A Complete Guide to Inspecting Roofing

Aug 23 / Dave Kolesari


Residential Roof Inspection Basics Every Future Home Inspector Should Know

  • If you’re interested in becoming a home inspector, learning how to properly inspect residential roofing systems is one of the most important skills you’ll develop.
The roof is a home’s first line of defense against rain, snow, wind, and other weather conditions. Roof problems can also lead to some of the most expensive repairs a homebuyer may face.
For a new home inspector, roofing can initially seem straightforward: look at the shingles and determine whether they’re worn out. In reality, a professional roof inspection involves much more.
You need to understand roofing materials, installation methods, flashing, drainage, ventilation, penetrations, deterioration patterns, and how roof problems can affect the attic and interior of the home.
Most importantly, you need to recognize the difference between normal aging and conditions that may require repair or further evaluation.
Here’s what every future home inspector should know about inspecting residential roof systems.

What Does a Home Inspector Look for on a Roof?
A home inspector visually evaluates accessible roofing components for signs of deterioration, damage, improper installation, leakage, and other conditions that may affect the roof’s performance.
A typical roof inspection may include:
Roof-covering materials
Flashing
Valleys
Roof penetrations
Plumbing vent boots
Chimneys
Skylights
Gutters and downspouts
Roof drainage
Visible roof structure
Soffits and fascia
Attic roof sheathing
Evidence of leakage
Roof ventilation
A home inspector is not providing a roofing warranty or guaranteeing how many years the roof will last.
Your job is to evaluate the roof’s visible condition at the time of the inspection and report significant findings to your client.

What Types of Roofing Should a Home Inspector Recognize?
A professional home inspector should be able to identify the common residential roofing materials used in their market.
These may include:
Asphalt composition shingles
Architectural or dimensional shingles
Wood shakes and shingles
Metal roofing
Slate
Clay or concrete tile
Rolled roofing
Modified bitumen
Single-ply membrane roofing
Asphalt shingles are among the most common roofing materials you’ll encounter in residential inspections.
However, don’t assume every roofing material should be inspected the same way.
Walking on a conventional asphalt-shingle roof may be reasonable under certain conditions, while walking on slate, tile, wood shakes, metal, or deteriorated roofing could damage the roof or create a serious fall hazard.
Knowing the roofing material helps determine both what you should inspect and how you should inspect it.

Does a Home Inspector Have to Walk on the Roof?
Not necessarily. Whether a roof should be walked depends on safety, accessibility, roof conditions, weather, roofing material, applicable standards of practice, and the inspector’s professional judgment.
There are many situations where walking a roof may be unsafe or inappropriate.
Examples include:
Steep roof pitches
Wet roofing
Snow or ice
High winds
Deteriorated roofing materials
Fragile roofing such as slate or tile
Extremely high roofs
Limited ladder access
Roof configurations creating fall hazards
If you can’t safely walk the roof, alternative inspection methods may include inspecting from the roof edge, viewing it from the ground with binoculars, using an approved camera system, or utilizing a drone where appropriate and legally permitted.
A good inspector doesn’t take unnecessary risks just to say the roof was walked.