The median home in Jefferson Township was built in 1986; there are 822 of them. 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. So the township code office in Jefferson Township is the one to ask before work starts.
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. 40% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1980; many have been reroofed before.
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). Jefferson Township’s answer is with the township code office.
Rules as read on October 24, 2026. Everything else the state requires: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
94% of the occupied homes in Jefferson Township are lived in by their owners: 736 households, the people this line is for. By year built, 13% before 1940, 19% before 1960, 40% before 1980; 30% went up in 2000 or later. (ACS 2020–2024.)
By building type: 90% detached houses, 4% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 5% manufactured homes.
Of the 67 Berks County municipalities on this site, Jefferson Township has the 61st largest share of homes built before 1980: 40%, against a county range of 18% to 97%.
ZIP codes: 19506
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Township, Berks County | 1986 | 40% | 94% | 4% | 8 |
| North Heidelberg | 1983 | 45% | 89% | 1% | 16 |
| Upper Tulpehocken | 1977 | 56% | 84% | 5% | 7 |
| Penn Township, Berks County | 1985 | 36% | 89% | 1% | 15 |
| Tulpehocken | 1982 | 48% | 76% | 4% | 9 |
| Marion | 1980 | 50% | 80% | 5% | 9 |
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 Jefferson Township, hail of an inch or more was reported on 8 days between 2006 and 2025, the biggest stones 1 in on May 6, 2025.
Federal major-disaster declarations for storms in Berks County since 2006: 2, most recently DR-4267, Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm, declared March 2016. (OpenFEMA.)
A report says hail fell near Jefferson Township, 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; 90% 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 | Standing seam that carries its own loads can skip the tear-off (R908.3.1) |
| Slate | 75 years | Older houses; 13% 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 | Where the roof meets a wall or parapet |
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 Jefferson Township and look it up.
The price side is in what a new roof costs in Pennsylvania; the paperwork side in checking a roofing contractor.
Ask Jefferson Township first. 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 Jefferson Township is the one to ask before work starts.
IRC R908.3.1.1 forbids roofing over two existing layers, over slate or tile, or over a water-soaked roof. 40% of Jefferson Township’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 Jefferson Township was built in 1986, 40% of homes were built before 1980, 94% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 8 days within 10 miles of Jefferson Township 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 Jefferson Township 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.