Half of the 1,981 homes in Foster were built before 1980. 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
Pennsylvania’s code leaves residential alterations without structural change to local ordinance (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). So the township code office in Foster 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). 49% of Foster’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 township code office in Foster will know.
Checked against the code text on October 24, 2026. Code edition, permit and contract rules for the whole state: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
88% of the occupied homes in Foster are lived in by their owners: 1,405 households, the people this line is for. Counting by decade, 19% before 1940, 26% before 1960, 49% before 1980 of the housing was in place, and 10% dates from 2000 on. (ACS 2020–2024.)
The housing is 74% detached houses, 15% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 9% manufactured homes.
17% of the homes in Foster are seasonal or occasional-use homes (ACS 2020–2024). If yours is one of them and you live elsewhere, the call still has to come from you as the owner.
Of the 63 Luzerne County municipalities on this site, Foster has the 53rd largest share of homes built before 1980: 49%, against a county range of 19% to 97%.
ZIP codes: 18224 · 18661
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foster | 1980 | 49% | 88% | 15% | 6 |
| Freeland | 1938 | 91% | 50% | 36% | 7 |
| Weatherly | 1950 | 81% | 70% | 17% | 11 |
| White Haven | 1946 | 76% | 73% | 8% | 3 |
| Dennison | 1983 | 45% | 96% | 1% | 5 |
| Butler Township, Luzerne County | 1991 | 36% | 86% | 9% | 7 |
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 6 separate days within 10 miles of Foster; the largest was 2.5 in on August 17, 2007. The most recent was June 26, 2024.
That is fewer than most places in the state on this site (median 12 days).
Luzerne County has had 4 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; 74% 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; 19% here predate 1940 | Sound slate can be reused (R908.5); broken slate cannot |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Additions and porch roofs | Where the roof meets a wall or parapet |
A contractor who does $5,000 or more of home improvement work a year must be registered with the Pennsylvania Attorney General, and the number has to be on every contract and estimate (HICPA § 3, § 6). Ask for it before anyone starts on a roof in Foster, and search it.
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. Pennsylvania’s code leaves residential alterations without structural change to local ordinance (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). So the township code office in Foster 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). 49% of Foster’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 Foster was built in 1980, 49% of homes were built before 1980, 88% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 6 days within 10 miles of Foster from 2006 through 2025 (NOAA Storm Prediction Center). A report means hail fell nearby, not that a roof was damaged.
A contractor who does $5,000 or more of home improvement work a year must be registered with the Pennsylvania Attorney General, and the number has to be on every contract and estimate (HICPA § 3, § 6). Ask for it before anyone starts on a roof in Foster, and search it.
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.