ReRoof ReportRepair or replace your roof? A Florida checker
Answer a few questions about your roof's age, material, damage and what you see. The checker applies Florida's 25% rule, compares the roof's age with a typical Florida service life, and tells you which way the evidence leans.
How the checker decides
The checker runs four tests in order and stops at the first one that fits.
| Result | When it shows | Kind of threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Replace: code trigger | The roof predates the 2007 Florida Building Code (permitted before March 1, 2009, or installed before 2010 if you don't know) and 25% or more of it is damaged. | Building code and statute |
| Replacement likely | Any of: the roof is at 75% or more of a typical Florida life for its material and you checked 2 or more whole-roof symptoms; it is past typical life with at least 1 whole-roof symptom; more than half of it is affected; or your insurer has flagged it. | Rules of thumb |
| Repair likely | The roof is under 60% of typical life, the damage covers less than 25%, and none of the symptoms you checked point to whole-roof wear. | Rule of thumb |
| Borderline | Everything else. If you plan to stay 10 years or more and the roof is past half its typical life, the result says a repair may only postpone a replacement. | Rule of thumb |
Whole-roof symptoms are those that point to wear across the roof rather than one spot: heavy granule loss, curling or brittle shingles, visible or brittle tile underlayment, rusted or backed-out metal fasteners, ponding or split seams on a flat roof, leaks in more than one place, and soft decking. Spot symptoms are a few cracked or slipped tiles and pieces missing after a storm. Those usually call for a repair on a younger roof.
The 25% rule and the 2007-code exemption
The Florida Building Code (Existing Building 706.1.1, 8th Edition) says that no more than 25% of a roof or roof section may be repaired, replaced or recovered in any 12-month period unless the entire roof covering of that section is brought up to current code. Since the 2023 edition, the rule covers re-covers as well as replacements. The high-velocity hurricane zone in Broward and Miami-Dade has a parallel rule in FBC-Building 1521.4.
There is an important exception. Under §553.844(5), Florida Statutes, added by SB 4-D in May 2022, if the existing roof was built, repaired or replaced to the 2007 Florida Building Code or a later edition, only the part being repaired has to meet current code, even when that part is 25% or more of the roof. Local governments may not amend this exception, and it applies in the HVHZ too.
The 2007 code took effect on March 1, 2009. So the date on your last re-roof permit decides which rule applies. A roof permitted on or after that date is generally exempt; an older roof is not. The checker asks for that date, and if you don't know it, it treats roofs installed before 2010 as older-code roofs. You can find your permit date with our county-by-county roof age guide.
The 9th Edition of the Florida Building Code takes effect on December 31, 2026. Section numbers may change. The 2007-code exemption stays because the statute requires it.
Typical Florida service life used in the checker
| Material | Typical FL life | Planning value | 75% mark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asphalt shingle | 15–20 yrs | 18 yrs | 13.5 yrs |
| Concrete tile | 20–30 yrs | 25 yrs | 18.8 yrs |
| Clay tile | 25–35 yrs | 30 yrs | 22.5 yrs |
| Standing-seam metal | 35–50 yrs | 40 yrs | 30 yrs |
| 5V-crimp metal | 25–35 yrs | 30 yrs | 22.5 yrs |
| Flat (mod-bit / TPO) | 12–18 yrs | 15 yrs | 11.3 yrs |
How Florida roofs fail, by material
- Asphalt shingle. Heat and UV age shingles faster than national charts assume. A University of Florida field study of 27 Florida roofs found sealant strips tend to come partly unsealed after about the first four years, and unsealing rises with age. After Hurricane Ian, IBHS found about half of shingle roofs had issues and roofs 10 or more years old were "especially vulnerable." Some granule loss in the first months to two years is normal; bare spots on an older roof mean the end is near.
- Concrete and clay tile. The tiles can last 50 years or more, but the underlayment beneath them usually fails first, at valleys, penetrations and flashings. Eagle's tile warranty covers the tiles only and excludes underlayment and hurricanes. The fix is new underlayment, either by lifting and relaying the tiles or with new tile. The 2024 state-commissioned mitigation study notes that the threshold for replacing rather than repairing a tile roof is "quite low," in part because matching tile color is hard.
- Metal. Standing-seam panels age slowly. Exposed-fastener 5V panels depend on their fasteners and washers, which loosen or rust. Within about 1,500 ft of salt water, many Galvalume and painted-steel warranties do not apply. After Ian, metal roofs had damage rates around 12%.
- Flat (mod-bit or TPO). Ponding, blisters and split seams are the usual signs. Florida flat roofs commonly last 12–18 years.
- More detail, with what a 4-point inspection marks unsatisfactory: signs your roof needs replacing, not just a repair.
Why the other thresholds are rules of thumb
The 25% rule is the only percentage set in Florida law or code. No authoritative "replace if more than X% is damaged" or "replace after N leaks" rule exists. The 75% and 60% marks for roof life, the count of whole-roof symptoms, and "more than half the roof" are our planning rules, drawn from service-life data and inspector practice. Two roofs of the same age can be in very different shape, so an inspection report outranks the checker.
Florida's matching statute (§626.9744) also plays a role after a covered loss: when replaced items don't reasonably match, insurers must make reasonable repairs or replacement in adjoining areas. Your policy terms control how that applies to your roof.
When an insurer flag matters
If your insurer has asked about your roof, the checker leans toward replacement, because the usual ways to keep coverage are an inspection showing remaining life or a new roof.
- Under §627.7011(5), an insurer may not refuse to issue or renew a policy solely because the roof is under 15 years old. For a roof 15 years or older, you can have it inspected by an inspector the insurer approves, at your expense. If the inspection shows at least 5 years of remaining useful life, age alone is not a reason to refuse. Insurers can still act on the roof's condition.
- Citizens asks for documentation of at least 5 years of remaining useful life once a shingle or flat roof is over 25 years old, or a tile or metal roof is over 50.
A flagged roof under about 75% of typical life with no whole-roof symptoms may pass an inspection. See Florida roof insurance rules for the full picture, or check your roof's age against the 15-year rule and Citizens' thresholds. If storm damage may be involved, consider contacting your insurer to find out whether a repair is covered.
What this checker does not do
- It cannot see your roof. A licensed roofing contractor or home inspector can document its condition.
- It does not interpret your insurance policy. Your policy terms control.
- It does not price the work. For that, use the roof replacement cost calculator, and see how long roofs last in Florida for the lifespan sources.