Storm Damage Roof Repair in Gulf Breeze, FL

Here's a detail many people get wrong. The City of Gulf Breeze says it does not require its own permit when you are only replacing shingles, but Santa Rosa County does. So a like-for-like reroof after a storm needs only the county permit, filed online through MGO, with no city review.

The city steps in when the roof line changes, such as a new pitch or an added gable. That work needs a City of Gulf Breeze permit as well. City Hall is at 1070 Shoreline Drive, 850-934-5100.

Santa Rosa County's roofing application spells out when a roof can't be covered over. A new layer isn't allowed where the existing roof is water-soaked or too deteriorated to serve as a base, where it's wood shake, slate, clay or cement tile, or where there are already two or more layers. We skip that question entirely: every Hart replacement is torn off to the deck, then built back with synthetic underlayment, ice-and-water shield and CertainTeed Landmark shingles, usually in one or two days.

Under Florida lien law, when the direct contract is more than $5,000, the county must have a copy of the recorded Notice of Commencement before it will do the first inspection. The notice gets recorded at the Clerk of Court in Milton, and a copy is posted on the house during the work.

The Florida Department of Financial Services runs My Safe Florida Home, which offers free wind mitigation inspections to homeowners who qualify. The program's inspection report can point to eligibility for grant money, up to $10,000, for approved upgrades such as roof improvements and a secondary water barrier, when funding is open. Apply through mysafeflhome.com, and don't start grant-funded work before the grant is approved.

We tarp open roofs during major storms. After that, Joshua inspects free of charge, documents the damage with photos and a written report, and you choose whether to share it with your insurance company. Your insurer decides what's covered. We clean up with a magnetic sweep on every job, repairs included.

Office hours run Monday through Friday, 7 AM to 6 PM, plus emergency service during major storms.