Repair or Replace? A Roof Check for Kansas City, MO
Wondering if your roof can be patched or has run its course? Answer five short questions about its age, its material and what you can spot from the yard. You'll get a starting point for a home anywhere in Kansas City, Missouri, across Jackson, Clay and Platte counties, and a roofer's visit settles the rest.
Before You Start
The check weighs four things a roofer would ask about first: how old the roof is, what it's made of, the signs you can see, and whether storms or repeat repairs are part of its story. Your answers lead to one of three results, from "a repair may be all you need" to "replacement is likely on the table." A sagging roofline always lands on at least the middle result, because it can point to trouble below the shingles.
Stay on the ground while you look. Binoculars from the sidewalk or a back corner of the yard show most of what matters, and the attic can reveal stains or daylight through the boards. Roofs here take a beating over the years: hail and gusty wind in spring, summer heat, winters of freezing and thawing that can build ice dams, and limbs from big oaks and maples. Any of these can age a roof faster than its label suggests.
This quiz can't see your roof, so treat its answer as a reason to look closer, not a verdict. It works the same way for many older brick and frame homes, postwar ranches and newer Northland subdivisions.
Where to Go From Here
If you'd like a roofer to take a look, send a request through the form; one independent local roofer receives it, sets up a time to see the roof and prepares a written estimate. To put rough numbers on a new roof first, try the roof cost calculator. For fixes short of a full replacement, the roof repair page covers leaks, lifted shingles and flashing.