Last reviewed October 31, 2026.
A roofing crew in Levittown has the dumpster in the driveway by 7 a.m., and the neighbor across the street asks whether they pulled a permit. It is a fair question in the Town of Hempstead, where a late permit costs double and the fine for skipping one starts at $500.
Does a reroof in Hempstead need a permit
Section 86-9 of the town code says no one may begin the “erection, construction, enlargement, alteration, removal, improvement, demolition or conversion” of a building or part of one without filing an application and getting a permit, “except that no permit shall be required for the performance of ordinary repairs which are not structural in nature.”
The word roofing does not appear in that section, and the town’s online permit center has no roofing permit type. Its closest filing types are “Residential Alterations and Structures of Minor Character” and, after a storm, “Direct Replacement or Repair of Minor Storm/Flood/Wind Damage.” Patching a few shingles reads like an ordinary repair. A tear-off with new plywood, or any change to rafters, does not. For anything in between, ask the Department of Buildings before the crew arrives, and keep the name and date of whoever answered.
The Hempstead permit fee, worked out
The fee comes from Section 86-11, amended in 2024. For residential work with an estimated cost of $1,000 or more, it is $200 plus $18 for each additional $1,000, or fraction of $1,000, of the estimated cost. The Building Inspector decides the estimated cost, not you and not the contractor.
The town’s own 2024 fee sheet does the math:
| Job’s estimated cost | Permit filed first | Work started before the permit |
|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | $362 | $724 |
| $20,000 | $542 | $1,084 |
| $30,000 | $722 | $1,444 |
Other fees in the same section: $100 for the certificate of completion, paid when the permit is issued, and $40 for a property search or a certified copy of an old certificate. An approved application left unpaid for 90 days picks up a $200 charge for each 90-day extension, and once a permit is approved or issued, fees are not refunded if the job is abandoned.
What the town asks you to file
Applications go through the town’s Online Permit Center, in PDF only. The portal says photos of documents will not be accepted. The town’s instructions for residential alterations list:
- a notarized Affidavit of Property Owner
- a recent, unaltered survey by a licensed land surveyor, plus a plot site plan affidavit if the survey is more than six months old
- a zoning analysis sheet
- construction drawings suitable for a state code review, with the design professional’s signed and sealed certificate of compliance
- a workers’ compensation certificate on form C-105.2, U-26.3 or CE-200
- a notarized affidavit of no plumbing and electrical, for limited repairs with no electric or plumbing work
The code lets the Building Inspector waive plans for minor alterations. After a storm, the town’s damage instructions accept a letter from a licensed engineer or architect describing the repair in place of full drawings.
To have the permit issued, the contractor fills in the town’s Contractor Information Form, notarized, with the company name and license number, and you sign that you hired everyone listed. Older versions of that form stopped being accepted in July 2024. The form does not say the town checks a Nassau County license, so look it up yourself on the Nassau license lookup.
Deadlines once you have the permit
| Rule | What the code says |
|---|---|
| Notice before starting | Written notice to the Commissioner of Buildings at least 24 hours before work begins |
| Posting | The permit displayed where it can be seen from the street |
| Start | Within 90 days of issue |
| Finish | Within one year, or the project is deemed abandoned |
| Extensions | Supplementary permits of 90 days or less, never past two years from the original date |
| Work hours | 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekdays, unless the Department of Buildings permits emergency work |
| Inspections | Requested online |
At the end, the Building Inspector issues a certificate of completion when the work matches the permit, and a final survey has to be submitted first. Keeping permitted work in place more than a year without that certificate is itself a violation, and the town also leaves construction debris to the permit holder, since its sanitation department does not collect it.
Hempstead fines and who pays them
Section 86-25 names the owner, general agent or contractor of the property where a violation happens. A first conviction carries a fine of $500 to $2,500, up to 15 days in jail, or both. A second within five years runs $1,500 to $5,000, and a third $3,000 to $10,000. Each day the violation continues counts as a separate offense.
If the house is a designated town landmark, the Landmarks Preservation Commission reviews the exterior work before any permit is issued, and its recommendations bind the Commissioner of Buildings. The code asks that alterations to a landmark match the materials and style of its architectural period.
The 22 villages with their own building departments
Nassau County lists 22 incorporated villages inside the Town of Hempstead: Atlantic Beach, Bellerose, Cedarhurst, East Rockaway, Floral Park, Freeport, Garden City, Hempstead, Hewlett Bay Park, Hewlett Harbor, Hewlett Neck, Island Park, Lawrence, Lynbrook, Malverne, Mineola, New Hyde Park, Rockville Centre, South Floral Park, Stewart Manor, Valley Stream and Woodsburgh.
The town’s owner affidavit covers only the unincorporated area, and the Village of Hempstead says the reverse from its side: it covers properties inside the village, and everything around it falls to the town. If your mail says Hempstead, Freeport or Valley Stream, check which one you are actually in before you file.
Reaching the Department of Buildings
| Address | One Washington Street, 2nd floor, Hempstead, NY 11550 |
| Main line | 516-538-8500 |
| Front counter | 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. |
| Building inspectors | 516-812-3088, 8:30 to 10:00 a.m., before field inspections |
| Plans examiners | 516-812-3073, 9 a.m. to noon |
| [email protected] |
The state’s limits on overlays and tear-offs apply here the same as anywhere on Long Island. Our Brookhaven guide walks through those layer rules.
This page is the fee and the filing. The companies based in the town, which is not the Village of Hempstead, are a different page.
