Roof repair in Valrico, FL

Florida limits patching to 25 percent of a roof or roof section across any 12-month stretch. When repair work goes past that share, you must replace or recover the whole roof section. A roof falls under the exception only if that roof was itself built, repaired or replaced in compliance with the 2007 Florida Building Code or any later edition, and the 2007 code took effect March 1, 2009. In that case, only the repaired portion has to meet current code.

Your home's build year does not tell you which side of that line your roof falls on. About 59.1 percent of Valrico homes were built before 2000, and a roof may have been redone since, so find the date of the last reroof permit. By our arithmetic, that leaves roughly 41 percent built in 2000 or later.

Once your roof reaches 15 years of age, your insurer must allow an authorized inspector to examine it at your own expense. Age alone cannot be the reason it refuses or non-renews you when that inspection finds 5 or more years of useful life remaining. Your insurer or agent can tell you how that rule applies to your policy.

Stay off a wet or damaged roof. From the ground, look for missing or cracked tabs, exposed felt, granule loss and stains on ceilings. These are the same items an insurer's inspector checks. Photograph them, then cover openings only from a safe position.

Because Valrico is unincorporated, the Hillsborough County building office issues roof permits. Small repairs may be allowed without a permit at the building official's discretion, so ask the office before you start.

With 79 percent of occupied homes owner-occupied, most repair decisions here fall to the homeowner. Fla. Stat. 489.147 bars roofing contractors from soliciting insurance claims or offering anything of value for an inspection. Take questions about coverage to your insurer.