Roofing Cert Help

Roofing/Construction Questions
#1

Hello -

I’m out of CA. Hoping someone can help me with this question. I have a roof certification on my home as part of the purchase. Two weeks after the very was issued the roof began to leak and has leaked four times in the same place and twice in a separate area for a total of fix leaks in less than ten months. The roofer does not seem to be actually fixing the issue. Is there anything I can do? I understand a 2 year cert does not guarantee a leak free roof but the same exact leak over and over every rain seems like the roofer isn’t holding up his end of the contract and is performing sub standard work.

How many attempts to fix the leak is reasonable? Is filing a complaint with the state board against his license for poor workmanship and having different contractor complete the repair with the expectation of him paying for it via the complaint the only alternative?

#2

Yes, you have vented and explained what happened from your perspective. It is terrible to experience circumstances such as this, sincerely. Maybe you should not have agreed to the original selection of roofer? Maybe you shouldn’t have accepted an untrusted “expert” as the influencer on the deal closing in the first place? Maybe you had some structural issues which make the roof problematic and modifications are warranted? Maybe the realtor, your realtor, should have given you better guidance? Maybe you shouldn’t have purchased the house and were just too eager? Maybe your expectations of a hostile tradesperson are unrealistic? Maybe your reaction is not unreasonable and maybe it is?

With so many maybes, it might be best you speak to a lawyer because many of the answers you’ll get here center around speculation of what the other side of the story is. You may not like the answers.

Sometimes it’s best to hire a “General” to lead you into the battle you’re facing.

EDIT: Consider asking for commentary on one question at a time as opposed to comments on a story? You’ll likely get better responses of which some may be of value. Best of luck!

#3

Buyers; Never accept the opinion of contractors chosen by the seller. Also, never accept a contract for reroof obtained by the seller. Do you think they give a shit as they are pulling the moving van out of the driveway for the last time? Hire your own contractor to inspect and accept the allowance held back (always low). Add a couple grand and hire a contractor you are confident in. When sellers contact us I always advise them that we are probably not the right choice, as we will be kind of expensive. They hire us on the other side for the home they purchase and care more about.

#4

Thanks - super helpful. I hope that if you ever find yourself in a situation you’ve never been in before that someone takes an extra second out of their evening to help you out, instead of telling you that you should have known better. Have a good evening.

#5

I was actually trying to help others that may find themselves in your situation. I’m sorry you ended up there and I certainly didn’t mean to rub it in. My apologies.

1 Like
#6

Thanks I revised it to cut to the chase. Yes, I’ve had all those maybes floating around in my head the moment I woke up to the nightmare! Thank you for helping!

#7

I have also heard stories of roofers being on the hook for certifying bad roofs so there may be something there to pursue. Good luck

#8

Ahh Gotchya! I probably read that wrong! Makes sense now! Yeah - I wouldn’t want to see others in this spot haha thanks for clarifying I appreciate it. Sorry I miss understood where you were going!

#9

Ok. I see. I’ll look into that. Thanks!

#10

I used to do certs, but would never stick my neck in the noose. Realtors kept trying to get me to sign off. Not until repairs were complete.

#11

Does the roof certification include any warranty? If there’s no warranty then no. My guess is that there is no warranty. As far as leak repairs go, we don’t warranty leak repairs either. It’s too hard to tell where water is coming from. We do offer a warranty on partial roof replacements where we replace the entire side of the roof the leak is on.

#12

We will cert some roofs but it will cost you. One bit us in the butt about 15 + yrs ago so if i need to cert a roof i will be nit picking every detail of it. If its leaking that much it could be that you need a roof or your roofer is unqualified. If its leaked that much i think your best served getting another opinion. Contact a roofing company for an inspection.

What type of roof are we talking about here anyway…Flat ?

#15

The two sections that have the leaks are flat. The rest of the roof is a low pitch but asphalt shingles without leaks. I video taped his “inspection” the two places that leaked are places he indicated didn’t need attention.

#16

I would insist a different person from the roofing company look at it and provide you with the plan to fix it. I was amused by the guarantee it wont leak but if it does i am not responsible for interior damage portion… how convenient. Bet if that wording was not in there this would be fixed.

Hopefully you can get someone else from the company to look at it. If the same guy keeps coming out to repair it, demand someone else do the work, you dont want that guy back.

#17

That is crazy! A roof cert and a warranty! Here is how mine would look: the roof appears to be in serviceable condition and should be viable for up to 3 years. Inspection is related to surface condition only and can not verify proper fastening or detail work in valleys or around walls or roof penetrations. And this is for roofs that look almost new.

#18

Yeah… it’s the owner of the company lol

#19

I thought I was reading it wrong initially but then I was thinking… if you inspected the roof, certified it, repaired it… shouldn’t the repair then fall under the “two year” guarantee?

#20

The matter I’d like clarity on is whether certification is a standardized practice governed by state guidelines or whether it is discretionary and a “feel good” sweetener in resale transactions? If it happens to be the latter, then it would unreasonable to gauge this certification against a standard as no standard exists?

We do not have this requirement in our area but if I read this correctly, it is something commonly used in real estate resale transactions in California? If that is indeed so, it should be available to compare it to what is “widely accepted” as a standard. It will there also detail what is commonly covered. If you were issued a discretionary version which was “pared back”, why is that and was a more comprehensive certification available but not offered?

“NO NAME CONTRACTOR assumes no liability for any interior damage due to leaks. This roof is guaranteed for two years”. What does the latter part of this statement mean? What is considered “This Roof” and what is “Guaranteed” meant to guarantee?

Yup, get a lawyer because interpretation most definitely defines the execution of this certification.

#21

I took it down because I didn’t see that the companies name was still visible. Now it should be completely blacked out.

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