Annual Cost To Own A Roof: Expected And Unexpected Costs

Owning a roof can be expensive
Many building owners, residential or commercial, sometimes think that once the roof is replaced, there are no more costs involved till it is time to replace the roof again. That cannot be further from the truth as roofs do not always remain in top shape for 10 to 30 years.  Storms and other influences take their toll on your roof and you may be surprised by the annual costs you have to pay to keep your roof in top shape. There are a lot of costs involved when you have to repair or replace your current roof.

The type of roof matters
No matter the type of roof your building has, you can expect to replace individual shingles or make other repairs if you find a problem. The type of roof your building has will dictate the cost of repair.  For example, a standard asphalt shingle can cost roughly $4.25 per square foot while a premium asphalt shingle can cost over $8 per square foot. An aluminum shingle roof may last longer and have fewer repairs but expect to pay more per square foot than an asphalt replacement will.  Flat roofing materials, like rubber, EPDM, PVC, and so on, maybe a bit cheaper as the material costs are between $5,50 and $7.50 but you are paying more for the labor involved.  In general, the variety of roof types available can cost somewhere between $4.25 and 28 per square foot. But the overall cost will depend on how many shingles or the number of square feet you need to replace in a year.

The expected labor costs
No matter the roof type, you will always have to pay the labor fees to have your roof repaired, re-coated, and so on. The amount you will have to pay would be a standard per hour rate for your location.  But, those costs may go up if your roof is slanted, three stories high, or has a unique design. Even with repairs labor costs can climb due to the hazardous or difficult situation. Those costs do not change that much if you are only repairing a small section of the roof.

Annual maintenance costs
There is a bit of good news here as you may not have to pay any money to care for your roof for the first 5 years of its life. But once the roof is over 5 years old, then annual inspections would be warranted.  The inspection costs each year can range between $120 to $350 with a national average of $215. The type of roof, its design, and difficulty in accessing will influence the inspection costs.  But these inspections should be done each year to help prevent any problems from becoming large expensive problems. The cost of repairs to your roof will depend on what is wrong with it as those problems can vary from missing shingles to holes in the roofing material to problems with the flashing.

Some professional roofing costs
When you hire a roofing professional, their costs are going to be a bit higher than what you can pay if you do it yourself. Also, the following prices may not be applicable each year. They are potential or unexpected costs that come from owning a roof.

1. Minor leak repair- $150 to $300
2. Replacing shingles- $100 to $800 depending on different factors
3. Flashing repair- $150 to $1000
4. Gutter repair- $200 to $600
5. Correcting roof pitch- $200 to $1000
6. Valley repair- $350 to $1000
7. Truss repair- $500 to $5000
8. Fascia/soffit repair- $600 to $6000

The biggest unexpected cost you would have to face would be a complete roof repair. This can happen at any time from aging out to storm damage. The ballpark cost for this unexpected cost ranges between $5,700–$12,250 depending on the roofer you hire, the type of material you use, and the difficulty and size of your roof.  Replacing your roof can be a major expense when your roof is quite large. Then 60% of that total cost is just for labor alone.

Other unexpected roofing costs
There are some roofing materials that can be laid right over the existing, damaged roof. If your roof has these types of roofing materials, then leave the old roof in place and just cover it with a new roof.  This action will save you about $1000 to $1500. However, if any part or all of the roof has to be removed first, then you are looking at paying between $1 and $5 per square foot to have it removed.  Removing the roof will depend on the severity of the damage as well as the roofing material type. Other costs involved in unexpected roofing costs will be any structural repair work that needs to be done.  Also, there will be clean-up costs and disposal of old roofing materials. Keep in mind that chimneys and skylights can boost your unexpected costs due to materials needed and difficulty in repair.  One final unexpected cost will be getting the permits needed to make the repairs. These permits can cost between $100 to $1000 and the roofing contractor usually puts those costs in your overall bill.

The good news about roofing costs
When your roof is built with PVC or TPO materials, you should not expect to have any maintenance or annual costs. The money you spend each year to maintain your roof will depend on the roofing material type.  You may not spend any money in some years while in other years you may have to replace caulking or flashing because those components get damaged very easily. Your warranty coverage may require you to make repairs ASAP to keep the warranty valid. That means costs will vary from year to year.

When you need roofing help
Whether you need an inspection or actual roofing repair, call our company,  Motor City Roofers. We are located in Detroit, Michigan and our professional roofers can handle all the repairs or roofing replacements you need to be done.  Call us today before minor problems become expensive major ones.