In Shapleigh, the 2021 IRC is in force and the median home was built in 1980. We replace and repair roofs here and inspect after storms, starting with a free, photographed inspection.
Shapleigh runs to about 38.7 square miles and roughly 2,976 people. It sits about 30 miles west of downtown Portland. The community dates back to 1785. We cover ZIP code 04076.
No completed roof in Shapleigh is logged in our job records yet.
We work across Shapleigh rather than one corner of it — Shapleigh Corner, North Shapleigh, Ross Corner, Emery Mills, Mousam Lake and Square Pond included. Age and construction change between them, which is why we look before we quote.
Shapleigh is a lake town that includes Mousam Lake, Square Pond and a number of smaller ponds, with villages at Shapleigh Corner, North Shapleigh, Ross Corner and Emery Mills. It was one of the Maine towns devastated by the Great Fires of 1947, and its western half became the town of Acton in 1830.
From this stretch of building, houses in Shapleigh 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.
The Census Bureau counts 2,060 homes in Shapleigh, with a median year built of 1980. 217 of them (11%) went up before 1940 — 53rd of 64 places on this site for pre-1940 share — and 545 (26%) in 2000 or later. The 1990s were the busiest decade, adding 333 of today's homes (16%). Across York County the pre-1940 share is 20%, so Shapleigh sits below it.
The Maine Bureau of Insurance's claims guide puts the useful life of a roof at usually about 25 years. By that measure, 74% of Shapleigh's homes — the 1,515 built before 2000 — are past their first roof; 758 of them (37%) predate 1970, old enough for two replacements already. First replacements are arriving on the 321 homes built in the 2000s, while the 224 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.
96% of homes in Shapleigh are single-family detached houses (1,981) and 1% attached ones such as townhouses (21). The count also takes in 58 mobile homes, which are a different kind of roof job. 1,084 of 1,136 occupied homes (95%) are lived in by their owners. With houses like these, the jobs we expect most are first replacements on 2000s builder-grade shingles.
| Built | Homes | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before 1940 | 217 | 11% | |
| 1940s | 162 | 8% | |
| 1950s | 180 | 9% | |
| 1960s | 199 | 10% | |
| 1970s | 283 | 14% | |
| 1980s | 141 | 7% | |
| 1990s | 333 | 16% | |
| 2000s | 321 | 16% | |
| 2010s | 210 | 10% | |
| 2020 or later | 14 | 1% |
Census ACS 2020–2024, tables B25034, B25035, B25024 and B25003: 2,060 homes, 1,136 occupied. Survey estimates.
Between 2016 and 2025 there was one report of 1-inch-plus hail within 5 miles of Shapleigh’s center in the records of NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center. The stone was 1 inch, on June 6, 2020, about 1.4 miles west of the center. These are reports, not a full record: they come from spotters and the public, so busier areas log more.
A bruised shingle can look fine for a season or two, which is why a storm inspection after a date like that is worth having.
Shapleigh's code office pages and zoning ordinance do not list re-roofing as needing or not needing a permit. The zoning ordinance says the Code Enforcement Officer issues building permits only when proposed construction or alteration meets the ordinance, and anyone who starts work that needs a permit without one pays the after-the-fact fee. Ask the Code Enforcement Office before starting.
Shapleigh enforces the 2021 IRC. Shapleigh's March 10, 2012 town meeting adopted the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code (MUBEC) as Chapter 7 of the town code, replacing the town's older building code and one- and two-family dwelling code. Since April 7, 2025, MUBEC is based on the 2021 International Residential Code and the other 2021 I-codes. With 2,921 residents in the 2020 Census, Shapleigh is not required to enforce the code under state law, and has chosen to.
The published number is 207-636-2844. The building official on record is Brian Paul, 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.
Shapleigh borders Acton, Waterboro, Alfred, Newfield and Sanford. Our pages for them:
Also in York County:
| Town | Re-roof permit | Code | Median built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shapleigh | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1980 |
| Acton | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1974 |
| Waterboro | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1983 |
| Alfred | Conditional | 2021 IRC | 1983 |
| Newfield | No | 2021 IRC | 1977 |
| Sanford | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1975 |
| Arundel | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1992 |
All 29 York County towns side by side →
Shapleigh's code office pages and zoning ordinance do not list re-roofing as needing or not needing a permit. The zoning ordinance says the Code Enforcement Officer issues building permits only when proposed construction or alteration meets the ordinance, and anyone who starts work that needs a permit without one pays the after-the-fact fee. Ask the Code Enforcement Office before starting.
Shapleigh enforces the 2021 IRC. Shapleigh's March 10, 2012 town meeting adopted the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code (MUBEC) as Chapter 7 of the town code, replacing the town's older building code and one- and two-family dwelling code. Since April 7, 2025, MUBEC is based on the 2021 International Residential Code and the other 2021 I-codes. With 2,921 residents in the 2020 Census, Shapleigh is not required to enforce the code under state law, and has chosen to.
Median year built 1980, by the Census Bureau's 2020–2024 estimates. Of 2,060 homes, 1,515 were built before 2000 and 217 before 1940, so most roofs in Shapleigh are not the first one the house has had.
Yes, once in NOAA's records: the one report of hail 1 inch or larger within 5 miles of Shapleigh's center from 2016 through 2025 was 1 inch on June 6, 2020.
The building official on record is Brian Paul, Code Enforcement Officer. The department's own number is on this page, beside its name.
Not yet: no completed roof in Shapleigh 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: www.shapleigh.net · www.shapleigh.net · shapleigh.net · www.shapleigh.net · ecode360.com · ecode360.com · ecode360.com · www.maine.gov · legislature.maine.gov · www2.census.gov · en.wikipedia.org · www2.census.gov · www2.census.gov · prd-tnm.s3.amazonaws.com · data.census.gov · www.spc.noaa.gov. Rules and staff change; check with the jurisdiction.
