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Re-roofs · Stuart

Roof replacement in Stuart, FL

Nearly half of Stuart's housing, 46.3 percent, was built before 1980, so a roof replacement in Stuart usually means tearing off a covering laid on a deck nailed long before today's wind rules. Once that covering is off, Florida's code adds two jobs to the re-roof: re-nailing the deck and sealing it with a secondary water barrier.

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Updated October 2026

Drone view of a single-story home mid re-roof: part of the roof stripped to white synthetic underlayment, the rest still in gray shingles, a dump trailer of debris and a pickup in the driveway.

Local know-how

Re-roofing Stuart's pre-1980 houses

Section R908.7 of the Florida Residential Code takes over the moment a covering comes off a house with a sawn-lumber, plank or wood-panel deck. The deck's attachment has to meet R908.7.1 and a secondary water barrier goes down under R908.7.2, whatever year the house was built.

The nails already in the deck decide the work. On plywood or OSB, staples or 6d nails at any spacing get supplemental ring-shank nails no more than 6 inches apart; 8d nails at 6 inches or closer stay as they are, and wider 8d spacing is filled in to 6 inches (Table R908.7.1.2). For the water barrier the code offers three routes: self-adhering membrane over the whole deck, taped seams under a full underlayment, or two lapped layers of felt-type underlayment (R905.1.1.1).

That sealed layer earns its place here. FEMA's Hurricane Michael advisory found a secondary seal can significantly cut the water that gets in when shingles blow off, and Stuart Beach logged the strongest sustained wind Isaias produced in southeast Florida, 42 knots, in 2020.

Some Stuart roofs also sit on the city's historic map. If your house is in the East Stuart Historic District, check with the city's historic preservation program before you choose a material or color.

Permit

The City of Stuart re-roof permit and its paperwork

Inside city limits the permit comes from the City of Stuart Building Division, not the county. There is no plan review for a reroof, yet two inspections remain: the sheathing check with the dry-in, then a roofing inspection of dry-in, insulation, coverings and flashing (FBC-Building 107 and 110.3).

Two papers protect you. The permit card warns that failing to record a Notice of Commencement can mean paying twice for the work, and the notice has to be recorded and posted at the house before the first inspection (FBC-Building 105.8; section 713.135). The permit itself lapses if work does not start within 6 months of issue.

Applications filed on or after December 31, 2026 move to the code's Ninth Edition.

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Questions

Roof replacement in Stuart: questions

Will a Stuart re-roof need a new underlayment system?

Yes. Whenever a covering is removed and replaced, section R908.7.2 requires a secondary water barrier, laid by one of the three methods in R905.1.1.1. On the state's wind mitigation form that layer can also count as a sealed roof deck, but the form says standard underlayment or hot-mopped felts do not qualify, so the method matters. On the 46.3 percent of Stuart homes built before 1980, the original roofs went on long before this rule existed.

Source: 2023 FBC-Residential R908.7 and R905.1.1.1 (UpCodes, unofficial transcription); OIR-B1-1802 (Rev. 04/26), read October 4-5, 2026.

Related: Roof replacement

Can a new roof go over the old one on a Stuart house?

Often the code settles it first. A full tear-off is required when the existing roof is water-soaked or too worn to serve as a base, when it is wood shake, slate, clay or cement tile, when it already has two or more layers, or when blisters or securement problems rule it out (R908.3). The 2023 code's own re-cover sections read "Reserved", and whether a given office accepts a shingle overlay was not something our research could confirm, so ask the City of Stuart Building Division before planning one.

Source: 2023 FBC-Residential R908.3 (UpCodes, unofficial transcription), read October 5, 2026.

Related: Roof replacement

Should I get a new wind mitigation report after re-roofing in Stuart?

It is worth asking your agent. The current form, OIR-B1-1802 (Rev. 04/26), stays valid for up to five years only if no material changes are made to the structure, and a re-roof changes items the form grades, such as how the deck is nailed and whether it is sealed. On a house from around Stuart's 1982 median year, the old report may describe the original deck rather than the re-nailed one. Insurers must offer credits for features that reduce wind loss, and your insurer or agent can say which apply.

Source: Florida OIR form OIR-B1-1802; Fla. Stat. 627.0629, read October 4, 2026.

Sources for this page(40)
  1. 1.Share of homes built before 1980: 46.3%. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024), table B25034, via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  2. 2.Official website: City of Stuart, East Stuart Historic District. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  3. 3.Permit office: City of Stuart - Building Division. City of Stuart - Building Division. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  4. 4.Median year homes were built: 1982. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024), table B25035, via Census Reporter API. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  5. 5.Hurricane Isaias (2020). NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Isaias (AL092020). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  6. 6.Florida Building Commission, 'Setting New Standards for Safety: The Florida Building Code' (2004 publication; wind-speed figures in it are outdated and not used). Read Oct 5, 2026.
  7. 7.FBCR Ch. 9. Read Oct 4, 2026.
  8. 8.FEMA Recovery Advisory 2. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  9. 9.FBC-B 2023 Ch. 1. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  10. 10.2023 Florida Building Code, Building, 8th ed., Chapter 1 (UpCodes viewer, unofficial transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026. FBC text read from UpCodes (unofficial transcription): check floridabuilding.org or the ICC viewer before quoting (spec 8.7). Source URL inherited from C-3 (the research cites it "as C-3").
  11. 11.Miami-Dade County RER notice. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  12. 12.Florida OIR, Uniform Mitigation Verification Inspection Form OIR-B1-1802. Read Oct 4, 2026.
  13. 13.Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, Uniform Mitigation Verification Inspection Form OIR-B1-1802 (Rev. 04/26). Read Oct 4, 2026.
  14. 14.Florida Statutes, section 627.0629 (2026). Read Oct 4, 2026.
  15. 15.U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024), table B25034, via Census Reporter API, U.S. Census Bureau. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  16. 16.City of Stuart - Building Division, City of Stuart. Read Oct 5, 2026. Permit office for this place (official page checked 2026-10-05).
  17. 17.NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Isaias (AL092020), NOAA National Hurricane Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  18. 18.Florida Statutes, section 713.135 (2026), Florida Legislature. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  19. 19.Wikipedia, 'Stuart, Florida' (revision 1374938628), Wikipedia. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  20. 20.Wikipedia, 'List of municipalities in Florida', Wikipedia. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  21. 21.U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024), table B25035, via Census Reporter API, U.S. Census Bureau. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  22. 22.U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024), table B25003, via Census Reporter API, U.S. Census Bureau. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  23. 23.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census counts (POP100, HU100) via TIGERweb tigerWMS_Census2020 (county and incorporated-place POP100), U.S. Census Bureau. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  24. 24.Official website: City of Stuart, Emergency Permitting, City of Stuart. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  25. 25.NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Matthew (AL142016), NOAA National Hurricane Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  26. 26.NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Nicole (AL172022), NOAA National Hurricane Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  27. 27.NOAA Storm Prediction Center, preliminary storm reports 2024-10-09, NOAA Storm Prediction Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  28. 28.OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 (declarations since 2016-01-01 for this county), FEMA. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  29. 29.NOAA National Hurricane Center, Tropical Cyclone Climatology, NOAA National Hurricane Center. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  30. 30.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census counts (POP100, HU100) via TIGERweb tigerWMS_Census2020 layer 26 (Incorporated Places), U.S. Census Bureau. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  31. 31.Senate SB 808 staff analysis pp. 3-4, The Florida Senate. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  32. 32.Florida Statutes, section 718.112 (2026), Florida Legislature. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  33. 33.FBC-Building 2023 Chapter 2 definitions, UpCodes (Florida Building Code transcription). Read Oct 5, 2026. Unofficial transcription (UpCodes); verify on floridabuilding.org.
  34. 34.Florida Statutes, section 553.842 (2026), Florida Legislature. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  35. 35.Florida Building Commission. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  36. 36.ICC Building Safety Journal, Karl Fippinger, 2024-02-07. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  37. 37.FEMA FL-RA2, FEMA. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  38. 38.NOAA NHC, NOAA. Read Oct 5, 2026.
  39. 39.Florida Statutes, section 627.7011 (2026), Florida Legislature. Read Oct 4, 2026.
  40. 40.Insp4pt 03 25. Read Oct 4, 2026.

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Roof replacement in Stuart

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