---
title: "Roof Inspection in Los Angeles"
description: "Roof inspection in Los Angeles for homeowners, buyers and property managers: what we check, photos and a written report from a licensed roofer."
url: "https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/roof-inspection/"
updated: "2026-10-24"
---

# Roof Inspection in Los Angeles

AA California Roofing does roof inspections in Los Angeles for homeowners, home buyers and property managers. We look over the roof covering, flashing, vents, gutters and attic for leaks and wear, photograph what we find and explain whether the roof needs maintenance, repair or replacement. CSLB license #1147688.

To book, send a request through the [contact page](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/contact-us/) (our hours are Sunday through Friday, 8 AM to 8 PM). Tell us the address, the roof type if you know it, and why you want the inspection: a house purchase, a leak, a storm, or a roof you have not had looked at in years.

## What does a roof inspection cover?

A useful inspection follows water. Rain lands on the roof covering, runs over the flashing, past the vents and into the gutters; wherever that path is broken, water ends up in the attic or the ceiling. This is the checklist we work through, outside and in.

| Area | What we look for | Why it matters |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Roof covering | Shingles that are curled, cracked or bare of granules; clay or concrete tiles that are broken or have slipped; blisters, splits and open seams on flat roofs | The covering is the first layer the weather hits; damage here shows how much life the roof has left |
| Flashing | Metal at chimneys, walls, skylights and valleys that has lifted, rusted or lost its sealant | On an otherwise sound roof, leaks often start where the roof meets a wall, a chimney or a skylight |
| Vents and pipe boots | Cracked rubber collars, loose roof jacks, missing fasteners | Every pipe through the roof is a hole that depends on a small seal |
| Gutters, drains and scuppers | Debris, sagging runs, downspouts that empty against the wall; on flat roofs, drains and scuppers that hold back water | Water that cannot leave the roof finds another way in, usually at the eaves or the low spots |
| Edges and eaves | Soft fascia boards, missing drip edge, open eave ends under tile | Rot at the edge is often the first sign of a long, slow leak |
| Attic and underside | Water stains on rafters and decking, damp insulation, daylight through the boards, blocked vents | The attic shows leaks the roof surface hides, and whether the roof can breathe |
| Past repairs | Patches, mismatched materials, layers of roofing on top of each other | Old patches tell us where trouble started; extra layers limit what a future re-roof can do |

Afterward you get the photos and a plain answer in one of three buckets: the roof needs routine maintenance, a specific repair, or a replacement. When work is needed, the estimate for that work is free.

## Roof inspection for home buyers in Los Angeles

If you are buying a house, book the roof inspection while you can still negotiate: during the inspection period of your escrow, before you remove your contingencies. A roof problem found after closing is your expense; found before closing, it can become a repair request, a credit or a price discussion with the seller.

A general home inspection looks at the whole house, the roof among many other systems. A roofing contractor looks only at the roof, and can tell you what a fix involves when something is wrong. You can use both. The seller's Transfer Disclosure Statement (California Civil Code section 1102.6) lists what the seller knows about the property; it is a disclosure, not an inspection of the roof.

Questions worth answering before you close:

- **How many layers of roofing are on the house?** Once a house has two layers of roofing, the next roof cannot simply go on top: section R908.4 of the 2025 California Residential Code rules out a recover at that point, so the next job starts with a full tear-off and costs more.
- **Is the roof tile?** On a tile roof the waterproof layer is the underlayment under the tiles, so tiles that look fine do not prove the roof is fine. Our [tile roofing guide](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/tile-roofing/) explains what to look for.
- **[Was the last re-roof permitted?](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/roofing-permit-los-angeles/)** Ask the seller for the permit record. Unpermitted roof work can raise questions when you sell or file a claim.
- **Where are the stains?** Fresh paint on one patch of ceiling is worth asking about.

Some lenders and escrow officers ask for a roof certification, a roofer's signed statement about the roof's condition. If your transaction needs one, say so when you book, so we can confirm what we can provide before the visit.

## After a storm or a leak

When water comes through a ceiling, the roof is already telling you where to look, just not exactly. Water runs along the decking and rafters before it drips, so the stain can sit well away from the opening on the roof. Finding the entry point is the job of the inspection; a patch over the wrong spot only moves the leak.

What to do before we arrive:

1. Catch the water with a bucket and move furniture and electronics out of the way.
2. Photograph the stain, any pieces of roofing that landed in the yard and, if you can get there safely, the wet spot in the attic. Pictures taken on the day help an insurance claim.
3. Stay off the roof. Wet shingles are slippery, and tiles break under a foot that does not know where to step.
4. From the ground, look for tiles or shingles in the yard and for granules piling up at the downspouts.

If the inspection confirms a repair, our [roof repair](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/roof-repairs/) page explains how leaks, storm damage and emergency work are handled.

## When to schedule a roof inspection in Los Angeles

Los Angeles gets most of its rain in a few winter months. At the downtown Los Angeles (USC) weather station, about 85% of the average year's rain falls from November through March, out of roughly 15 inches a year (Western Regional Climate Center monthly records for that station, 1906 to 2013). Long dry stretches hide problems: a cracked pipe boot or a slipped tile can sit unnoticed from spring until the first storm finds it.

That makes late summer and early fall the best time for a routine inspection, with enough dry weather left to fix what we find before the rain starts. A second look after the first heavy storm of the season, especially in the attic, confirms the roof held.

## Roof maintenance in Los Angeles: what it prevents

Most roofs do not fail all at once; they fail at the small parts that nobody checked. Roof maintenance is the short list of tasks that keeps those small parts working. Once a year before the rainy season, and after a major storm, is a sensible schedule for most homes.

| Maintenance task | What it prevents |
| --- | --- |
| Clearing gutters, downspouts and roof valleys | Overflow at the eaves, rotted fascia, water backing up under the roof edge |
| Removing leaves and debris from tile roofs | Debris dams that push water sideways under the tiles |
| Resealing or replacing cracked pipe boots and loose roof jacks | Leaks at penetrations, a frequent source on roofs that are otherwise sound |
| Resetting slipped tiles and replacing broken ones | Sun and rain reaching the underlayment, which ages much faster once exposed |
| Clearing drains and scuppers on flat roofs | Standing water that stresses seams and adds weight |
| Checking seams and flashing on torch-down roofs | Small openings that turn into wet insulation and soft decking |

Maintenance cannot bring back a roof at the end of its life. When an inspection shows the repairs would cost more than they buy, we will say so and explain what a [roof replacement](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/new-roof-installation/) involves.

## What affects the cost of a roof inspection?

We do not publish a single price, because inspections differ more than people expect. These are the things that change the work involved:

- **Size, height and pitch.** A steep two-story roof takes more time and safety setup than a low single-story one.
- **Roof type.** Tile has to be walked carefully to avoid breaking it; flat roofs need their drains and seams checked one by one.
- **Attic access.** A reachable attic hatch lets us check the underside; no access means relying on the outside alone.
- **What you need afterward.** A quick answer for a homeowner is different from documentation for a buyer, a lender or an insurance claim.
- **Number of buildings.** A house with a garage, or a property with several units, is more than one roof.

Call us with those details and we will tell you what the visit includes before we come out. Estimates for any repair or replacement we recommend are free. Three of our Google reviews mention inspections; one reviewer noted that ours came "without any tricks or hidden fees."

## Inspections for rental and commercial properties

Landlords and property managers usually need the roof answer in writing: what is wrong, how urgent it is, and what it will take, so it can go to an owner, a board or a budget. We inspect apartment buildings, small offices and retail roofs as well as houses, anywhere in Los Angeles County and in the Ventura County cities we serve. Flat and low-slope roofs on these buildings have their own failure points, covered on our [commercial roofing](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/commercial-roofing/) and [flat roof](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/flat-roof-services/) pages.

## Roof inspection questions

### Do I need a roof certification to sell my house in Los Angeles?

Only if someone in your sale asks for one, such as the buyer, the buyer's lender or escrow. For its rule on home inspectors and repairs, Business and Professions Code section 7197(d) describes a roof certification as a written statement by a C-39 licensed roofing contractor who has inspected the roof and made any needed repairs, warranting that the roof is free of leaks on the day it is issued and should perform as designed for the term it states.

What the City of Los Angeles does require, for the residential property its ordinance covers, is a Report of Residential Property Records from LADBS, which the seller gives the buyer before the sale agreement is signed or, once an escrow is opened, through the escrow before closing (Municipal Code sections 96.304 to 96.308, which also list exemptions). It covers zoning, the use shown by permits and certificates of occupancy on record, and pending city assessments, not the roof. A finaled re-roof shows in the city's permit records; see our guide to the [roofing permit in Los Angeles](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/roofing-permit-los-angeles/).

On cost: we publish no single inspection price (the cost section above explains why), and a certification's total cannot be known before the inspection, because any repairs the roof needs come first.

### Can a home inspector do a roof inspection?

Yes, as one part of a general home inspection. California defines that as a noninvasive physical examination, done for a fee in connection with the sale or similar transfer of a home of one to four units, of its mechanical, electrical or plumbing systems or its structural and essential components, with a report that can recommend evaluation by other specialists (Business and Professions Code section 7195).

An inspector who follows the American Society of Home Inspectors' standard of practice must describe how the roof was inspected, and is not required to enter areas the inspector judges dangerous or likely to be damaged. So read two lines of the report: the method used on the roof, and whether it recommends a roofer's evaluation.

### Can a roofer do a roof tune-up before the rainy season?

Yes. A tune-up covers only what the roofer writes down, so ask for the task list before you book: which items from the maintenance table above it includes, whether cracked pipe boots and broken tiles are replaced or only noted, and whether photos of the work come with it.

Hire a licensed contractor for it. The exemption that lets someone you hire work without a contractor's license (Business and Professions Code section 7048) covers only a casual, minor project whose total for labor, materials and all other items stays under a set dollar amount and that needs no building permit. It does not cover work that is part of a larger job or split into smaller contracts to stay under that amount, or anyone who advertises as a contractor or uses helpers, and a tune-up that turns into repairs can pass the limit. Check the roofer's C-39 license with the Contractors State License Board's [license lookup](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/OnlineServices/CheckLicenseII/CheckLicense.aspx).

## Book a roof inspection

We are a licensed roofing contractor based in Woodland Hills and inspect roofs throughout Los Angeles County and nearby Ventura County cities. Use the [contact page](https://aacaliforniaroofing.com/contact-us/) and tell us what prompted the inspection. We will set a time, walk the roof, and show you what we found.