Whether you need a permit to replace your siding or your windows depends entirely on which town you live in, and neighbouring towns take opposite positions. Crown Point does not require one for a same-size replacement. Munster, ten miles up the road, requires a permit for siding, for windows, and even for new gutters.

Getting it wrong means a stop-work order part way through the job, or a penalty on top of the permit fee. Here is what each town’s own building department publishes. We pull the permit as part of the work, so you are not left to sort this out — but it is your house and you should know how it stands.

Crown Point

No permit needed for a same-size replacement. The city’s building department FAQ says plainly that no permit is required if replacements are the same size and there are no structural changes. Change the size of an opening and you do need one. Re-roofing is treated the same way: no permit unless rafters or sheathing are being replaced.

Crown Point does require every contractor and sub-contractor on the job to hold a current city licence before a permit can even be submitted. Our Crown Point page has more on what we do there.

Hammond

Permit required for both. Siding and Doors/Windows are named work types on Hammond’s own building permit application. The contractor is responsible for scheduling inspections, and a copy of the signed contract has to be attached to the application.

Hammond publishes a public roster of licensed contractors you can check before you hire anyone. Trade contractors also need liability cover and a bond recorded with the Lake County Recorder. More on our Hammond work.

Schererville

Permit required for both. The Planning and Building FAQ lists re-roofing and re-siding, and windows separately, under projects that usually require permits.

Contractor registration runs on the calendar year and has to be renewed by the first of March. More on our Schererville work.

Highland

A permit is required for alteration or repair work costing more than $500. Highland’s municipal code sets that threshold rather than naming siding and windows specifically. In practice any re-siding job and most whole-house window jobs are well over $500, so assume you need one.

Highland is emphatic that all contracted work must be done by contractors licensed with the town, and it keeps its own list. More on our Highland work.

Munster

Permit required, and for more than you would expect. Munster names re-siding under repairs, and new windows, new gutters and downspouts under alterations. The gutters one catches people out.

Munster is also unusually clear about what does not need a permit: painting, wallpaper, cabinets and countertops, floor coverings and minor landscaping. Permits lapse if work has not started within six months.

Merrillville

Worth a phone call. Merrillville’s published permit list covers new construction, additions, pools, sheds, fences, garages, decks and signs. Siding and windows are not named either way, and we would rather tell you that than guess. The building department will confirm in a minute on 219-769-3631, and they will also check a contractor’s licence for you over the phone.

Contractor licensing with the town is required. More on our Merrillville work.

Valparaiso

Worth a phone call. Valparaiso’s code requires building permits and sets fees for remodels and alterations, but does not name siding or windows, and there is no dollar floor below which nothing is needed. What is clear is that the Building Commissioner will not issue a permit to anyone except a registered contractor, and that doing work without a permit carries a penalty of half the permit cost.

The one rule that holds everywhere

Every town above requires contractors to be registered or licensed with that specific municipality. Not with the state, with the town. A contractor licensed in Hammond is not automatically licensed in Schererville.

This is the thing most worth checking before you sign anything, and several towns make it easy: Hammond publishes its licensed contractor list, Highland and Merrillville keep lists you can ask about, and Merrillville will check a name for you by phone. If a contractor is vague about which towns they are registered in, that tells you something.

Who pulls the permit

We do, as part of the job. You should not be asked to pull your own permit for work a contractor is doing — in most of these towns a homeowner can only pull a permit for work they are doing themselves on the house they live in.

Checking your own town

Permit rules change, and towns not listed here have their own. Your town’s building department is the authority and a phone call settles it. Everything above was taken from each town’s own published material and last checked in November 2026.

If you want a straight answer about your house, get in touch for a free estimate and we will tell you what your town needs. Call Crown Point on 219-323-3680 or Hammond on 219-554-3048.