Half of the 511 homes in Cooper were built before 1979. 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
Under 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8), alterations to a house that make no structural change are outside the state code. So the township code office in Cooper is the one to ask before work starts.
Source: 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)
Layers
A new roof may go over one existing layer; with two or more, or over slate, clay or cement tile, everything comes off to the deck (IRC R908.3.1.1). With 52% of Cooper’s homes were built before 1980, ask what is under the newest layer.
Ice barrier
The code requires an ice barrier where the local climate table (Table R301.2) says so, and each Pennsylvania municipality fills that table in. The contractor or the township code office in Cooper will know.
Rules as read on October 24, 2026. Code edition, permit and contract rules for the whole state: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
Of 489 occupied homes in Cooper, 442 (90%) are owner-occupied. By year built, 14% before 1940, 17% before 1960, 52% before 1980; 16% went up in 2000 or later. (ACS 2020–2024.)
By building type: 76% detached houses, 23% manufactured homes.
23% of homes in Cooper are manufactured homes (116). A roof on a manufactured home is its own kind of job; tell the person on the line that it is one.
Of the 8 Montour County municipalities on this site, Cooper has the 5th largest share of homes built before 1980: 52%, against a county range of 36% to 72%.
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cooper | 1979 | 52% | 90% | 1% | 5 |
| Montour | 1971 | 70% | 88% | 1% | 5 |
| Mahoning Township, Montour County | 1978 | 54% | 66% | 12% | 5 |
| Danville | 1957 | 72% | 43% | 25% | 5 |
| Hemlock | 1991 | 42% | 86% | 5% | 4 |
| Catawissa | 1946 | 90% | 57% | 5% | 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.
Within 10 miles of Cooper, hail of an inch or more was reported on 5 days between 2006 and 2025, the biggest stones 2.5 in on May 22, 2014.
That is fewer than most places in the state on this site (median 12 days).
Federal major-disaster declarations for storms in Montour County since 2006: 2, most recently DR-4408, Severe Storms and Flooding, declared November 2018. (OpenFEMA.)
A report says hail fell near Cooper, not that it damaged a roof. When wind or hail damage means a new roof.
Useful life is HUD’s planning figure, not a warranty. 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; 76% 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 | Roofs that will carry solar later | Standing seam that carries its own loads can skip the tear-off (R908.3.1) |
| Slate | 75 years | Older houses; 14% here predate 1940 | Sound slate can be reused (R908.5); broken slate cannot |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Porches, additions, low-slope rears | 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 Cooper and look it up.
The price side is in what a new roof costs in Pennsylvania; the paperwork side in checking a roofing contractor.
Local ordinance, not the state. Under 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8), alterations to a house that make no structural change are outside the state code. So the township code office in Cooper is the one to ask before work starts.
A new roof may go over one existing layer; with two or more, or over slate, clay or cement tile, everything comes off to the deck (IRC R908.3.1.1). With 52% of Cooper’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 Cooper was built in 1979, 52% of homes were built before 1980, 90% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 5 days within 10 miles of Cooper 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 Cooper 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.