The median home in Ashland Borough was built in 1938; there are 1,537 of them. What the code requires when that roof is replaced, and who signs off, is below.
New Roofing Costs connects homeowners with independent local roofing contractors. We do not perform roofing work.
This number connects homeowners who are planning a new roof or a full roof replacement with independent local roofing contractors. It is not for leak repairs or patch jobs. The call must come from the homeowner who decides on the roof. Calls may be recorded.
Permit
Pennsylvania’s code leaves residential alterations without structural change to local ordinance (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). Whether Ashland Borough wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the borough code office before the old roof comes off.
Source: 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)
Layers
IRC R908.3.1.1 forbids roofing over two existing layers, over slate or tile, or over a water-soaked roof. With 93% of Ashland Borough’s homes were built before 1980, ask what is under the newest layer.
Ice barrier
Whether an eave membrane is a code item depends on the climate table the municipality filled in when it adopted the code (IRC R905.1.2, Table R301.2). The contractor or the borough code office in Ashland Borough will know.
Rules as read on October 24, 2026. Everything else the state requires: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
72% of the occupied homes in Ashland Borough are lived in by their owners: 837 households, the people this line is for. By year built, 71% before 1940, 83% before 1960, 93% before 1980; 1% went up in 2000 or later. (ACS 2020–2024.)
By building type: 33% detached houses, 51% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 9% buildings of two to four units.
With about half of homes attached, many roofs here meet a neighbor’s roof at a party wall. Say so on the call, and ask the contractor how the new roof will be tied in where it meets the house next door.
On a house built before 1940, ask what the deck is (boards or plywood) and whether slate sits under the later layers: slate can’t be roofed over.
Of the 22 Columbia County municipalities on this site, Ashland Borough has the largest share of homes built before 1980: 93%, against a county range of 42% to 93%.
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashland Borough, Columbia County | 1938 | 93% | 72% | 51% | 5 |
| Ashland Borough, Schuylkill County | 1938 | 93% | 72% | 51% | 5 |
| Butler Township, Schuylkill County | 1963 | 71% | 89% | 3% | 5 |
| Girardville | 1938 | 97% | 80% | 48% | 6 |
| Mount Carmel Borough | 1938 | 88% | 77% | 53% | 6 |
| Mount Carmel Township | 1953 | 69% | 88% | 38% | 6 |
Median built: median year the homes were built. Before 1980: share of homes built then. Owners: share of homes that are owner-occupied. Row, twin: share of homes that are rowhouses, twins or townhouses. Census ACS 2020–2024. Hail days: days with hail of 1 inch or larger within 10 miles, 2006–2025, NOAA Storm Prediction Center.
Since 2006 the National Weather Service has logged hail of 1 inch or larger on 5 separate days within 10 miles of Ashland Borough; the largest was 1.75 in on May 22, 2014. The most recent was July 3, 2014.
That is fewer than most places in the state on this site (median 12 days).
Severe Storms and Flooding (DR-4408, November 2018) is the latest of 2 federal storm declarations covering Columbia County since 2006. (OpenFEMA.)
A report says hail fell near Ashland Borough, not that it damaged a roof. When wind or hail damage means a new roof.
HUD’s useful-life figures are for planning; a warranty is a separate promise. For Ashland Borough’s houses: More in the guides to shingles, metal, slate and flat roofs.
| Material | HUD useful life | Fits a house like | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asphalt shingles | 20 years | Most pitched roofs; 33% of homes here are detached | Wind class set by the design wind speed (IRC Table R905.2.4.1) |
| Metal (standing seam, panels) | 50 years | Low pitches and long runs | Standing seam that carries its own loads can skip the tear-off (R908.3.1) |
| Slate | 75 years | Older houses; 71% here predate 1940 | Sound slate can be reused (R908.5); broken slate cannot |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Low-slope roofs and rear sections (51% of homes here are attached) | Seams at walls and drainage |
Pennsylvania’s home improvement law (HICPA § 3, § 6) requires registration with the Attorney General from $5,000 a year of such work and puts the number on every estimate; ask for it in Ashland Borough and look it up.
The price side is in what a new roof costs in Pennsylvania; the paperwork side in checking a roofing contractor.
Ashland Borough’s ordinance decides. Pennsylvania’s code leaves residential alterations without structural change to local ordinance (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). Whether Ashland Borough wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the borough code office before the old roof comes off.
IRC R908.3.1.1 forbids roofing over two existing layers, over slate or tile, or over a water-soaked roof. With 93% of Ashland Borough’s homes were built before 1980, ask what is under the newest layer.
By the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (2020–2024), the median home in Ashland Borough was built in 1938, 93% of homes were built before 1980, 72% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 5 days within 10 miles of Ashland Borough from 2006 through 2025 (NOAA Storm Prediction Center). A report means hail fell nearby, not that a roof was damaged.
Pennsylvania’s home improvement law (HICPA § 3, § 6) requires registration with the Attorney General from $5,000 a year of such work and puts the number on every estimate; ask for it in Ashland Borough and look it up.
The full list: before you call.
Checked October 24, 2026. Laws and code editions change; the date says when these were last read at the source.