Masonry work on a historic house in Pennsylvania: who reviews repointing, cleaning and walls

Updated November 11, 2026 · KeystoneProGuide editorial team

Does a historic house need approval for masonry work?

It depends on whether the house is protected by a local law, not on its age alone. In Pennsylvania, protection comes from municipal ordinances and local historic districts, and in Philadelphia from the city's own register. Where a house is covered, routine masonry work such as repointing, cleaning and rebuilding a wall is often exactly what the reviewers look at.

A listing on the National Register of Historic Places is something else. Philadelphia's Historical Commission points out that its register is not the same as the National Register, which the National Park Service administers, though a property can appear on both.

What does Philadelphia review?

If a property is on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, the Historical Commission must approve changes as part of the building permit. For masonry, its list of work that needs review includes:

• "Masonry cleaning, painting, pointing, repair, replacement, alteration, or removal."
• Porches, steps, stoops, ramps and patios.
• Fences, walls, gates, sidewalks, driveways and parking areas.
• Painting, coating, staining or sealing any surface other than wood and metal trim.
• Site work such as installing a driveway or replacing a sidewalk.

Standard maintenance such as repainting wood trim or cleaning gutters needs no review. The commission's goal, it says, is to protect public views, so most reviews concern facades and other exterior features.

This changes the permit picture. The city's building permit page lists pointing masonry, low retaining walls and private sidewalks among work that often needs no permit, but only "as long as your property is not on the Philadelphia Historic Registry". On a listed property, a job that would otherwise go ahead without paperwork needs review first.

How does the Philadelphia review work?

The city's historic review page sets out the steps. You, or your contractor, submit the building permit application, and commission staff review it, electronically or at an in-person appointment. There is no charge. Staff approve over 90 percent of applications without sending them to the full commission. Those they cannot approve go to the Architectural Committee and then the Historical Commission at public meetings, which can approve, approve with conditions or deny. The city encourages owners to talk to staff during planning, at preservation@phila.gov or (215) 686-7660.

How do you find out whether your house is listed?

In Philadelphia, look up the property's official address on the Office of Property Assessment site first, because the register uses those addresses, which may differ from a mailing address. Then search the register or its map, look at the list of historic districts, or email the commission staff. The commission's files on listed properties, which often include old permit applications and photographs, can be viewed free by appointment and may show what the original masonry looked like.

What about the suburbs?

Outside Philadelphia, the rules are set by each municipality under two state laws. The Chester County Planning Commission explains them:

• The Municipalities Planning Code lets townships and boroughs write historic protections into zoning and land development rules, often advised by a local historical commission.
• The Historic District Act lets them create local historic districts, certified by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, with a Historic Architectural Review Board that reviews changes.

In Chester County, the Planning Commission says, several municipalities regulate historic resources in their ordinances, and historic districts have been used for towns and villages and for rural areas. The same two laws are available to municipalities across the state, so in Bucks, Delaware and Montgomery counties the answer also comes from your own township or borough. Ask the zoning or code office whether your property is in an inventory or district, and what kinds of exterior work need review.

What do reviewers look for in masonry work?

Local guidelines differ, but federal preservation guidance shows the usual concerns:

• Matching mortar. The National Park Service (NPS) says new mortar must match the old in color, hardness and permeability, and that joint width and tooling should match the historic appearance.
• No harmful coatings. The NPS says coating historic masonry with an impervious material such as high-content portland cement is never recommended.
• Gentle cleaning. The NPS links much badly decayed brick to earlier sandblasting.
• Proof before the full job. On historic federal buildings, the General Services Administration has test patches and a sample area approved before the whole wall is repointed. Bringing photographs of a test section to a review is a practical way to show the match.

Does historic review change the rest of the rules?

No. A mason working on a historic house still needs the state home improvement registration that the Attorney General requires for most home repair work, and any building permit still applies. Review is an extra step, not a substitute.

The technical side of matching mortar is in repointing an old brick house, and Philadelphia's other rules are in the Philadelphia masonry guide. Masons are listed on the masonry contractors page.

Sources

1. Get approval for work to a historic property, City of Philadelphia
2. Find a historic property or district, City of Philadelphia
3. Get a Building Permit, City of Philadelphia
4. eTools: Historic Resource Protection Standards, Chester County Planning Commission
5. Repointing historic masonry, U.S. General Services Administration
6. Common Problems with Brick Masonry, U.S. National Park Service
7. This Masonry is for the Bees!, U.S. National Park Service
8. Frequently Asked Questions: Home Improvement Contractor Registration, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General