Sacramento County · agents, escrow, sellers, buyers
A Roof Certification That Will Hold Up
A licensed contractor’s written statement that the roof shows no active leaks, with an estimated remaining service life. Flat fee for the inspection and the document. Repairs, if any are needed, itemised with photographs rather than bundled into one number nobody can interrogate.
Cutting Edge General Contracting · CSLB #1007180 · General Building (B) · verify at cslb.ca.gov
What we will not sign
- A remaining-life term the roof does not support — however close the closing date is
- A certification on a roof we have not properly inspected
- A bundled “repairs needed to certify” figure with no itemisation
- A promise that any underwriter or carrier will accept the document, because that is not our determination
Our inspection fee is flat regardless of findings, and we will decline to certify a roof that does not merit it even after being paid. The document carries our licence number.
Four reasons people need one
The appraiser flagged the roof
FHA, VA and conventional appraisals look at condition and remaining life. A flag appears late, because appraisal is already weeks into escrow.
FHA & VA roof requirementsThe home inspector punted
“Recommend evaluation by a licensed roofing contractor” appears in a large share of reports. That sentence is what sends agents looking for this.
Certification vs home inspectionThe carrier sent a notice
Roof condition is now one of the main reasons California homeowners get a non-renewal, frequently on aerial imagery that is out of date.
Insurance roof inspectionsYou are about to list
The cheapest version of this problem. Same fee, no appraisal surprise, and the roof stops being a renegotiation lever.
Pre-listing roof inspectionA contractor who certifies and repairs has an incentive to find repairs
That is simply true, and pretending otherwise would be the least credible thing on this page. So: the inspection is a flat fee regardless of what we find, every repair is itemised and photographed, and you are free to have the repairs done by anyone you like and bring us back to certify.
You are equally free to have another licensed contractor certify work we performed. We would rather be checkable than trusted.
How the fee and the repairs are pricedSheathing is the item that grows
Roughly 37% of permitted Sacramento County re-roofs involve sheathing, dry rot or structural work, and nobody can see under the covering before it comes off. So we fix the rate per sheet before anyone starts and photograph every sheet replaced.
Source: Sacramento County Accela permit records, unincorporated county, 2023–2025.
What usually has to be repairedOn a tile roof, the tile is not the roof
Tile outlives the underlayment beneath it by decades. A tile roof can look immaculate from the street and be at the end of its waterproof life — which is why our tile inspections lift tiles in representative areas instead of assessing the surface.
A certification that only looked at the tile is close to meaningless on these roofs.
Certifying a tile roofWhere we work
Sacramento · Elk Grove · Folsom · Citrus Heights · Rancho Cordova · Carmichael · Galt · Rio Linda and the rest of Sacramento County, CA.
Common questions
- What is a roof certification?
- A licensed contractor's written statement that, as of the inspection date, the roof shows no evidence of active leaks and has an estimated remaining service life. It is not a warranty, not insurance, and not a structural assessment — and there is no state certification programme, so it is only worth the licence behind it.
- How much does a roof certification cost in Sacramento?
- A flat fee for the inspection and the signed document, quoted from the address and roof type before we come out. The fee does not change based on what we find, because a fee that depends on the outcome is a reason to find a particular outcome. Repairs, if needed, are quoted separately and itemised.
- How long is a roof certification good for?
- The term is the estimated remaining life stated in the document — commonly two, three or five years. Two years became the standard because lender and appraisal guidance has long turned on that threshold. Confirm what your lender requires in writing rather than assuming.
- Does FHA require a two-year roof certification?
- FHA appraisal guidance has long centred on whether a roof has at least two years of remaining life, and lenders commonly resolve a flagged roof with a two-year certification. Requirements and lender overlays vary, so get it in writing on your specific file.
- What fails a roof certification?
- Most often details rather than the covering: perished pipe boots, chimneys sealed instead of properly flashed, lifted or missing shingles, debris-dammed valleys, failed skylight flashing, rotted fascia. A covering at end of life fails on its own terms, and repairs will not change that.
- Can you work directly with escrow?
- Yes — scope, invoices and the signed certification sent straight to escrow where you want that, so an agent is not relaying documents. Tell us the closing date when you call and we will give you an honest answer about whether it is achievable.
Lender, investor and carrier requirements vary and change. Nothing here is legal, lending or insurance advice — confirm what your file requires with the lender, carrier or counsel involved.
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