In Phippsburg, the 2021 IRC is in force and the median home was built in 1984. We replace and repair roofs here and inspect after storms, starting with a free, photographed inspection.
Phippsburg runs to about 28.8 square miles and roughly 2,238 people. It sits about 22 miles east of downtown Portland. The community dates back to 1814. We cover ZIP codes 04562 and 04565.
No completed roof in Phippsburg is logged in our job records yet.
Mostly single-family homes, with mid-1800s Greek Revival capes at Parker Head and Winnegance, summer cottages at Brightwater (1920s to 1940s) and Sebasco, and nearly as many seasonal homes as year-round ones.
We work across Phippsburg rather than one corner of it — Popham Beach, Small Point, Sebasco Estates, Phippsburg Center, Parker Head, West Point, Winnegance, Cox's Head, Ashdale and Dromore included. Age and construction change between them, which is why we look before we quote.
Phippsburg is a long peninsula reaching into the Gulf of Maine between the Kennebec River and the New Meadows River and Casco Bay, ending at the ocean beaches of Popham and Small Point. It is a string of separate villages, from Phippsburg Center, the old shipbuilding center, to the old summer resort at Popham Beach. The town applies its shoreland zoning to the 250-foot shoreland zone along its many shores.
From this stretch of building, houses in Phippsburg sit on plywood or OSB, were first roofed in three-tab shingles, and are mostly on their second roof now. Trouble tends to be at the penetrations rather than across the field: the rubber collar on a pipe boot splits years before the shingles give out, and it is the leak we trace most often. Ridge vents were hit and miss in these decades, and OSB that stays damp for a season softens in a way plywood does not, something you feel underfoot rather than see from the yard.
By the Census Bureau's estimate there are 1,763 homes in Phippsburg, with a median year built of 1984. 335 of them (19%) went up before 1940 — 26th of 64 places on this site for pre-1940 share — and 489 (28%) in 2000 or later. More of today's homes date from before 1940 than from any decade since. (Sagadahoc County as a whole: 27% before 1940.)
The rule of thumb in the Maine Bureau of Insurance's claims guide is a useful life of usually about 25 years for a roof. On that yardstick the 1,274 homes in Phippsburg built before 2000 (72%) have outlived at least one roof, and the 584 built before 1970 (33%) are usually on a third covering or later. First replacements are arriving on the 261 homes built in the 2000s, while the 228 built since 2010 are mostly still on the roof they were built with. On houses that old, the question worth asking is how many layers are up there: a roof laid over an old one hides the deck.
By building type: 1,515 detached houses (86%), 14 attached (1%). 34 homes (2%) sit in two- to nine-unit buildings. The count also takes in 200 mobile homes, which are a different kind of roof job. 859 of 1,050 occupied homes (82%) are lived in by their owners. With houses like these, the jobs we expect most are deck and flashing checks on pre-war board sheathing and first replacements on 2000s builder-grade shingles.
| Built | Homes | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before 1940 | 335 | 19% | |
| 1940s | 56 | 3% | |
| 1950s | 105 | 6% | |
| 1960s | 88 | 5% | |
| 1970s | 199 | 11% | |
| 1980s | 242 | 14% | |
| 1990s | 249 | 14% | |
| 2000s | 261 | 15% | |
| 2010s | 188 | 11% | |
| 2020 or later | 40 | 2% |
Census ACS 2020–2024, tables B25034, B25035, B25024 and B25003: 1,763 homes, 1,050 occupied. Survey estimates.
NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center logged no reports of hail 1 inch or larger within 5 miles of Phippsburg’s center from 2016 through 2025. That is a gap in the reports rather than proof that no hail fell: reports come from spotters and the public.
Phippsburg's codes page says that, in general, any project with a value over $1,000, inside or outside a property, requires a permit, and to contact the office before starting to find out whether a permit is needed. The Land Use Ordinance makes it unlawful to construct, add to or alter a building or structure where the work exceeds $1,000 in value without first getting a permit from the Code Enforcement Officer. Permits must be posted on site.
Phippsburg enforces the 2021 IRC. Phippsburg's Land Use Ordinance (amended June 11, 2025) says all buildings shall conform to current standards of the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, which has been based on the 2021 International Residential Code since April 7, 2025. It adds its own rules too, such as interconnected smoke alarms, lined masonry chimneys and 2 inches of clearance between combustibles and a masonry chimney. With 2,155 residents in the 2020 Census, Phippsburg is not required to enforce the code under state law, and has chosen to.
The published number is 207-389-2653. The building official on record is Jonathan Beane, Interim Code Enforcement Officer. The department page is here.
Wind design changes with location across greater Portland and southern Maine: the published ultimate design wind speeds run 115–120 mph, and the building department can say which figure applies to a given address. Ground snow load is set for each address, not one figure for the whole area: the published figures here run 50–70 psf. See the roofing code guide for what it governs.
Phippsburg borders Harpswell, West Bath, Bath, Arrowsic, Georgetown and Kennebec River. Our pages for them:
Also in Sagadahoc County:
| Town | Re-roof permit | Code | Median built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phippsburg | Yes | 2021 IRC | 1984 |
| Harpswell | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1979 |
| West Bath | Not published | Enforcement optional | 1983 |
| Bath | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1939 or earlier |
| Arrowsic | Not published | Enforcement optional | 1985 |
| Georgetown | Conditional | Enforcement optional | 1980 |
| Bowdoin | Not published | Enforcement optional | 1992 |
All 10 Sagadahoc County towns side by side →
Phippsburg's codes page says that, in general, any project with a value over $1,000, inside or outside a property, requires a permit, and to contact the office before starting to find out whether a permit is needed. The Land Use Ordinance makes it unlawful to construct, add to or alter a building or structure where the work exceeds $1,000 in value without first getting a permit from the Code Enforcement Officer. Permits must be posted on site.
Phippsburg enforces the 2021 IRC. Phippsburg's Land Use Ordinance (amended June 11, 2025) says all buildings shall conform to current standards of the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, which has been based on the 2021 International Residential Code since April 7, 2025. It adds its own rules too, such as interconnected smoke alarms, lined masonry chimneys and 2 inches of clearance between combustibles and a masonry chimney. With 2,155 residents in the 2020 Census, Phippsburg is not required to enforce the code under state law, and has chosen to.
Median year built 1984, by the Census Bureau's 2020–2024 estimates. Of 1,763 homes, 1,274 were built before 2000 and 335 before 1940, so most roofs in Phippsburg are not the first one the house has had.
The building official on record is Jonathan Beane, Interim Code Enforcement Officer. The department's own number is on this page, beside its name.
Not yet: no completed roof in Phippsburg is in our job records, so this page shows no job count.
Researched 2026-10-24; housing, Census ACS 2020–2024; hail, NOAA SPC. Sources: phippsburg.com · phippsburg.com · phippsburg.com · phippsburg.com · phippsburg.com · phippsburg.com · legislature.maine.gov · www2.census.gov · en.wikipedia.org · www.phippsburg.com · www.phippsburg.com · phippsburg.com · www.phippsburg.com · www.zip-codes.com · www.zip-codes.com · en.wikipedia.org · data.census.gov · www.spc.noaa.gov. Rules and staff change; check with the jurisdiction.
