Pennsylvania issues no general roofing or contractor licence. Contractors who do $5,000 or more of home improvements a year on one- or two-family homes register with the Attorney General's office, and some boroughs and townships add their own licence or registration. Ask for the registration number, look it up, and check local rules.
Key takeaways
- Pennsylvania has no general roofing licence. The state's check is registration with the Attorney General's office for contractors doing home improvements at or above $5,000 a year on one- or two-family dwellings.
- Local jurisdictions may add their own requirements, so a borough or township can ask for a licence or registration on top of the state's.
- Souderton Roofing is a call line that connects you with a local roofer. We do not vouch for any contractor, and you should run the checks below on whoever shows up.
- Check the registration before you sign, get the scope in writing, and settle who pulls the permit. Our permit guide covers the borough side.
- Ask what a roofer is registered for and what is covered by their insurance. We list no insurance minimums, fees or terms, because we could not source them from the state.
- Walk away from any pressure to sign on the spot, pay everything up front or skip the permit. A sound roofer can wait a day while you check.
Does Pennsylvania license roofers?
Not generally. The state issues no general contractor or roofing licence. Instead, contractors who do $5,000 or more a year of home improvements on one- or two-family homes register with the Attorney General's office under the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act. Some boroughs and townships also require their own licence or registration.
This surprises people from states where a licence number is the first thing you ask for. In Pennsylvania the first thing to ask for is a home improvement contractor registration number, and the second is what your own borough or township requires.
Registration with the Attorney General's office is a state record that a contractor exists, can be identified and is covered by the state's home improvement consumer law. It is not a statement about the quality of work. A registered roofer can still do a poor job, and an unregistered one can do a good one, which is exactly why you check it and still read the contract.
The Attorney General's page on registration is the place to start. It explains who must register and points to a lookup. We have deliberately left out any registration fee, term or insurance minimum, because those appear only on third-party guide pages and not on the state's own page that we reviewed.
Who has to register with the Attorney General?
Contractors who do at least $5,000 of home improvements a year on one- or two-family dwellings. A roof replacement on a single-family house or a duplex is the kind of work that falls under this law. Local jurisdictions may add requirements, so also ask your borough or township.
That $5,000 line is the state's threshold, as described by the Attorney General's office and repeated in guide pages we reviewed. It is measured over a year of work, not per job, so a roofer doing a few small repairs may be under it while a roofer doing regular replacements is over it.
In practice, most contractors who take roof replacements as their regular business will be above the line. If a roofer tells you they do not need to register, ask for the reason and then check with the Attorney General's office yourself.
Multi-family buildings and commercial roofs are not what this threshold describes, and we do not set out the rules for them. In Souderton, where about 22% of homes are in duplexes and small apartment buildings and about 14% in large apartment buildings by third-party borough data, ask the owner or manager what applies to the building.
How do you look a roofer up before you sign?
Ask for the registration number in writing, then check it with the Attorney General's office using the lookup on its home improvement contractor page. Match the name, business name and address to the contract. Then ask your borough or township whether it requires a licence or registration of its own.
Do the lookup yourself rather than relying on a photo of a certificate. The roofer's name on the contract, the name on the registration and the name on the permit application should all be the same business. If they differ, ask why.
A short checklist helps keep it orderly. Run it for every roofer you are considering, not just the one you like.
If a roofer cannot or will not give a registration number, treat that as an answer. You can still talk, but you have learned something you would otherwise have found out after a deposit.
- Ask for the Pennsylvania home improvement contractor registration number and the exact business name
- Check it with the Attorney General's office, not a copy the contractor handed you
- Match the name on the registration to the name on the contract and the permit
- Ask your borough or township if it requires its own licence or registration
- Ask for proof of insurance and call the insurer to confirm it is current
- Get the scope of work, material and price in writing before you pay anything
What do local boroughs and townships add?
The Attorney General's office notes that local jurisdictions may add requirements. Some boroughs and townships want a local licence or registration, and Doylestown Borough publishes its own contractors page. Call the office for your address, because requirements are set town by town and not by the county.
The same roofer can be fine in one town and short a local form in the next. Doylestown Borough, for example, has its own contractors page you can read before work starts. Souderton Borough says permits are controlled by its Code of Ordinances and the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code.
We do not have a list of every municipality's contractor rules for the 26 towns we serve, and we will not guess. The practical move is a quick call to the borough or township office, asking two questions: whether the roofer needs a local licence or registration, and whether the job needs a permit. The permit guide for Souderton and Montgomery County goes through the second.
County lines do not decide it. Sellersville, Perkasie and Doylestown are Bucks County boroughs, and Bally is in Berks County. Each answers to its own office. Ask for the answer in an email, so you have a record.
| Check | Who runs it | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Home improvement contractor registration | Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General | That the contractor is registered for home improvement work on one- or two-family homes |
| Local licence or registration | Your borough or township, where it applies | That the contractor meets the town's own rules, if it has any |
| Building permit | Your borough or township office, under the Uniform Construction Code | That the work is on the municipality's record and subject to inspection |
| Written scope and price | You and the roofer | What exactly is being done, with what material, and for how much |
What should be in a roofing contract?
At minimum: the contractor's full name and registration number, the address of the work, the material and product named, what is torn off and what is repaired, how deck damage is priced, who pulls the permit, the payment schedule and cleanup. If it is not written down, you cannot count on it.
We are not describing what Pennsylvania law requires in a contract, because we did not find that on a source we can cite. This is a plain checklist of what protects a homeowner in any sound agreement. Ask for each item in writing, and ask for plain language where a line is vague.
Pay attention to how payment is tied to progress. A large payment before any work starts is a red flag worth discussing with the roofer and, if you are unsure, with the Attorney General's office.
Read the part about unknowns. Rotted deck boards, damaged chimneys and failed flashing are found only when the old roofing is off. A good contract says how they are priced, so a surprise is a number you agreed to in advance. Our cost guide lists the other drivers worth asking about.
What are the warning signs of a roofer to avoid?
Pressure to sign today, a request for full payment up front, no registration number, no written scope, a suggestion to skip the permit, and a firm price given without looking at the roof. Any one of these is a reason to pause. Two or more is a reason to walk away.
Storm weather brings out the worst of these. After the August 2021 EF-1 tornado that struck just south of Souderton and the remnants of Ida in September 2021, many homeowners were suddenly shopping for roof work at once. That is exactly when pressure tactics are most tempting for a bad contractor and hardest for a stressed homeowner to resist.
A roofer who is confident in the work can wait a day. Use that day to run the checks above. The same goes for a stranger at the door offering a cheap deal on leftover material.
Souderton Roofing does not promise arrival times, prices or outcomes, and you should be cautious of any source that does without having seen your roof.
- Pressure to sign or pay on the spot
- A large cash payment demanded before work begins
- No registration number, or a number that does not check out
- A price quoted without anyone looking at the roof
- No written scope, material or product name
- A suggestion to skip the permit or the inspection
- A door-to-door offer after a storm
What does Souderton Roofing do, and what does it not do?
Souderton Roofing is a call line that connects you with a local roofing contractor who serves your town. We do not do the work, set prices, promise arrival times or vouch for a contractor's registration. You run the checks in this guide on whoever you hire.
The roofer you speak to is independent, and the contract is between you and them. That is why this guide puts the checks in your hands. We would rather you verify than trust.
Call (833) 751-2102, say what you can see from the ground, and you are put through to a roofer who serves your town. A visit is arranged when a roofer is free. After that, the steps are the ones above: ask for the registration number, look it up, ask the borough or township what it requires, and read the scope.
If you are dealing with storm damage, our guide on documenting damage and tarping can help you prepare before the first call.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a roofing licence in Pennsylvania?
No general one. The state issues no general contractor or roofing licence. Home improvement contractors register with the Attorney General's office, and some boroughs and townships require a licence or registration of their own. Ask for the number and check it.
What does the $5,000 threshold mean?
The Attorney General's office says contractors who do $5,000 or more of home improvements a year on one- or two-family dwellings register with it. It is a yearly measure of a contractor's work, not the price of your job, and local jurisdictions may add their own rules.
Does registration mean the roofer does good work?
No. Registration identifies the contractor and brings them under the state's home improvement law. It says nothing about workmanship. Check it, then compare written scopes and ask for the permit and any local licence your borough or township requires.
Do I need to check a roofer again if I hired them before?
Yes, for each new job. A registration or local licence can change, and a past good job is not proof of current status. A quick lookup before you sign is cheap protection, even for a contractor you know.
Can I hire an unregistered roofer?
You can talk to anyone, but we advise checking first. Ask why they are not registered, confirm with the Attorney General's office, and ask your borough or township what it requires. If the answers are vague, find someone else.
Does Souderton Roofing guarantee the roofer's work?
No. Souderton Roofing is a call line that connects you with a local roofer. The agreement is between you and the roofer. We do not set prices, promise timing or vouch for any contractor's registration, so run these checks yourself.
Sources
- Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General – Home Improvement Contractor Registration
- Souderton Borough – Building and Repair Permits
- 6abc – Tornado in Souderton, Montgomery County (August 2021)
This guide is general information for Montgomery County homeowners, not a substitute for an on-site inspection. Prices are estimates. See our disclaimer.