The minute you pay off the balance for your foreclosure auction purchase its straight to the property with your contractor. We have heard it time and time again “You need a new roof bro!”.  Your heart sinks, your wallet shrieks, and you shave a zero off of your projected flip profit.

Here is a newsflash, you probably don’t need a new roof!

Is a General Contractor Really a Roof Expert?

Your general contractor, unless they are a roofing expert, needs to get you a roofing contractor with a stellar reputation to make an evaluation. A lot of roofs can be repaired, and if you are in the deal to ‘flip’ spending under $4,500 to repair a roof rather than replace the entire roof must be a consideration, unless of course you are looking at a ‘cave in’.

Can My Roof be Fixed? Probably

Here in Florida, especially South Florida markets, many roofs are tile and most types of roof tiles are easily damaged and they tend to need yearly cleanings, or they look poor.  There are many contractors that take advantage of uneducated and first-time investors and point out some broken roof tiles & mildew and exclaim “the roof needs replaced!” when in fact it just needs a power wash and $500 worth of tiles replaced.  Knowing how to spot actual damage on roofs from cosmetic repairs can change your bill from $20,000 to $2,000 easily.  
The National average of a roof repair according to Home Advisor who gathered data from 50,843 of their members is $830 however the typical range was $350 to $1,348 with the lowest end being $150 and the highest $4,500. Metal and slate roofs are the most expensive to repair followed by tile, but asphalt shingles, wood shake, composite and flat, foam or single ply are the cheaper end of the spectrum.

Less Expensive Fixes Are Usually Fine

Don’t forget if you have to add-on new fascia’s or soffits this can increase the price by a further $10 to $30 per 8′ foot board, but a good carpenter and painter should be able to fix these for much less than buying new.  There are so many ways you can overspend on your flip budget when considering roof repairs. 
Always consider the market and your strategy as well before deciding on replacing your roof vs repair & renewing it.

Save Huge on your Old Roof like She Did

The investor that inspired this article just last month received a quote by a ‘gung-ho’ contractor of $20,000 to replace the roof. After she educated herself on roofs in general and did her due diligence by getting some more quotes after talking to us, she had the slate repaired, power washed, and soffits repainted for $3,850!  She saved over $16,000 with a couple extra quotes and some Google searches on the topic and it made a world of difference in her final flip profit!

Please don’t take this article as all contractors are liars and no one ever needs a new roof.  There are many instances where a new roof is absolutely in order even if it doesn’t appear to need one when looking up at it from the yard.   If you are physically (and mentally) able to, climb up there with your contractor or roofing guy and let him show you what needs done.  Can you honestly call yourself a real estate investor and flipper if you have never stood on a roof?  Just kidding, but it is an experience you should have and consider it a milestone in your investing career.  Always trust but verify, and if you don’t have the skills to verify yourself, call in two more roofers to verify, and give you more estimates.  Never replace the roof without having three trusted and licensed roofers give you an estimate first.