Sep 26, 2024
Helene
Water from below: record surge of 6.67 ft at Clearwater Beach, 6.31 ft at St. Petersburg, 7.2 ft at East Bay. Gusts of 60 to 75 mph.
Hillsborough · Pinellas · English and Spanish
A licensed roofer for your side of the bay.
Shingles in the yard after a storm, a stain that shows in wind-driven rain, or a renewal letter asking how old your roof is: call and get connected with an independent, Florida-licensed roofing contractor who works your part of Hillsborough or Pinellas.
What you can call about
Describe the problem and the contractor takes it from there. Storm damage goes to the phone; everything else can start with the form.
-
Storm and hurricane damage
Tarps and emergency dry-in, a written scope with photos, and no assignment of benefits: the contractor documents, you own the claim.
Call 656-208-3747 -
Roof leak repair
The stain that shows in wind-driven rain, the pipe boot cracked by the sun, the valley under the oaks. Finding the entry point is most of the job.
Learn more -
Roof repair
A slope, a valley, the fascia, a limb through the deck: section repairs on a roof with years left, and a straight answer when it does not.
Learn more -
Roof replacement
Tear-off, deck repairs, secondary water barrier, the covering you choose, permit and final. What a proposal should say, part by part.
Learn more -
Shingle roofs
The Tampa Bay roof. Architectural versus three-tab, the 145 mph rating, six nails not four, and the 15-year clock the insurer reads.
Learn more -
Metal roofs
Standing seam or exposed fastener, aluminum near salt water, the 50-year insurance class, and why a shingle crew should not install it.
Learn more -
Flat and low-slope roofs
The Florida-room addition that ponds and leaks at the wall. Modified bitumen, TPO, tapered insulation, and the transition detail.
Learn more -
Roof inspection and wind-mitigation report
The renewal letter, the OIR-B1-1802 form that earns the credits, the four-point for a new policy. Which document, from whom.
Learn more
Which office permits your roof
Every re-roof around the bay is a permitted job with a final inspection. Who issues it depends on the address, not the contractor. A contractor who works your area knows the desk; these are the desks.
Hillsborough County
Brandon, Riverview, Carrollwood, Town 'n' Country, and everything unincorporated: HillsGovHub
City of Tampa
Inside the city limits: Construction Services, plus the historic board in Hyde Park, Seminole Heights, Tampa Heights, Ybor, and West Tampa
St. Petersburg
Construction Services and Permitting; roofing is never exempt from a permit here
Clearwater
City Permitting, online submittal
Largo
Building Division; unincorporated addresses around Largo go to the county
Pinellas Park
Building Development Division; Lealman goes to the county
June 1 to November 30
The storm season, and the two dates every roof around the bay remembers
Tampa Bay has not taken a direct hurricane landfall since 1921, and in 2024 it did not need one: two storms passing offshore and to the south, thirteen days apart, did this. The numbers below are the National Weather Service's county reports, and they are why the insurer, the permit office, and the contractor all talk about wind the way they do.
Oct 9, 2024
Milton
Wind and rain from above: gusts of 101 mph at Albert Whitted and 93 mph at Tampa International; 10 to 20 inches of rain in a day.
Source: NWS Tampa Bay county impact narratives for Helene and Milton (2024).
Three numbers
The rules that decide what happens to your roof
Not Miami's rules. Tampa Bay is outside the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, and the numbers that matter here are these.
15
years: the insurance line
Under 15 years, roof age alone cannot be the reason an insurer refuses to write or renew. At 15 or older, an inspection showing five or more years of remaining life blocks a roof-age refusal. Citizens adds a documentation rule at 25 years for shingle and 50 for tile or metal.
Florida Statute 627.7011(5)25%
of a roof section: the repair line
Repair, replace, or recover more than a quarter of a roof section in a year and the whole section goes to current code, unless the roof was built or replaced under the 2007 Florida Building Code or later, in which case only the repaired part has to.
Florida Statute 553.844(5)145
mph: the design wind in Pinellas
Pinellas County designs ordinary homes to a 145 mph ultimate wind speed everywhere in the county; Hillsborough uses the Florida Building Code map at similar speeds. Products carry a Florida Product Approval, not a Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance.
Pinellas County local amendment to FBC §1609.3How it works
Call or send the form
Say what you are seeing, what kind of roof you have, and whether you are inside a city or in unincorporated county. Storm damage: call.
A local contractor calls you back
An independent, Florida-licensed roofing contractor who serves your area contacts you to set up the visit. You deal directly with them from there.
Inspection, scope, permit, work
The contractor inspects, writes the scope with photos, quotes the job, pulls the permit in their license, and schedules the final inspection. Price, timing, and warranty are between you and them.
Tampa Bay Roof Line connects homeowners with independent, Florida-licensed roofing contractors. We are not a roofing contractor. Service availability, pricing, and timing are determined by the contractor.
Hillsborough and Pinellas
From the historic districts of Tampa and St. Petersburg to the first re-roofs in Riverview: contractors who know which office permits the address and what the housing there was built under.
About the line
Tampa Bay Roof Line is a bilingual phone line and website. We connect homeowners in Hillsborough and Pinellas with independent, Florida-licensed roofing contractors and step out of the way. We are not a roofing contractor, we do not set prices, and we do not pull permits.
Questions people ask
Are you a roofing company?
No. We are a referral line. When you call or send a request, we pass it to an independent, Florida-licensed roofing contractor who serves your area. Price, timing, and warranty are between you and them.
My insurer says my roof is too old. What now?
Florida Statute 627.7011(5) sets the line at 15 years: under that, age alone cannot be the reason for a refusal; at 15 or older, an inspection showing at least five years of remaining life blocks a roof-age refusal. A licensed contractor inspects and writes the report; if the roof will not pass, they say so and what a replacement would involve.
Does a repair need a permit around here?
A replacement always does, in every city and both counties. Repairs depend on where you are and how much roof: St. Petersburg never exempts roofing; the others have thresholds. The contractor who works your area knows, and pulls the permit in their own license.
Do I have to replace the whole roof if more than a quarter is damaged?
Not always anymore. Since 2022, a roof built or replaced under the 2007 Florida Building Code or later (installed since March 2009, in practice) only needs the repaired portion brought to current code. Older roofs still cross the 25% line into a full re-roof of the section.
Should I sign the contractor's assignment of benefits?
Florida banned assignment-of-benefits agreements on policies issued since January 1, 2023. The contractor documents the damage and writes the scope; you file and own the claim.
What does it cost?
We do not set or quote prices. What drives the number: the covering (shingle, metal, tile, flat membrane), size and pitch, how much deck needs replacing (unknown until tear-off), the underlayment, permit fees, and the warranty. The contractor quotes after seeing the roof.
How do I check that a roofer is licensed?
Roofing is a state-licensed trade; a certified roofing contractor's number starts with CCC and is checkable on the DBPR site. In Pinellas, the county's Construction Licensing Board also registers local contractors. Ask for the number and for proof of liability and workers' compensation insurance.
Do you help in Spanish?
Yes. The line and this site are in English and Spanish, and contractors who take our calls serve Spanish-speaking homeowners.
Get a roofer on the phone
Call for storm damage or an active leak. For everything else, the form gets you a call back from a contractor who works your area.
Hours: Calls answered 24/7, every day
Tampa Bay Roof Line connects homeowners with independent, Florida-licensed roofing contractors. We are not a roofing contractor. Service availability, pricing, and timing are determined by the contractor.