Half of the 4,545 homes in Darby Borough were built before 1949. Below: what the code asks of a replacement here, the permit, and the town’s own records.
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. Whether Darby 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
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). 93% of Darby Borough’s homes were built before 1980; many have been reroofed before.
Ice barrier
IRC R905.1.2 calls for an ice barrier where Table R301.2 says so; in Pennsylvania the municipality completes that table. The contractor or the borough code office in Darby Borough will know.
Checked against the code text on October 24, 2026. Everything else the state requires: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
50% of the occupied homes in Darby Borough are lived in by their owners: 1,992 households, the people this line is for. Counting by decade, 30% before 1940, 80% before 1960, 93% before 1980 of the housing was in place, and 0% dates from 2000 on. (ACS 2020–2024.)
The housing is 12% detached houses, 64% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 17% buildings of two to four units.
With about two in three 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.
Of the 48 Delaware County municipalities on this site, Darby Borough has the 6th largest share of homes built before 1980: 93%, against a county range of 20% to 98%.
ZIP codes: 19023
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darby Borough | 1949 | 93% | 50% | 64% | 15 |
| Colwyn | 1951 | 82% | 45% | 61% | 16 |
| Yeadon | 1951 | 88% | 45% | 43% | 16 |
| Collingdale | 1951 | 92% | 58% | 57% | 15 |
| Sharon Hill | 1954 | 83% | 58% | 63% | 15 |
| Aldan | 1954 | 84% | 74% | 25% | 15 |
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.
NOAA’s storm reports show 15 days since 2006 with hail of at least 1 inch inside a 10-mile circle around Darby Borough, topping out at 1.75 in on June 24, 2010. The most recent was April 4, 2025.
Delaware County has had 3 federal major-disaster declarations for storms since 2006; the latest was DR-4618, Remnants of Hurricane Ida (September 2021). (OpenFEMA.)
Storm reports are what observers logged, not a measure of damage to any 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; 12% 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 | Simple roofs with long, unbroken slopes | A complete standing-seam system may go over the old roof (R908.3.1) |
| Slate | 75 years | Older houses; 30% here predate 1940 | Never a base for a new layer (R908.3.1.1); heavy |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Low-slope roofs and rear sections (64% of homes here are attached) | Coating is not a replacement |
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 Darby Borough and look it up.
Contracts, deposits and the right to cancel: checking a roofing contractor. What moves the price: new roof cost in Pennsylvania.
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. Whether Darby Borough wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the borough code office before the old roof comes off.
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). 93% of Darby Borough’s homes were built before 1980; many have been reroofed before.
By the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (2020–2024), the median home in Darby Borough was built in 1949, 93% of homes were built before 1980, 50% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 15 days within 10 miles of Darby 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 Darby 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.