The median home in Shippensburg Township was built in 1983; there are 1,004 of them. What the code requires when that roof is replaced, and who signs off, is below.
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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)). Whether Shippensburg Township wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the township code office before the old roof comes off.
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. With 44% of Shippensburg Township’s homes were built before 1980, ask what is under the newest layer.
Ice barrier
IRC R905.1.2 calls for an ice barrier where Table R301.2 says so; in Pennsylvania the municipality completes that table. Shippensburg Township’s answer is with the township code office.
Checked against the code text on October 24, 2026. Code edition, permit and contract rules for the whole state: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
42% of the occupied homes in Shippensburg Township are lived in by their owners: 335 households, the people this line is for. Counting by decade, 10% before 1940, 15% before 1960, 44% before 1980 of the housing was in place, and 31% dates from 2000 on. (ACS 2020–2024.)
The housing is 25% detached houses, 24% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 10% buildings of two to four units, 14% manufactured homes.
31% of homes here were built in 2000 or later. HUD’s useful-life table gives an asphalt-shingle roof 20 years, so roofs on houses from the early 2000s are reaching that age.
Of the 31 Cumberland County municipalities on this site, Shippensburg Township has the 20th largest share of homes built before 1980: 44%, against a county range of 24% to 93%.
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shippensburg Township | 1983 | 44% | 42% | 24% | 5 |
| Shippensburg Borough, Cumberland County | 1962 | 80% | 86% | 10% | 8 |
| Shippensburg Borough, Franklin County | 1962 | 80% | 86% | 10% | 8 |
| Southampton Township, Cumberland County | 1996 | 32% | 72% | 1% | 6 |
| Southampton Township, Franklin County | 1987 | 39% | 84% | 7% | 9 |
| South Newton | 1975 | 56% | 81% | 0% | 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.
Within 10 miles of Shippensburg Township, hail of an inch or more was reported on 5 days between 2006 and 2025, the biggest stones 1.75 in on August 2, 2008. The most recent was August 4, 2023.
That is fewer than most places in the state on this site (median 12 days).
At the county level, Shippensburg Township shares Cumberland County’s record of 2 storm disaster declarations since 2006, the newest 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.
Lifespans come from HUD’s capital-needs table, not from a brochure. 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; 25% 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; 10% 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 (24% of homes here are attached) | Coating is not a replacement |
Before signing for a roof in Shippensburg Township, get the contractor’s PA registration number: the home improvement law requires registration with the Attorney General above $5,000 a year of such work, and the number on contracts and estimates (HICPA § 3, § 6).
Contracts, deposits and the right to cancel: checking a roofing contractor. What moves the price: new roof cost in Pennsylvania.
Ask Shippensburg Township first. Pennsylvania’s code leaves residential alterations without structural change to local ordinance (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). Whether Shippensburg Township wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the township code office before the old roof comes off.
IRC R908.3.1.1 forbids roofing over two existing layers, over slate or tile, or over a water-soaked roof. With 44% of Shippensburg Township’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 Shippensburg Township was built in 1983, 44% of homes were built before 1980, 42% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 5 days within 10 miles of Shippensburg Township from 2006 through 2025 (NOAA Storm Prediction Center). A report means hail fell nearby, not that a roof was damaged.
Before signing for a roof in Shippensburg Township, get the contractor’s PA registration number: the home improvement law requires registration with the Attorney General above $5,000 a year of such work, and the number on contracts and estimates (HICPA § 3, § 6).
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.