The 10% line
The only roofing work Cleveland lets you do without a permit is minor repair. The City's FAQ (read 23 October 2026) says minor repairs "can include patching walls and leaking roof coverings, pointing masonry, replacement of shingles, siding and floorboards, where the patching, pointing or replacement is of the same material and the scope of replacement is limited to 10 percent of the wall, floor, ceiling, roof or other building components."
| Roof job | Permit in Cleveland? |
|---|---|
| Patching a leak | No |
| Replacing shingles with the same material, 10% of the roof or less | No |
| Replacing more than 10%, or with a different material | Yes |
| Tear-off and reroof | Yes |
| New gutters | Yes ("install gutters") |
What the permit costs
From the City's Plan Examination and Permit Fee Schedule (effective 2 January 2014, read 23 October 2026), for a 1, 2 or 3-family house:
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Alterations or repairs | $5.00 per $1,000 of estimated cost or fraction, minimum $30.00 |
| Plan examination, projects without floor area ("roofs" is the City's example) | $20.00 minimum |
| State of Ohio surcharge | 1% of the permit fee |
| Work started before the permit, notified within 72 hours | at least $100.00 + 25% of the permit fee |
| Work started before the permit, after 72 hours | at least $200.00 + 25% of the permit fee |
Worked example: a $10,500 roof (the usual Cleveland roof in our file was filed at $10,500) is 11 thousands or fractions at $5, so $55, plus the $20 plan examination and the 1% surcharge, about $75. The schedule also says applicable zoning fees, $20 for residential, "must be added" depending on the project; the portal's invoice settles whether it applies to yours.
Who pulls it
Ohio has no roofing license. OCILB's consumer guide says "In Ohio, residential contractors are not required to be licensed" (OCILB), so the City registration is the credential: call 216.664.2884 to confirm one, since the City keeps no public list of contractors in good standing. The roofer should pull the permit in its own name.
If you do the roof yourself, apply for a homeowner's permit with the City's affidavit, affirming that you own the house and "will personally perform the work", under Section 3107.04 of the Building Code.
How to apply
- Apply in the Permit Portal. Paper applications stopped on 13 April 2026; City Hall Room 505 has kiosks, and Construction Permitting answers on (216) 664-2910 (Construction Permitting, read 23 October 2026).
- Pay and download the permit from the portal before the tear-off.
- Final inspection. Ask the roofer who books it and when.
- Check it closed on the Permit Tracker, no login needed.
What 4,923 Cleveland roofing permits show
| Measure | Cleveland roofing |
|---|---|
| Permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026 | 4,923 |
| Roofing firms | 586 |
| Firms with a permit in the last 12 months of the file | 298 |
| Usual filed value | $10,500 |
| Middle half of firms' usual value | $8,000 to $12,850 |
| Passed final or closed (permits a year or more old) | 78.3% |
| Usual days from issue to final | 91 |
| 10th / 90th-percentile firm (10+ permits) | 62.2% / 93.3% |
| Firms with exactly one permit | 278 (47.4%) |
| Busiest / quietest month | October (index 135) / January (35) |
Cleveland reroofing is strongly seasonal: filings run at index 35 in January and 135 in October (100 is an average month). Roofs close better than most Cleveland trades, 78.3% against 58.6% for plumbing, but 25 of 97 busy roofers still closed fewer than 70%. Prices by job size are on the Cleveland roofing cost page.
See every Cleveland roofer by permits closed →
Related
Choosing the roofer is in hiring a roofer in Cleveland; older permits on the house in Cleveland building permit search and the registration check in Cleveland contractor license lookup. Other cities' rules are in do I need a permit for roof replacement, and national prices in roof replacement cost. Counts by year are on the Cleveland permit statistics page.
What this does not tell you
Our roofing group is split out of Cleveland building-permit descriptions, so a job that bundled a roof with siding or windows sits under one trade. Repairs within the 10% line leave no permit. The fee schedule on the City's page is dated 2014; the portal invoice is the final word.
How we know this
The permit rule and the 10% repair line are quoted from the City of Cleveland Building & Housing FAQ, fees from its Plan Examination and Permit Fee Schedule (effective 2 January 2014), and application steps from the Construction Permitting page, all read 23 October 2026. Counts are City of Cleveland building permits on homes whose description is a roof, October 2023 to September 2026; "closed" uses permits a year or more old.
Numbers come from City of Cleveland building permits, data through October 17, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Do I need a permit to replace my roof in Cleveland?
Yes. The City's Building & Housing FAQ says 'a permit is required to reroof'. Replacing shingles with the same material without a permit is allowed only as a minor repair, when the replacement is limited to 10 percent of the roof.
- How much is a roofing permit in Cleveland?
For a 1, 2 or 3-family house the City charges $5 per $1,000 of estimated cost (minimum $30) for alterations or repairs, a plan examination fee of at least $20, and a 1% State of Ohio surcharge. On a $10,500 roof that works out to about $75 before any zoning fee; the usual roof in our file was filed at $10,500.
- Can a homeowner pull a roofing permit in Cleveland?
Yes, on a homeowner's permit: you sign the City's affidavit that you own the house and will personally do the work (Section 3107.04, the Home Owner's Exception). If a roofer does the work, the roofer should pull the permit in its own name.
- How long does a roofing permit take in Cleveland?
The usual Cleveland roofing permit took 91 days from issue to final in our file, and 78.3% of permits a year or more old had passed final or closed.
- Does a roofer need a license in Cleveland?
Not a state one: Ohio's OCILB says 'In Ohio, residential contractors are not required to be licensed.' The City registers contractors, and its FAQ says you can confirm a registration by calling 216.664.2884.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Cleveland building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Do I need a roofing permit in Anaheim? The $375 reroof fee, the one-layer rule and two inspections
- Do I need a roofing permit in Bernalillo County? The re-roof application, the tile rule and two inspections
- Do I need a roofing permit in unincorporated Boulder County? Yes past one square, with a Class A roof and a photo final
- Florida's 25% roof rule in Miami: when a repair becomes a full re-roof, and the 2007 exception
- Do I need an HVAC permit in unincorporated Miami-Dade? AC change-outs, the $133.38 flat fee, and 10,248 permits
For one city
- Department of Building & Housing FAQs — City of Cleveland (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Plan Examination and Permit Fee Schedule (effective 2 January 2014) — City of Cleveland (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Affidavit for Homeowner's Permit — City of Cleveland Division of Construction Permitting (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Construction Permitting — City of Cleveland (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Verifying licensed contractors — Ohio Division of Industrial Compliance (OCILB) (2026-10-22)
- Permit Tracker — City of Cleveland (2026-10-23)