Roof inspections in Golden Beach, FL

Fla. Stat. 627.7011(5) sets two lines. A roof under 15 years old cannot be the sole reason an insurer refuses or declines to renew your homeowner's policy. At 15 years, the insurer must let you hire an authorized inspector, paid by you. If that inspector finds 5 or more years of useful life left, age alone cannot end your coverage.

Your insurer has to accept whichever inspector you hire. The statute names home inspectors, building code inspectors, roofing and general contractors, engineers and architects. In Golden Beach, where all 220 occupied homes are owner-occupied, that choice and cost fall on you. Ask your insurer or agent for its list before you book anyone.

Some insurers set their own age lines. Citizens, for example, wants proof of 5 years of remaining life on soft roofs older than 25 years and hard roofs older than 50 years. What your own policy requires is a question for your insurer or agent.

The roof section of the 4-point form records the covering material, roof age, remaining useful life, last permit date and overall condition. Insurer forms also list damage such as cracked or missing tiles, exposed felt, soft decking and visible leaks. An inspector works through that same list.

Miami-Dade is one of two counties in the High Velocity Hurricane Zone, so wind features matter too. The wind mitigation form, valid for up to five years, records deck attachment, roof-to-wall connections and the sealed roof deck. Those are attic details you cannot see from the yard.

• Before you buy or sell, so the roof's remaining life is known.
• When your insurer sends a letter about roof age.
• After a storm, since Irma left about 1,000 Miami-Dade homes with major damage.
• Before you patch more than a small part of the roof, to see whether the 25 percent rule applies.