Roofing in West Palm Beach

In West Palm Beach the roof follows the house. El Cid is stucco and tile from the mid-twenties; Flamingo Park is Mission and Spanish Revival with bungalows; Old Northwood mixes Mediterranean Revival with Craftsman; Grandview Heights and Prospect Park are bungalow streets.

Post-war subdivisions carry shingle, and the blocks along Dixie Highway and Clematis Street carry flat roofs. Barrel tile near Flagler Drive, where salt reaches the edge metal, is a different job from a shingle bungalow west of Dixie.

The city has 18 locally designated historic districts under its Historic Preservation Board. Inside one, an exterior roof change needs historic review before the permit; whether staff or the board reviews it depends on the change, and the city favors in-kind replacement.

A neighbor's new roof does not settle what will be approved for yours.

The City of West Palm Beach Building Division issues roof permits through Civic Access and sets which re-roof inspections apply, such as roof framing, roof metal or tin tag, sheathing, roofing in progress and final. In some cases an inspector accepts an inspector-approved affidavit with photos; otherwise we are on site for each visit, with the roof dried in and ready to be seen before anything covers it.

We book the tin-tag and in-progress dates the day the permit issues. We specify a self-adhered secondary water barrier over the deck, and edge metal near the lagoon is specified for salt; the Florida Building Code sets secondary water barrier requirements on re-roofs and allows more than one compliant method.

The city publishes a review time for residential remodels, not for roofs, so we set dates once the permit is in hand. If the house is in a historic district, the certificate of appropriateness comes first, and we start that file before any material is ordered.

1. We start at the roof, not the ceiling: the covering, edges, valleys and the flashing where the roof meets a wall or chimney, plus the permit history for the address. A ceiling stain shows where water became visible, which is not always where it got in.
2. The written proposal then lists removal, secondary water barrier and underlayment, flashing, ventilation, inspections and cleanup. Houses built between the twenties and the fifties in El Cid, Flamingo Park and Old Northwood usually have plank decking under the tile or shingle rather than plywood.
3. Nobody can see which boards are sound until tear-off, so we photograph the open deck, explain what needs replacing and put it in writing before going on. Last, we schedule delivery, tear-off and the inspection visits, and agree where material is staged and what to move off the driveway first.
4. When the job is done you keep the paperwork: the permit record and the City's final inspection, our lifetime workmanship warranty and the manufacturers' product warranties in writing, and, when your insurer asks for one, a roof certification letter.

Start with what you can see. A stain, a lifted shingle or a slipped tile points to roof leak repair or a roof inspection.

Tile, shingle and metal roof replacement each have their own details at the edges, valleys and penetrations, and on the historic streets the material is settled with the city before a sample is chosen. Flat roof repair and replacement covers porch roofs and the commercial blocks along Dixie Highway and Clematis Street, where drainage and the tie-in to a pitched section decide the job.

Storm damage roof repair, roof maintenance, commercial roofing and roof replacement cost each have their own West Palm Beach page. For a business, tell us the opening hours, the rooftop equipment and who authorizes access.

If you are unsure which service fits, describe the problem when you call; you do not need a category to book an inspection.

Often it can be repaired. A cracked or slipped tile, a flashing that has let go, a failed pipe boot, a worn valley or a few lifted shingles are repairs when the underlayment and decking around them are sound, which we check first.

If repairs, replacements or roof recovering cover more than a quarter of a roof system or section in any 12-month period, the code generally requires replacing or recovering the roof covering across that entire system or section to meet current code requirements. If that system or section was built, repaired or replaced in compliance with the 2007 Florida Building Code or a later edition, only the portion being worked on must meet applicable current code requirements.

Our inspection helps determine which applies to your roof. Replacement is the honest answer when leaks recur in different places or the underlayment has worn out across the slope, and your written recommendation says which side of the line your roof is on.

The price follows the roof, and we give it to you in writing after a free inspection. The main drivers are the material you choose or historic review settles, the size and shape of the roof, how many layers come off, deck repairs, and access on the lot.

A barrel-tile roof with several valleys in El Cid and a shingle bungalow in Grandview Heights of the same size are priced very differently, and a house facing the lagoon near Flagler Drive needs salt-rated edge metal and fasteners. To judge whether a quote is too high, check what it includes: removal, the secondary water barrier, underlayment, flashing, ventilation, the city's inspections, cleanup, and how hidden deck repairs are priced.

Our roof replacement cost page for West Palm Beach sets out each factor. Our lifetime workmanship warranty and the manufacturers' product warranties on materials are both written into the proposal.

Check the license, the reviews and the scope. Our Florida roofing contractor license is CCC1327429, and our 4.8 rating comes from 200+ Google reviews.

Molsbee Roofing has been family-owned in Palm Beach County since 1975, from a shop in Lake Worth Beach. We are a GAF Certified Contractor, an Owens Corning Preferred Contractor and Carlisle-certified for TPO flat roofs, and we give you roof photographs and a plain explanation of the recommendation, including what cannot be known until tear-off.

Then compare the work described, not just the material name. Ask who prepares the certificate of appropriateness when one is needed, who pulls the Civic Access permit, who is on site for the tin-tag and in-progress inspections, and what happens when damaged decking is found.

Ask whether the workmanship warranty is in writing; ours is a lifetime workmanship warranty, alongside the manufacturers' product warranties. Two proposals naming the same tile can describe different jobs.

Bring another scope to the inspection and we will explain ours.

Only with historic approval, and the city favors in-kind replacement. A change of material on a protected property needs historic review before the permit, and whether staff or the board decides depends on the change, so nobody can promise it from a street name or a photograph.

The designation, the existing roof and the proposed change are all checked before anything is ordered. A different tile profile or color gets the same caution, and the review level again depends on the change.

Keeping the current material makes the application simpler but does not skip the review or the permit. On an El Cid or Old Northwood tile roof the common answer is to keep the tile and replace what fails underneath: the underlayment, the flashing and any plank decking gone soft.

We help assemble the roof details for the historic file and plan the work around the approval. On clay barrel tile that usually means detach-and-reset: we lift the tile, replace the underlayment and reset the same tile, and our crews wear protective, safe footwear on the roof.

Call 561-318-8624 or request a free roof inspection through the form. Give us the address, the roof material if you know it and a short note on the concern; for a leak, interior photos and the dates water appeared help.

If the house is in El Cid, Flamingo Park, Old Northwood, Grandview Heights or another historic district, or under an association, say so when booking. We photograph the accessible roof, explain what we found in plain language and put the proposed work in writing before anything starts.

Storm season runs June through November, so spring is the useful time for a look: loose tile, lifted shingle and worn edge metal can be fixed before the wind. Our phone is answered 24 hours a day, so a leak can be reported the moment it shows; roof access and the schedule still depend on conditions at the property.

An older West Palm Beach house may have several generations of roof work above it. In Palm Beach County a shingle roof generally lasts 13 to 18 years, tile 15 to 20, metal 20 to 25, and a flat roof 15 to 20.

We check the current covering and accessible deck conditions instead of assuming the roof is as old as the house. El Cid and Flamingo Park add preservation questions; SoSo and Northwood add their own roof histories, additions and repairs.

Replacement planning starts by documenting those conditions, checking historic status and describing the proposed assembly. If a COA is required, that approval comes before the Civic Access permit.

We then plan the work around the city's required roof inspections, with concealed deck repairs explained when the roof is opened.