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Flat & low-slopeFree roof inspection with deck photos before we talk money - GAF and Owens Corning certified installation
Fast, Reliable Roof Inspection Across San Francisco
A roof inspection in San Francisco typically runs $250 – $550 for a standard visual and moisture assessment, and $600 – $1,200 when thermal imaging or drone work is needed on a steep Victorian or Edwardian. We schedule most San Francisco inspections within 3 – 5 business days and deliver a written report with photos, findings, and line-item Roof Repair - San Francisco costs within 48 hours of the visit. Call (831) 318-8819 to get a roof inspection scheduled in San Francisco.
San Francisco roofing is different from roofing anywhere else in the Bay Area. The housing stock is old, the lots are tight, the fog is relentless, and the city’s review process is its own animal. Our Roof Inspection team works these conditions every week, from the Sunset to Noe Valley, from Bernal Heights to the Marina. We know what a 1910 Edwardian roof needs because we’ve walked dozens of them.
Key Takeaways
- Roof inspection in San Francisco costs $250 – $1,200 depending on scope and access.
- Fog-belt rot in the Sunset and Richmond districts hides at the bottom edge of cedar shingles.
- Homes over 50 years old can trigger CEQA historic review even for an inspection.
- Every report includes photos, moisture readings, and written repair pricing before any work starts.
Why Brennan Roofing Co San Francisco Is San Francisco’s Preferred Roof Inspection Company
We operate under the Garrison Standard, and it applies to every inspection we perform in San Francisco. That means a written price before we set foot on the roof, background-checked uniformed technicians who show up inside the promised window, and a full-year written guarantee on any repair work that follows. Travis Oakley runs the crew, and the standard is the same on a one-hour inspection in the Excelsior as it is on a full replacement in Pacific Heights.
San Francisco homeowners call us because we answer the phone with a live person, 24/7. No voicemail, no automated system, no callback queue. That matters when you’ve got a stain spreading across your ceiling after a winter storm and you need to know if it’s a flashing failure or something worse.
Our inspectors work San Francisco’s specific housing stock every day: two- and three-story wood-frame Victorians and Edwardians built between 1880 and 1920, often in rows with shared walls and minimal setbacks. We know where these roofs fail and what to check first. We also know the city’s permit and review triggers, which is not something every roofer bothers to learn until it costs a homeowner money.
Styles & brands we work with
Hail Damage Roof in San Francisco
Hail Damage Roof inspections in San Francisco are less about golf-ball-size hail and more about what the marine layer does to shingles and flashing after years of damp exposure. San Francisco rarely sees severe hail, but we do see granule loss on aged composition shingles, impact bruising on older cedar, and flashing that’s been slowly worked loose by wind-driven rain. A hail damage roof assessment here means checking for impact fractures, granule erosion, and hidden moisture under the membrane, then documenting everything for an insurance claim if one exists.
What We Check on a Hail Damage Roof Assessment
We start at the downslope edges and work up, because that’s where fog condensation pools and where damage concentrates. On composition shingles, we look for bruising, cracked matting, and granule loss in the valleys and around penetrations. On cedar, we probe the bottom 12 inches of every shingle course. In the Sunset and Richmond, that bottom edge is where hidden soft decking hides, even when the upper roof looks sound.
Documentation for Insurance Claims
If the damage is storm-related, the report has to stand up to an adjuster’s review. We photograph every finding, take moisture readings, and map the affected squares so you have a defensible record. The price goes on paper before any work starts and it does not move at the door.
Roof Estimate in San Francisco
A Roof Estimate in San Francisco should never be a ballpark thrown over the phone and never a number that changes when the crew shows up. We provide a written line-item quote after the inspection, covering materials, labor, permits, and any access constraints specific to your property. For a standard composition shingle replacement on a typical San Francisco row house, that estimate generally runs $12,000 – $22,000 depending on square count, decking condition, and access. A roof estimate for repairs, like replacing flashing or a section of rotted decking, runs $400 – $3,500.
What Drives Cost on a San Francisco Roof Estimate
Three San Francisco-specific factors move the number: access, shared walls, and review triggers. A roof on a three-story Victorian in Noe Valley with a 6-foot side yard costs more than the same roof on a standalone house in Daly City, because staging options are limited and every piece of material has to be walked or hoisted carefully. Party walls mean coordinating with neighbors and sealing vents before tear-off. And if the building is over 50 years old, the estimate has to account for a possible CEQA pre-check with SF Planning before we pull the first shingle.
You Get the Number Before You Decide Anything
No work starts until you have a written price in hand. That’s not a sales tactic. It’s the Garrison Standard. If the scope changes during the job because we find something the inspection couldn’t see, you get a written change order and you approve it before we proceed. There are no surprises at the door.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Francisco
We inspect, repair, and replace roofing systems built on Owens Corning, IKO, and Atlas materials, and we stock common local parts so San Francisco turnaround stays fast. We also work with GAF, Certainteed repair in San Francisco, Tamko, and Boral product lines. When a report calls out a warranty question, we can tell you whether the issue looks like a manufacturer defect or an installation failure, and we’ll document it either way. The report is yours, and it’s written so you can take it to any contractor or file it for your records.
Common Roof Inspection Problems We See in San Francisco Homes
- Fog-belt rot at the eave line. Inspectors who don’t probe the bottom 12 inches of cedar shingles on Sunset and Richmond roofs miss hidden soft decking that fails the first winter rain. We probe, because we’ve seen the call-backs.
- Party-wall blind spots. Lifting ridge or eave sections without coordinating the shared wall triggers noise complaints and fines under SF’s 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. construction-noise ordinance. We file the notice and schedule around the neighbor.
- Historic review triggers. A 1910 Edwardian is not an ordinary roof. If the inspection is treated as alteration, the district’s survey forms can put the homeowner into an unexpected Planning review and issue a stop-work order. We run the pre-inspection screening first.
- Flashing failures at penetrations. Chimneys, skylights, and vent pipes on century-old row houses are the most common leak points in San Francisco. We inspect every penetration and moisture-test the surrounding decking, not just the shingles.
See the difference
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After
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AfterPricing for Roof Inspection in San Francisco, CA
Here are the numbers San Francisco homeowners actually pay. A standard visual roof inspection runs $250 – $400. Adding a moisture scan and thermal imaging pushes it to $450 – $700. Drone inspection for steep or inaccessible roofs costs $350 – $600. A full inspection with a written repair estimate and documentation package runs $500 – $1,200 for complex Victorians and Edwardians with multiple penetrations and shared-wall access requirements. What moves the price: roof height and pitch, number of roof penetrations, whether we need drone or thermal equipment, and whether a Planning pre-check is required. Estimates are free, and the inspection price is locked before we arrive.
| Inspection Type | San Francisco Price Range |
|---|---|
| Standard visual inspection | $250 – $400 |
| Moisture scan + thermal imaging | $450 – $700 |
| Drone inspection (steep or high roofs) | $350 – $600 |
| Full documentation package with repair estimate | $500 – $1,200 |
Call (831) 318-8819 for an exact quote. The estimate is free, and the inspection price is in writing before we start.
Roof Inspection on a Tight San Francisco Lot: How Access Shapes the Job
San Francisco’s dense rows of wood-framed Victorians and Edwardians, many over 100 years old, sit in a marine climate with wind-driven rain and salt air. Roofing here is dominated by managing moisture intrusion on steep, ornate roofs with limited access from narrow lots and strict historic district regulations. That’s the backdrop for every inspection we do in San Francisco.
On a three-story Victorian in Noe Valley with a shared party wall, our crew ran a moisture scan and found rotted decking and failed flashing at the chimney, plus missing drip edge along the lower eaves. Because the south neighbor’s wall was within arm’s reach, we set up a controlled drop zone in the 6-foot side yard, coordinated a two-hour window for their vents to be sealed, and filed the pre-inspection screening form with SF Planning before removing the first shingle. The final report mapped five squares of compromised underlayment and called for ice and water shield at the eaves before replacement.
That’s not an unusual day. That’s a Tuesday in San Francisco.
In much of San Francisco, any roof inspection that involves touching a building over 50 years old can trigger a determination of historic resource under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). In practice, a routine inspection can turn into a review process with Planning before a nail is pulled. A homeowner in Daly City or Oakland rarely faces that on a standard residential roof. We know the forms, we know the districts, and we flag the trigger before it becomes a stop-work order.
Staging and parking on a tight lot also affect the quote. If we need a street permit for a truck or a hoist, that’s a line item. If we need to walk materials through a 4-foot gangway, that adds labor hours. We keep the site clean with daily debris removal, tarps over landscaping, and a magnet sweep for nails at the end of every workday. The neighbors stay onside when the site stays controlled.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Francisco
Our crews serve San Francisco and the surrounding communities, including Roof Inspection in San Francisco, Daly City, Berkeley, San Bruno, and Albany. If you’re just outside the city and need a roof inspection with the same Garrison Standard, call (831) 318-8819 and we’ll get you scheduled.
Serving San Francisco, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Francisco area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Roof Inspection in San Francisco
A visual inspection that involves no removal of roofing material generally does not require a permit. But if the inspection involves touching a building over 50 years old, which includes most of San Francisco’s housing stock, the work can trigger a CEQA historic resource review through SF Planning. We run the pre-inspection screening before any shingle is lifted, so you don’t get a surprise stop-work order. Call (831) 318-8819 to ask about your specific property.
Sunset and Richmond district roofs sit directly in the fog belt. The marine layer keeps cedar shingles damp for months, and rot concentrates at the bottom 12 inches where moisture lingers. Noe Valley roofs sit higher and drier, but they’re often on steeper Victorians with more penetrations and shared walls. A good San Francisco inspector adjusts the inspection protocol to the microclimate and the building type. We do both.
A party wall means your roof structure is physically connected to your neighbor’s. Lifting ridge or eave sections sends vibration and debris onto their side, and SF’s noise ordinance and neighbor-notice rules kick in. We coordinate with the adjacent owner, seal their vents, and schedule the work inside the allowed hours. Skipping that step can halt a job mid-inspection. Call (831) 318-8819 if you’re on a shared-wall property.
We can identify the manufacturer and approximate product line in most cases, and we can document installation or manufacturing defects that may be covered. But a visual check alone doesn’t confirm warranty coverage. The manufacturer’s representative makes the final call, and our report gives you the documentation to start that conversation with evidence, not guesses.
You want photos of every finding, moisture readings at each penetration, a map of affected squares, a written condition assessment of the decking and underlayment, and line-item repair or replacement costs. The report should also note any party-wall coordination, permit or CEQA triggers, and access constraints that will affect the job. That’s what we deliver. Call (831) 318-8819 to schedule your inspection and get the free estimate.
Written by Travis Oakley, Owner at Brennan Roofing Co San Francisco, serving San Francisco under the Garrison Standard.
For a free roof inspection estimate in San Francisco, call (831) 318-8819. A live person answers, 24/7, and the price goes in writing before any work starts.