Siding Replacement in South Portland, Maine

South Portland has about 12,800 housing units, and the American Community Survey estimates a median year built of 1968, two decades newer than Portland across the harbor. About 25 percent of homes predate 1940 and about 45 percent predate 1960. Roughly 16 percent went up between 1960 and 1979, and close to 19 percent date from 2000 or later, a larger share of newer construction than on the peninsula. Owners occupy about 58 percent of occupied homes, and single-family detached houses make up a little over half the stock, with apartments, condominiums and two-family houses filling out the rest. Seasonal homes are rare, only about 100 units. The older waterfront villages hold the city's early wood-frame houses, while the neighborhoods farther inland are largely post-war and later.

South Portland faces Portland Harbor and the Fore River on its north side and Casco Bay to the east, so houses in Ferry Village, Willard and the streets near Spring Point take salt air and onshore wind, while western neighborhoods near the Maine Mall are more sheltered. The city shares its weather with the Portland International Jetport, whose main runway lies inside South Portland, and the Portland area averages about 69 inches of snow a year, with some winters far lighter or heavier. Nor'easters drive rain and snow sideways against exposed walls, and repeated freeze and thaw loosens caulk, paint and shingles. Near the water, salt speeds corrosion of flashing and fasteners.

Building permits in South Portland come from Code Enforcement, part of the Department of Planning and Development, which issues permits and conducts inspections for building, electrical and plumbing work. Applications can go through the city's online portal or by email. The city enforces the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, based on the 2021 International Residential Code, and a permitted project must make a substantial start within 180 days. Since 2019, a building permit for exterior work on a designated historic property or any structure built in 1940 or earlier may be delayed up to 90 days. Shoreland zoning applies along the harbor and bay.

Siding replacement is more than new cladding. The old siding comes off, the sheathing underneath is inspected and repaired where it has gone soft, a new weather-resistive barrier and flashing go on around every opening, and the new siding and trim are installed as one system. In Maine, where wind-driven rain, freeze-thaw cycles and long winters test every seam, the layers you never see decide how long the wall lasts.

• An owner walks the house, measures every wall, and notes rot, past leaks, and how many layers of old siding are on it.
• Old siding and trim are stripped to the sheathing, and damaged boards are cut out and replaced before anything new goes on.
• A house wrap or other weather-resistive barrier is lapped shingle-style, with flashing tape and head flashing at windows and doors.
• New corner boards, window and door casing, and frieze trim go up, then the siding itself, fastened to the manufacturer's spacing.
• Debris is hauled away, magnetic sweeps pick up nails, and the job is walked with you before the last crew leaves.

• Clapboards or shingles that are cupped, split, or soft when pressed
• Paint that peels within a few seasons of being painted
• Stains, mold, or bubbling paint on interior walls after storms
• Dated aluminum, asbestos-cement or 1970s metal siding you want gone
• Rooms that feel drafty along exterior walls

• Wall area and how many stories need staging or lifts
• How many layers of old siding come off, and whether any need special handling
• Sheathing repairs found once the old siding is off
• The siding material chosen: vinyl, fiber cement, cedar or composite
• Trim detail: corner boards, window casing, frieze boards and brackets
• Whether windows or the roof are replaced in the same visit

Every job is priced from a free on-site visit. Typical ranges for the trade are on our siding page, and the details of this service are on the siding replacement overview.

For a deeper walkthrough of materials, code details and photos, see our full Siding Replacement in Maine: What's Underneath Decides How Long It Lasts guide.

Back to the South Portland exterior services overview, or see every town on our service areas page.