Windows and siding in Cumberland County

Maine sets one energy code for the whole state, so every town in Cumberland County holds a replacement window to the same figure: a U-factor of 0.30 or lower under the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code, with no limit on solar heat gain. A town of more than 4,000 people has to enforce that code; a smaller one may leave it unenforced, but the state still counts meeting it as the owner's job. Permits still change from place to place: Baldwin makes a re-side permit depend on the job, while Bridgton needs no permit to re-side.

54.9% of the housing in Cumberland County was built before 1980, and 23.4% before 1940 (35,795 of 153,286 units): the share that decides how often the federal lead rule is on a window or siding job here.

The housing across Cumberland County

Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimates for Cumberland County, ME and for each town, via Census Reporter.

Things worth knowing before you sign anything

• Bridgton: In the shoreland zone this work must follow the code's shoreland rules for rebuilding nonconforming buildings; the Highland Lake shoreline is heavily built up with homes and seasonal cabins.
• Brunswick: In the Village Review Zone, the Village Review Board reviews changes of siding and changes to window muntin profiles, even where no building permit is needed.
• Cape Elizabeth: Building permits are applied for in the town's GovWell online system, in use since May 8, 2025, and a Flood Hazard Permit is needed to replace or modify any structure in a special flood hazard area.
• Cumberland: Construction within 250 feet of a river, lake, stream or wetland associated with a water body also needs a Shoreland Zoning Permit.
• Freeport: In Freeport's Design Review Districts, replacing siding and trim with wood, fiber cement or engineered wood of the same style and exposure needs no design review certificate, but other materials visible from a public way go to the Project Review Board.
• Gorham: Gorham's code handout gives the bedroom egress rule: a sill no more than 44 inches above the finished floor and a bottom sash that opens to at least 5.7 square feet, 20 inches wide and 24 inches high.
• Harpswell: The Code Enforcement Officer's inspection notice lists exterior weather-resistant siding and glazing among the items checked at the final inspection, which every permit needs; schedule it at least 2 days ahead.
• New Gloucester: In the Historic Resource Overlay District, the ordinance asks for original siding to be kept, repaired or replaced with the same material when possible, allows aluminum or vinyl as an acceptable alternative, and requires it to go on without irreversibly damaging or hiding the building's architectural features.
• Portland: Inside any of Portland's historic designations, an exterior alteration needs historic preservation approval before work starts and before any permit is issued (Land Use Code section 16.5.1).
• Raymond: Raymond allows 48 hours for permit processing; only electrical and plumbing permits are issued the same day.
• Scarborough: A property in a Special Flood Hazard Area needs a Flood Hazard Development Permit for any development, which the town defines as any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, so a re-side near the marsh or the beaches can need one too.
• South Portland: A building permit for exterior work on a South Portland home built in 1940 or earlier, or on a property in the city's inventory of historic resources, can be held up to 90 days while the South Portland Historical Society and the city's Arts and Historic Preservation Committee review it; the Building Inspector can shorten or waive the wait for significant financial hardship.
• Westbrook: Westbrook's code FAQ spells out the bedroom escape-window rule in its own words: every sleeping room needs an operable window or door with at least 5.7 square feet of net clear opening, 24 inches high and 20 inches wide, with the sill no more than 44 inches above the floor.
• Yarmouth: In Yarmouth's historic districts and on its landmarks, the Historic Preservation Committee reviews the replacement of non-historic windows or doors, any change to the size or location of an opening, and any replacement of or change to siding.

Common questions across Cumberland County