---
title: "Commercial Roofing in Los Angeles"
description: "Commercial roofing in Los Angeles: flat and low-slope roof repair, torch-down and replacement for small buildings, by a licensed contractor (CSLB #1147688)."
url: "https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/commercial-roofing/"
updated: "2026-10-03"
---

# Commercial Roofing in Los Angeles

AA California Roofing provides commercial roofing in Los Angeles County for smaller buildings: offices, retail stores and multi-unit properties, most of them with flat or low-slope roofs. We repair leaks, re-roof with torch-down and maintain existing roofs. We are licensed C-39 Roofing and B General Building (CSLB #1147688).

For a leak, a roof survey or an estimate on a re-roof, send the property address through our [contact page](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/contact-us/). Owners with more than one building are welcome. One of our Google reviewers wrote: "My third time Using AA for my properties and each time they delivered exactly what you should expect from a professional roofing company."

## Which commercial roofs do we work on?

Our commercial work is on the smaller buildings that line Los Angeles commercial streets: a strip of shops, a two-story office, an apartment building, a restaurant, a mixed-use building with units over retail. Their roofs fall into a few types.

| Roof type | Typical buildings | What we do |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Torch-down (modified bitumen) on flat and low-slope roofs | Retail strips, offices, apartment and mixed-use buildings | Repair blisters, split seams and failed flashing; full torch-down re-roofs |
| Older flat roofs (built-up, gravel or rolled roofing) | Older commercial and apartment buildings | Leak repairs to buy time; a new torch-down system once patching no longer holds |
| Pitched tile roofs | Restaurants, offices and apartment buildings built in Spanish or Mediterranean style | Tile replacement, underlayment renewal, new tile roofs (see [tile roofing](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/tile-roofing/)) |
| Pitched shingle roofs | Small offices, apartment complexes, converted houses | Repairs and shingle replacement |

Torch-down roofing is a modified bitumen membrane laid in sheets and bonded with a torch, with the seams heat-welded. How it is installed and repaired on smaller roofs is covered on our [flat roof and torch-down page](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/flat-roof-services/). If your building has a single-ply membrane such as TPO or PVC, mention it on the first call and we will tell you straight away whether it is work we take on.

## How do we repair a commercial roof without closing the business?

On a commercial building the roof is rarely the only thing that matters during the work. Customers, tenants, deliveries and rooftop equipment all have to keep working around it. This is what we settle with the owner or manager before a crew goes up:

- **Timing.** Your business hours, delivery windows and any days the building cannot have noise overhead, so the loud work and the material deliveries land at the least disruptive times.
- **Tenant notice.** Which units sit under the work area, and what tenants should expect on which days. A notice from the manager a few days ahead lets tenants plan around the work.
- **Inside protection.** Where a leak is active or where old roofing will be cut, the space below may need covering or clearing.
- **Rooftop equipment.** Air conditioning units, exhaust fans and their curbs have to be flashed around, and sometimes lifted. Disconnecting a unit is your HVAC contractor's job; we coordinate the timing with them.
- **Access and staging.** Where the ladder or hoist goes, where materials and the debris bin can sit, and how foot traffic gets past safely.

Torch-down work uses an open flame, so fire safety is planned before the first torch is lit. The 2025 California Fire Code requires at least one multipurpose portable fire extinguisher with a minimum 3-A 40-B:C rating on the roof being covered or repaired (section 3305.10.2), and it treats torch work as hot work, which calls for a fire watch during the work and for at least 30 minutes after it ends (section 3504.2.1). Local fire departments can add their own requirements.

## How does a commercial re-roof work?

A re-roof on an occupied building runs in a set order. Knowing it helps you plan tenants, budgets and timing.

1. **Roof survey.** We walk the whole roof, check drains, scuppers, parapets and penetrations, and look for wet or soft areas. The first question is whether repairs can carry the roof a while longer or whether it is time to replace it.
2. **Recover or tear off.** Adding a new roof over the old one is allowed only in some cases. The 2025 California Building Code does not allow a recover when the existing roof is water-soaked or deteriorated, when it is tile, or when it already has two or more layers (section 1512.3). If the roof fails any of those tests, the old roofing comes off down to the deck.
3. **Written scope and free estimate.** What comes off, what goes on, how the flashing at parapets, curbs and drains is handled, the permit, and the order of work.
4. **Permit.** Inside the City of Los Angeles, LADBS can issue a re-roof with a Class A or B covering below 6 pounds per square foot, over solid sheathing, as an express permit, with no plan check. The same LADBS bulletin (P/GI 2026-003) flags two things for commercial owners: a cool roof may be required on non-residential buildings under Title 24, Part 6, section 141.0(b)2B, and only Class A coverings are allowed in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. We pull the permit.
5. **Tear-off and deck repair.** The roof is opened in sections, soft or rotted decking is replaced, and every opened section is sealed again at the end of each work day.
6. **Flashing and membrane.** Parapet walls, curbs, drains and every pipe through the roof get new flashing; then the new roof system goes down.
7. **Inspection and cleanup.** Once the building department's inspector passes the work and the permit is closed, the debris is hauled away and the drains are checked clear.

## Roof maintenance and inspections for property managers

On a flat roof, small problems stay invisible from the street until they reach a tenant's ceiling. A scheduled roof check catches them on the roof instead. The fall, before the rains, is the time that matters most in Los Angeles; a check after any big storm is the other one worth making.

Between visits, these reports from tenants or staff deserve a call:

- stained or sagging ceiling tiles, especially near walls and air conditioning vents;
- drips that only show up after rain, or after the air conditioning has run for a while;
- water standing on the roof long after the rain has stopped;
- new holes in the roof from other trades: conduits, antennas, sign mounts, a new exhaust fan.

Keep a simple roof file for each building: the date of each repair, photos, invoices, the permit for the last re-roof and any manufacturer paperwork. It speeds up every future repair and answers a buyer's or lender's questions when the property changes hands. Our [roof inspection](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/roof-inspection/) page lists what a full inspection covers.

## What to check before hiring commercial roofers in Los Angeles

- **The license.** Look the contractor up on the Contractors State License Board's [Check a License](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/OnlineServices/CheckLicenseII/CheckLicense.aspx) page. Roofing is the C-39 classification; the record also shows the bond and workers' compensation insurance.
- **The scope in writing.** Tear-off or recover, the roof system, the flashing details, who pulls the permit, the schedule, and what happens if hidden damage turns up.
- **The plan for your occupants.** How noise, access, rooftop equipment and fire safety will be handled while the building stays open.

If you look us up, the state board's record for CSLB License #1147688 shows two classifications (C-39 Roofing and B General Building), a $25,000 contractor's bond and our workers' compensation coverage.

## Commercial roofing in Pasadena, Torrance, Santa Monica and across LA County

We serve commercial properties throughout Los Angeles County, from the San Fernando Valley and Santa Clarita to [Pasadena](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/areas-we-serve/pasadena/), Glendale, Burbank, [Santa Monica](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/areas-we-serve/santa-monica/), Culver City, [Torrance](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/areas-we-serve/torrance/), Long Beach and the cities in between, and in Ventura County we take commercial work in Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, Camarillo and Oxnard. The full list is on our [areas we serve](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/areas-we-serve/) page.

The roofing work is the same from one city to the next; the permit is not. It comes from the building department that covers the address (LADBS within the City of Los Angeles), so the permit steps, fees and inspections change with the city. That part is ours to handle.

## Get a commercial roof estimate

AA California Roofing is a [roofing company in Los Angeles](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/), licensed by the state and run from Woodland Hills, and our crews cover all of Los Angeles County plus nearby Ventura County cities. Write to us through the [contact form](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/contact-us/) with the building's address, what the roof is doing and how the building is used. Estimates are free.