Half of the 3,668 homes in Mount Joy Borough were built before 1974. 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 Mount Joy 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). 57% of Mount Joy Borough’s homes were built before 1980; many have been reroofed before.
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. Mount Joy Borough’s answer is with the borough code office.
Checked against the code text on October 24, 2026. The state’s code edition and the rest of its rules: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
Owners live in 2,233 of Mount Joy Borough’s occupied homes, or 63%. Counting by decade, 25% before 1940, 40% before 1960, 57% before 1980 of the housing was in place, and 25% dates from 2000 on. (ACS 2020–2024.)
The housing is 47% detached houses, 21% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 13% buildings of two to four units, 5% manufactured homes.
Of the 59 Lancaster County municipalities on this site, Mount Joy Borough has the 17th largest share of homes built before 1980: 57%, against a county range of 27% to 87%.
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Joy Borough | 1974 | 57% | 63% | 21% | 17 |
| East Donegal | 1994 | 31% | 77% | 24% | 16 |
| Rapho | 1988 | 38% | 80% | 15% | 17 |
| West Hempfield | 1985 | 36% | 86% | 13% | 22 |
| Marietta | 1938 | 82% | 62% | 36% | 17 |
| Mount Joy Township, Lancaster County | 1991 | 34% | 73% | 16% | 19 |
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 17 days since 2006 with hail of at least 1 inch inside a 10-mile circle around Mount Joy Borough, topping out at 2 in on May 14, 2010. The most recent was June 28, 2025.
That is more hail days than 79% of the places in the state on this site.
Lancaster County has had 3 federal major-disaster declarations for storms since 2006; the latest was DR-4267, Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm (March 2016). (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; 47% 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; 25% here predate 1940 | Can’t be roofed over; check the framing for the weight |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Low-slope roofs and rear sections (21% of homes here are attached) | Coating is not a replacement |
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 Mount Joy Borough, and search it.
Contracts, deposits and the right to cancel: checking a roofing contractor. What moves the price: new roof cost in Pennsylvania.
Ask Mount Joy Borough first. Under 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8), alterations to a house that make no structural change are outside the state code. Whether Mount Joy 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). 57% of Mount Joy 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 Mount Joy Borough was built in 1974, 57% of homes were built before 1980, 63% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 17 days within 10 miles of Mount Joy Borough 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 Mount Joy Borough, 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.