest of the City's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) amends nothing in the Residential Code. The Building Inspections page states: "The City of Spartanburg will begin enforcing the 2021 edition International Codes and the 2020 National Electrical Code on January 1, 2023", and lists the "2021 Edition Residential Code" among the codes the City enforces. At the state level, S.C. Code Section 6-9-10(A) provides that "The municipality or county shall enforce only the national building and safety codes provided in this chapter." The 2021 International Residential Code with South Carolina modifications (S.C. Code of Regulations 8-1200 et seq.) is the mandatory state residential code for permits applied for before January 1, 2027, the date the Building Codes Council set for local jurisdictions to implement the 2024 edition with South Carolina modifications (State Register Vol. 50, Issue 5, May 22, 2026). The Council's list of approved local modifications carries no modification for the City of Spartanburg. The one South Carolina change to the roofing chapter replaces the drip-edge section: "A drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of asphalt shingle roofs where required by the manufacturer." (Reg. 8-1228, IRC Section R905.2.8.5.)
Impact-resistant roofing
Not required — Neither the City of Spartanburg's building chapter (Chapter 8 of the Code of Ordinances, including Section 8-3, which adopts the codes) nor the South Carolina modifications to the 2021 International Residential Code amends the roofing chapter's impact provisions, and the Building Codes Council lists no approved modification for the City; no UL 2218 or Class 4 impact requirement appears in the City's adopted code or its amendments.
Repair permit threshold
The City of Spartanburg sets no roofing threshold. Its Residential Building page states: "Any work done on a residential property in the City of Spartanburg will require a residential building permit." The City's Residential Updates Building Permit Application states that it "should be used for additions, remodels, accessory structures, repairs, re-roofs, etc." and lists "Re-roof/Remove/Replace Shingles" and "Storm Damage Repairs" among the work types an applicant checks. The City's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) names no roof work either way and sets no exemption of its own. The building permit fee is set by the value of the job under the City's fee schedule (effective July 2023), with a minimum permit fee of $50.00 for a job valued at "$0.00 - $999.99", and no separate roofing line.
Roof layer limit / recover
Two layers maximum. The 2021 International Residential Code, Section R908.3.1.1 Roof recover not allowed, bars a roof recover "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering", as well as where the existing roof or covering is water soaked or deteriorated to the point it is not an adequate base, or is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. The South Carolina modifications to the 2021 Residential Code do not change the reroofing section, and the City of Spartanburg's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) adds no reroofing rule of its own, so the base rule applies unmodified.
Deck & sheathing requirements
The City of Spartanburg applies the 2021 International Residential Code with South Carolina modifications. Neither the City's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) nor the South Carolina modifications amend the roof sheathing provisions (Section R803), so the base Residential Code provisions on roof sheathing apply unmodified.
Sales & use tax
7% in the City of Spartanburg: the 6% state sales tax plus the 1% Spartanburg County Capital Projects tax (code 1042), per SCDOR form ST-575, South Carolina Sales Tax Rate by Municipality (Rev. 2/5/26). South Carolina taxes the roofer, not the homeowner's contract: Reg. 117-314.2 provides that building materials "when purchased by builders, contractors, or landowners for use in adding to, repairing or altering real property are subject to either the sales or use tax at the time of purchase", and its list of building materials names "roofing materials". Repair and replacement work are treated alike.

Local roofing hub

Roofing in Spartanburg, South CarolinaCity hub

More roof permit pages in South Carolina

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The City of Spartanburg Building Inspections and Permits Department issues building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and demolition permits and makes the inspections for work inside the city limits of Spartanburg, South Carolina. Property in unincorporated Spartanburg County is permitted by Spartanburg County, not by this office.

Hail reports near Spartanburg, SC

Reports, last 24 months
2
Largest, last 24 months
1.00 in Jun 25, 2025
Most recent
Jun 25, 2025 1.00 in
Reports, last 5 years
7
5 most recent reports, last 5 years
DateHail sizeDistance
Jun 25, 20251.00 in7 mi NNW
Apr 11, 20250.75 in3 mi ENE
May 26, 20240.88 in10 mi WSW
May 24, 20241.00 in8 mi SW
Apr 19, 20241.25 in3 mi SE

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database and daily storm reports (reports since the start of the current year are preliminary), within 10 miles of Spartanburg, SC (Census point). Data through Sep 30, 2026. A report is an observation, not a damage record.

Working an insurance claim in Spartanburg, SC? Everything on this page (drip edge, ice & water shield, inspections, Class 4 rules) formatted as a claim-ready evidence pack: verbatim ordinance quotes, code section cites, verification dates, and official source links, ready to attach to a supplement. See a real sample pack (PDF, 4 pages, free).

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Sources

Roofing questions: Spartanburg, SC

Do you need a permit to replace a roof in Spartanburg, SC?

Yes, a permit is required to replace a roof in Spartanburg, SC. The City of Spartanburg sets no roofing threshold. Its Residential Building page states: "Any work done on a residential property in the City of Spartanburg will require a residential building permit." The City's Residential Updates Building Permit Application states that it "should be used for additions, remodels, accessory structures, repairs, re-roofs, etc." and lists "Re-roof/Remove/Replace Shingles" and "Storm Damage Repairs" among the work types an applicant checks. The City's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) names no roof work either way and sets no exemption of its own. The building permit fee is set by the value of the job under the City's fee schedule (effective July 2023), with a minimum permit fee of $50.00 for a job valued at "$0.00 - $999.99", and no separate roofing line.

Can you roof over an existing roof in Spartanburg, SC?

Two layers maximum. The 2021 International Residential Code, Section R908.3.1.1 Roof recover not allowed, bars a roof recover "Where the existing roof has two or more applications of any type of roof covering", as well as where the existing roof or covering is water soaked or deteriorated to the point it is not an adequate base, or is slate, clay, cement or asbestos-cement tile. The South Carolina modifications to the 2021 Residential Code do not change the reroofing section, and the City of Spartanburg's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) adds no reroofing rule of its own, so the base rule applies unmodified.

Do roofing contractors need a license or registration in Spartanburg, SC?

Yes.

What building code does Spartanburg, SC use?

City of Spartanburg Code of Ordinances Section 8-3, International codes enforced (Ord. No. 2023-003, 4-24-2023), adopts the International Building Code, "International Residential Building Code" and the other codes "as promulgated by the International Code Council and as required to be adopted by the South Carolina Building Codes Council, which most recent editions are on file in the office of the city building official, except as amended hereafter." The rest of the City's building chapter (Chapter 8, read in full) amends nothing in the Residential Code. The Building Inspections page states: "The City of Spartanburg will begin enforcing the 2021 edition International Codes and the 2020 National Electrical Code on January 1, 2023", and lists the "2021 Edition Residential Code" among the codes the City enforces. At the state level, S.C. Code Section 6-9-10(A) provides that "The municipality or county shall enforce only the national building and safety codes provided in this chapter." The 2021 International Residential Code with South Carolina modifications (S.C. Code of Regulations 8-1200 et seq.) is the mandatory state residential code for permits applied for before January 1, 2027, the date the Building Codes Council set for local jurisdictions to implement the 2024 edition with South Carolina modifications (State Register Vol. 50, Issue 5, May 22, 2026). The Council's list of approved local modifications carries no modification for the City of Spartanburg. The one South Carolina change to the roofing chapter replaces the drip-edge section: "A drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of asphalt shingle roofs where required by the manufacturer." (Reg. 8-1228, IRC Section R905.2.8.5.)