How Much Does a New Roof Cost in Florida?

The cost of a roof replacement can’t easily be summed up with a one-size-fits-all online roofing calculator. In fact, it almost always takes a professional to tell you the cost of a new roof. And that’s because there are a lot of factors at play in determining how much a new roof costs: the neighborhood you live in, climate, local building codes, permit requirements, the size of the lot, the design of the home, the number of roof penetrations (chimneys, skylights, etc.)— all these variables will factor into the cost of a new roof.

But at Classic Roofing and Construction, we understand that everyone wants to know what they’re paying for. So today, we’re going to look at how different factors can greatly impact the cost of your new roof in Florida. And we’ll start with one of the biggest cost considerations: the roofing material.

How Roofing Material Affects New Roof Costs

As you can imagine, your choice of roofing material will have a huge impact on the total cost of your new roof. But what can you expect to pay? Keep in mind that these numbers can fluctuate with the market. That said, below is what you can expect your new roofing materials to cost:

• Asphalt Shingles: As the classic option, asphalt shingles can last for 15-25 years and are a very budget-friendly roofing material. It’s important to remember that asphalt shingles are available in three-tab, architectural, and luxury varieties, and each has its own benefits and price range. For this reason, the cost of a new shingle roof can range from $200 to $600+ per 100 square feet. Or, for a home of 3,000 square feet, between $6,000 and $18,000.
• Concrete Tiles: Unlike shingles, concrete tiles can last from 30-50 years, offering much more value over time. But this extra value comes with an increased up-front cost. Per 100 square feet, you can expect to pay $385 to $700. This means that for a concrete tile roof on a 3,000-square-foot home, you can expect your new roof costs to be between $11,550 and $21,000.
• Clay Tiles: Clay tile roofs do even better than concrete and can last up to 100 years. As a result, they cost between $835 and $1,525 per 100 square feet. Or, for a 3,000-square-foot home, between $11,500 and $21,000.
• Metal: Metal roofs are an extremely popular roofing material right now. And because they last for 40-70 years and stand up well against Florida’s extreme weather, they are among the most expensive roofing materials on the market. Per 100 square feet, you can expect to pay $1,150 to $2,050. On a 3000-square-foot home, this looks new roof costs between $34,500 and $61,500.

These are what people think of when they hear that roofing materials impact your total new roof costs. But the truth is that there are many other roofing materials to consider.

Other Roofing Materials

In addition to the roofing materials listed above, your new roof is going to need more support to keep your home or business dry and protected. This is because a roof’s security is about more than just the exterior roofing materials—it’s about creating a comprehensive roofing system with parts that work together to keep your property safe.

Some of these additional roofing materials include:

• A leak barrier, which helps prevent leaks caused by wind-driven rain.
• Roof deck protection, which shields the roof deck from moisture infiltration.
• Attic ventilation to help reduce attic moisture and heat, adding years to your roof’s performance while saving on air conditioning costs during Florida’s hot summers.
• Roof flashing, which is a thin metal material that the team at Classic Roofing & Construction installs to direct water away from walls, chimneys, and roof valleys.
• Drip edge, which is an angled flashing that redirects water from the fascia into the gutters and downspouts.
• Gutters and downspouts. Sometimes your current gutters can remain on the home. However, if they have been damaged by storms or another weather event, it may be time to replace them.

All of these additional materials will factor into your new roof costs, so it’s important to be aware of them. And while everyone wants to keep roofing costs down, these items are just as important as the primary material covering your roof, so it’s important to think of them as investments in the safety of your structure.

Now that we’ve covered how roofing materials impact new roof costs in Florida, let’s look at another major factor in cost: labor.

How Much Does a New Roof Cost in Labor?

Time is money. So the amount of time and labor it will take to replace your roof will be a significant portion of the overall new roof costs. At Classic Roofing & Construction, most of our roof replacement jobs are performed over one to three days in St. Petersburg, Tampa, Clearwater, and Fort Myers, Florida. The variables depend on the size of the structure, the number of roofers needed for a specific project, accessibility to the home or commercial structure, and local weather.

With 20 years of experience, the team at Classic Roofing & Construction knows exactly how many highly skilled and trained team members to provide for each of our roofing projects. Roofing is one of the more difficult trades in homebuilding. Provide too many roofers, and they will be tripping over each other. Provide too few and the project takes too long, and roofers can be overworked. Fatigued craftsmen can get hurt on the job or make mistakes. The goal is to pinpoint the exact sweet spot to get the roofing project done quickly and efficiently while keeping highly trained team members safe.

And at Classic, you can trust that every member of our crew is a professional. Because, unlike our competitors, we don’t use inexperienced subcontractors to lower roofing costs. Instead, we invest in experienced roofing professionals that are 100% in-house, Classic employees. Because we wouldn’t want inexperienced roofers on top of our homes, so why would we send them to yours?

When determining how much a new roof costs in Florida, the materials and labor are the biggest factors to consider. But that doesn’t make them the only factors.

Other Factors in How Much a New Roof Costs

The factors below can do a lot to influence how much your new roof costs. As you try to plan for how much your new roof will cost, keep these in mind to have a full picture.

Size and Complexity of the Roof

Obviously, the square footage of your roof will impact costs. But complexity is also a factor. How many hips or valleys and the steepness or pitch will also increase costs. It takes a lot longer to install materials on complicated roofing systems, and some roofs may even require additional safety equipment.

The height of a building will also affect total new roof costs. The higher the roof, the more safety precautions craftsmen must employ. For their own safety, installers must move slower and with more caution, taking more time to complete the job.

Disposal Costs

Ideally, Classic Roofing & Construction can deliver a 15 to 20-cubic-foot roll-off dumpster to handle the debris from your roof replacement. Then our expert roofers can make quick work of your old roofing materials, nails, and damaged underlayment. Your old roofing materials are then deposited into the dumpster. However, if accessibility is impinged by fencing, landscaping, or other obstacles, then this will require more labor and time, which will increase the total new roof costs.

Roof Penetrations

A roof penetration is anything poking out of your roof. This can include plumbing vents, bathroom vents, chimneys, skylights, or solar tubes. The more penetrations your roof has, the more it will cost in labor to ensure they are sealed correctly. The good news is that smaller pipes or vents don’t add much to the final cost. However, larger-sized penetrations, such as chimneys and skylights, can require more labor to install flashing and sealants, so they can add substantially more to the cost of your roof replacement.

Roof Decking Replacement

Roof decking is the building material that is installed over joists and trusses. It’s usually OSB (oriented strand board) or plywood. The roof deck is where all roofing materials are installed to protect your home from the elements. Once all the roofing material is removed, rotted or damaged decking must be replaced to ensure your home is protected. This labor and time will increase the cost of the project.

Operating Expenses

Every roofing company in Florida has operating expenses that are fixed and constant. These operating expenses are distributed over each project the company agrees to take on. Common operating expenses include:

• Advertising and promotions
• Vehicles, including fuel, insurance, and maintenance
• Cost for the place of business
• Licenses and bonds
• General liability insurance
• Workers’ compensation insurance
• Training
• Taxes, both federal and state
• Communications, including landlines and cell phones
• Technology like computers, iPads, tablets, and printers.

How to Find Out How Much Your New Roof Costs

As you can see, there are simply too many factors to calculate new roof costs without knowing specifics. But that doesn’t mean that it has to be difficult to find out how much your new roof costs.

At Classic, all you have to do to get a comprehensive view of new roof costs is schedule your free roofing estimate. Once scheduled, a roofing expert will give your roof a quick inspection to identify the size, slope, and any unique roofing features. Using this information, they’ll put together an estimate of how much your roof replacement will cost.

Or, if you’d prefer not to have an in-person inspection, you can sign up for an express roofing estimate. With this option, our team will pull satellite images of your structure and use those to get all of the measurements and information that we need to compile an estimate. This process is so quick that we normally can get customers their estimates within three hours of receiving the form. However, if there are any trees or other obstacles blocking the satellite image of the structure, we will have to conduct an in-person inspection instead.

Regardless of which method you choose, getting a roof replacement estimate is the most important step in determining your new roof costs. Once you have several estimates in hand from different roofing companies, Classic will be happy to work with you to see what we can do to earn your business. Give us a chance and see why we’re still Tampa Bay’s top roofers after 20 years.

New Roof Costs – Video