Roof replacement, repair and storm damage in all 25 jurisdictions we cover in Cumberland County, each with its own page: the local permit rule, the code edition it enforces and the building department's number. Of the county's 153,286 homes, 78% were built before 2000 — past the usual 25-year life of a roof — and the median year built is 1976.
Nicholas Ciarimboli, Building Inspector and Code Enforcement Officer
207-846-2401
We list a building official's name only where the jurisdiction publishes one — 20 of 25 here do. We list a permit answer only where the jurisdiction states one — 7 of 25 here do, and 0 of those clearly require a permit. Everything else is left blank on purpose.
Cumberland County, town by town
Each line is a summary of that town's own page.
Baldwin — 634 homes, median built 1979, 15% before 1940; code: enforcement optional; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Tayt Dame).
Bridgton — 4,620 homes, median built 1985, 11% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: no; building official named (Brenda Day).
Brunswick — 9,523 homes, median built 1982, 20% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: no; building official named (Mike Pindell).
Cape Elizabeth — 3,981 homes, median built 1967, 19% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: no; building official named (Benjamin McDougal).
Casco — 2,973 homes, median built 1988, 5% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (John Wiesemann).
Cumberland — 3,282 homes, median built 1984, 15% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (William Longley).
Falmouth — 5,283 homes, median built 1986, 14% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Justin Brown).
Freeport — 4,249 homes, median built 1984, 17% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Nick Adams).
Gorham — 6,834 homes, median built 1988, 14% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; no official named.
Gray — 4,442 homes, median built 1983, 12% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; no official named.
Harpswell — 4,286 homes, median built 1979, 20% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Tim Clark).
Harrison — 1,798 homes, median built 1980, 20% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (James (Jim) Fahey).
Naples — 3,360 homes, median built 1988, 4% before 1940; code: enforcement optional; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Randy Thurston).
New Gloucester — 2,256 homes, median built 1991, 11% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Eric Cobb).
North Yarmouth — 1,612 homes, median built 1983, 13% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: no; building official named (Mark Stambach).
Portland — 36,559 homes, median built 1946, 46% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: no; no official named.
Pownal — 741 homes, median built 1971, 32% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; no official named.
Raymond — 3,053 homes, median built 1976, 15% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: no; building official named (Jason Williamson).
Scarborough — 11,097 homes, median built 1988, 8% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Brian Dobson).
Sebago — 1,521 homes, median built 1975, 17% before 1940; code: enforcement optional; re-roof permit: no; no official named.
South Portland — 12,782 homes, median built 1968, 25% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Nicholaus Richard).
Standish — 4,925 homes, median built 1980, 17% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (James Paul).
Westbrook — 9,575 homes, median built 1975, 25% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Brian Stetson).
Windham — 8,709 homes, median built 1985, 12% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Jon Rioux).
Yarmouth — 3,639 homes, median built 1973, 17% before 1940; code: 2021 IRC; re-roof permit: not published; building official named (Nicholas Ciarimboli).
Homes across Cumberland County: the Census numbers
Built before 2000
78%
119,878 homes
Median year built
1976
23% built before 1940
Built 2000 or later
22%
33,408 homes
Owner-occupied
70%
63% detached houses
Cumberland County has 153,286 homes in the Census count, with a median year built of 1976. 23% were built before 1940, 55% before 1980 and 22% in 2000 or later; the single biggest decade was the years before 1940, with 35,795 homes (23%). 63% of homes are single-family detached houses and 70% of occupied homes are owner-occupied; the count includes 6,161 mobile homes.
About 25 years is the usual useful life of a roof, by the figure in the Maine Bureau of Insurance's claims guide. On that yardstick, 119,878 homes across Cumberland County (78%) were built before 2000 and have outlived at least one roof, and 65,720 (43%) predate 1970. The 17,885 homes from the 2000s are where first replacements are coming up now.
Across the 25 places we cover here with their own Census figures, Portland has the oldest housing (46% before 1940) and Gorham the newest (33% built in 2000 or later). Portland is the largest, at 36,559 homes, and Portland has the highest share of renters (53%), where the roof is more often a landlord's decision.
Figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates (tables B25001, B25003, B25024, B25034, B25035). Survey estimates carry margins of error, widest in the smallest places. Census table.
Hail reports in Cumberland County, 2016–2025
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center logged 10 reports of hail 1 inch or larger in Cumberland County from 2016 through 2025, on 6 days. 0 were 1.75 inches or larger, and 0 of those reached 2 inches; the largest, 1.5 inches, fell on July 20, 2025. The busiest single day was March 17, 2016, with 3 reports.
Year
Reports
2016
3
2017
0
2018
0
2019
0
2020
3
2021
0
2022
2
2023
0
2024
1
2025
1
Counted within 5 miles of each town’s center, Falmouth has the most reports (3) and Brunswick the fewest (0). Each town’s own page lists its latest dates. Reports come from spotters and the public, so busier places log more of them.
Why the town matters more than the county
Maine has one building code for the whole state, the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code: every town of more than 4,000 people has to enforce it, a smaller town may choose to, and no town may use any other building code. What changes from one town to the next is whether the town enforces it, who issues the permit and what that office asks for. Of the 25 jurisdictions we cover in Cumberland County, these publish the edition they enforce:
2021 IRC: Bridgton, Brunswick, Cape Elizabeth, Casco, Cumberland, Falmouth, Freeport, Gorham, Gray, Harpswell, Harrison, New Gloucester, North Yarmouth, Portland, Pownal, Raymond, Scarborough, South Portland, Standish, Westbrook, Windham, Yarmouth
Baldwin, Naples and Sebago are not required to enforce a building code: Maine law leaves code enforcement optional for a town of 4,000 or fewer people (10 M.R.S. 9724(1-A)).
Design wind is set by location here: across greater Portland and southern Maine the published ultimate design wind speeds run 115–120 mph, depending on where a house stands. Ground snow load is set for each address, not one figure for the whole area: the published figures here run 50–70 psf. What each figure does to a roof is in our Portland roofing code guide.
Common questions about roofing across Cumberland County
Do I need a permit to replace a roof in Cumberland County?
It depends on the town, not the county. Of the 25 jurisdictions we cover across Cumberland County, 7 exempt a like-for-like re-roof (Bridgton, Brunswick, Cape Elizabeth, North Yarmouth, Portland, Raymond, Sebago); the other 18 publish no answer either way. Each town page says which applies and links the building department.
Which building codes are in force across Cumberland County?
Of the jurisdictions we cover across Cumberland County, these publish the edition they enforce: the 2021 IRC in Bridgton, Brunswick, Cape Elizabeth, Casco, Cumberland, Falmouth. Baldwin, Naples and Sebago are not required to enforce one: Maine law leaves code enforcement optional for a town of 4,000 or fewer people (10 M.R.S. 9724(1-A)). The edition in force is the one your roof is inspected against.
How old are the houses across Cumberland County?
The Census Bureau's 2020–2024 estimates put the median year built across Cumberland County at 1976, with 23% of its 153,286 homes built before 1940 and 22% in 2000 or later. 78% were built before 2000, so most have had at least one new roof already.
Does a roofer need a license in Cumberland County?
No. Maine does not license roofers or home contractors: the Attorney General's office says general contractors and trades such as roofing are not licensed or regulated in the state. What Maine law requires instead is a written contract, signed by both sides with no more than one-third down, for any home repair job over $3,000 (10 M.R.S. 1487). Each town's code office issues its own permits, so ask it what it needs before work starts.
Which Cumberland County jurisdictions name their building official?
20 of the 25 we cover publish a name: Baldwin, Bridgton, Brunswick, Cape Elizabeth, Casco, Cumberland, Falmouth, Freeport, Harpswell, Harrison. Where a name is published, it is on that town's page with the department's own number.
