How do I know if I am in unincorporated Arapahoe County?

Check your property tax statement. If it names a county but no city or town, you are unincorporated. A Littleton, Centennial or Englewood mailing address tells you nothing on its own.Only ZIP 80120 sits completely inside Littleton city limits. Much of 80122 and the surrounding ZIPs is unincorporated county or a neighboring municipality.

What license does a roofer need in unincorporated Arapahoe County?

All contractors must be licensed by Arapahoe County to work in unincorporated areas. The county requires proof of ICC Building Contractor Class A certification, or equivalent certification from a recognized state or national body.That is a higher bar than several neighboring cities set, and a City of Littleton Class D-5 does not substitute for it.

Can I apply for a tile roof permit online here?

No. All tile roof systems must be applied for as review-type permits, and no online non-review permit is accepted for tile.That means a plan reviewer looks at your application before it is issued, which adds time. Budget for it rather than discovering it.

Roofing in Unincorporated Arapahoe County

If your mail says Littleton but your property tax statement names no city, this is you. It is the single most common jurisdiction mix-up in the whole south metro.

Permit authority

Arapahoe County

License

ICC Class A required

Tile roofs

Review permit only

Phone

720-874-6600

The most common address mix-up in the south metro

Unincorporated Arapahoe County is governed by the Arapahoe County Building Division, not by any city. Contractors must hold a county license backed by ICC Building Contractor Class A certification, re-roof permits are required above 100 square feet, and tile roof systems must go through review rather than online permitting.

This page exists because so many people believe they live in a city they do not live in. The Post Office applies municipal names across three counties, incorporated and unincorporated alike, so a Littleton address is not evidence of anything jurisdictional.

The test is your property tax statement. County only, no municipality named, means the county is your building authority.

Licensing: a higher bar than the cities around it

All contractors must be licensed by Arapahoe County to perform work in unincorporated areas. The county requires proof of ICC Building Contractor Class A certification, or equivalent certification by a recognized state or national certification entity.

Set that against the neighbors and the picture is striking:

Contractor licensing by authority around Littleton
Authority	What it takes
Unincorporated Arapahoe County	ICC Class A certification
City of Littleton	Class D-5, ICC exam where required
City of Englewood	Class D-2
Cherry Hills Village	No license issued
City of Lone Tree	No license required

Five authorities, all within a short drive, running five different regimes. This is what people mean when they say Colorado has no statewide roofing license: it is not that licensing is absent, it is that it is entirely local.

The solar rule, again — but county-side

Solar permits come first here too

If the property has existing solar panels, a separate solar permit must be applied for before the reroof permit is issued, and removal and replacement of the PV modules must be completed by an Arapahoe County licensed solar contractor.

Structurally this mirrors the City of Littleton's rule, but the license is a county one. A solar contractor licensed by the City of Littleton is not automatically licensed by the county, so confirm which license your installer actually holds before assuming they can do the detach.

Tile roofs go through review

This is the operational quirk that catches contractors used to same-day online permitting.

All tile roof systems must be applied for as review-type permits, and the county does not accept online non-review permits for tile. A plan reviewer looks at the application before issuance.

For a concrete or clay tile reroof, that means lead time. It is not a problem if it is in the schedule from the start; it is a week of nothing happening if nobody mentioned it.

The 100 square foot line, measured across slopes

Re-roof permits are required for full replacement, or for repairs and replacements where the total repair area on any roof, or combination of slopes, exceeds 100 square feet.

Note the phrasing. It is not 100 square feet per slope. Sixty square feet on the north face and sixty on the south is 120 square feet, and that is a permitted job.

Littleton words its own threshold as an aggregate too, so the two happen to agree here. Do not assume that generalises — the thresholds are set independently and only coincidentally match.

Getting hold of them

The Arapahoe County Building Division takes appointments at its Lima Office. The number is 720-874-6600.

Worth knowing before you call: have your parcel number or full address ready, because the first thing anyone needs to establish is whether the property really is unincorporated.

If it turns out you are in a city after all

City of Littleton — Class D-5, 2024 codes, no mid-roof, six nails per shingle.
Centennial — mid-roof inspection on every reroof.
Englewood — Class D-2, older housing stock.
Greenwood Village — mid-roof at 25 percent maximum.
Cherry Hills Village — no license, strictest underlayment rule we work under.
Sheridan — 100 mph wind warranty, 2021 codes.

The full authority comparison →

Talk to a roofer about your Littleton roof

Tell us what you are seeing and we will tell you whether it is a repair, a replacement, or something that can wait. Straight answer on the phone, no appointment required to ask a question.

We work to Littleton Policy #24-001 as written

We pull the permit and meet the inspector

Licensed and insured roofing contractor