Free roof inspection with deck photos before we talk money - GAF and Owens Corning certified installation
Before
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Before
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Before
AfterFast, Reliable Roof Replacement Across San Rafael
Roof replacement in San Rafael typically runs $14,000 to $32,000 for a standard asphalt shingle tear-off on a 1,800-square-foot home, and $22,000 to $48,000 when decking repair, membrane work, or Class A fire-rated materials come into play. Most jobs take 3 to 7 working days once materials land. If you’re weighing whether to patch again or replace for good, call (945) 303-9821 and we’ll give you a written price before any work starts.
San Rafael isn’t one roofing market. It’s several. Terra Linda’s Eichler tracts need membrane systems and decking allowances, not shingle tear-offs. The hillside streets above Dominican and Sun Valley fall under Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone rules that make wood-shake re-roofing illegal. Downtown Victorians and Canal district bungalows carry their own deck types and flashing problems. We send crews who know which San Rafael they’re working in before the ladder goes up.
Why Tilehurst Roofing Is San Rafael’s Preferred Roof Replacement Company
We’re part of the Kingswell family of roofing companies, founded in 2000, and every Tilehurst Roofing location operates under the same written guarantee. San Rafael homeowners call us because the price on the quote is the price on the invoice. Not close. Not after a change order conversation they didn’t initiate. Greg Holloway runs our crews with one operating rule: say the price before the work, show up in the window we gave, leave the place cleaner than we found it.
Our San Rafael customers tend to be people who’ve already been through the no-show contractor experience once. They don’t want a second round. They want a live person on the phone at 9 p.m. when a leak opens up, a technician in uniform whose name they know, and a written guarantee delivered before the crew leaves the driveway. That’s the Kingswell Way, and it’s what we do on every roof replacement in San Rafael, from a simple asphalt shingle job in the Canal district to a full membrane replacement on a Terra Linda Eichler.
Asphalt Shingle Roof Replacement in San Rafael
Asphalt Shingle Roof Replacement is the most common job we do in San Rafael, and the price depends on what’s under the shingles, not just the shingles themselves. A straightforward tear-off and re-shingle on a mid-century wood-frame home in the flatlands around downtown typically runs $14,000 to $25,000, depending on square footage, pitch, and how many layers of old roofing need to come off. When the existing roof has two layers or the sheathing shows water damage, the allowance goes up. We write that allowance into the contract up front so there’s no door-knock price adjustment.
San Rafael’s microclimates matter here. Homes on the west-facing ridgelines above the valley catch sustained winter moisture, and north-facing roof planes grow moss and algae faster than anything closer to the bay. We inspect those planes before quoting, because trapped moisture under shingles doesn’t announce itself until decking is soft and the quote has to change.
When decking repair changes the quote
Asphalt shingles fasten to roof decking, and on 60-year-old San Rafael homes the decking is often plywood that has seen moisture for decades. If a hammer test shows soft spots, the contract includes a deck-repair allowance per sheet. That allowance is written before we start, not discovered halfway through and handed to you as a surprise.
Fire-rated materials for hillside homes
Homes above the valley floor in San Rafael fall under California’s Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone designations. That means re-roofing with wood shake is off the table and the replacement must meet Class A fire ratings. We quote asphalt shingles from Atlas, Tamko, and GAF in Class A configurations for those hillside properties, and we pull the permit so the inspector signs off on the material type.
New Roof Installation in San Rafael
New Roof Installation in San Rafael usually means one of two things: a roof on new construction, or a full re-roof so extensive it’s essentially a new roof system from the deck up. On new builds, we work directly with the general contractor or the homeowner, installing from architectural shingles to standing seam on a frame that’s never carried roofing before. The price on new construction tends to run $18,000 to $40,000 for a typical San Rafael single-family home, based on sqaure footage, pitch complexity, and the system specified.
For re-roofs that cross into new-roof territory, the decking, underlayment, drip edge, and flashing all get replaced, not just the top layer. That’s the code-driven reality on older San Rafael homes, especially in Terra Linda and the Canal district, where what’s underneath the roofing is often in worse shape than the roofing itself.
New construction on hillside lots
Hillside lots in San Rafael present a different set of constraints. The roof has to meet fire code, wind uplift requirements, and the grading realities of a sloped site. We quote the full system – decking, underlayment, shingles or membrane, flashing, and ridge cap – and we pull permits for every new installation so the final inspection is on record.
Re-roof as new system
When we say new roof installation on an older home, we mean replacing every component: decking where it’s rotted or undersized, new underlayment, new flashing at every penetration and transition, new drip edge at the eaves. The job is priced as one written contract, not a base bid plus a pile of change orders. Greg Holloway insists on that.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Rafael
We install GAF, Atlas, Boral, and the full roster of seven manufacturer lines, so the product matches the home, not what happens to be in the truck. For San Rafael’s Eichler flat-roof work in Terra Linda, that means modified bitumen and TPO membrane systems. For hillside re-roofs, it means Class A fire-rated asphalt shingles from manufacturers with San Rafael job-site support. We keep local stock in the Bay Area, so material lead times on San Rafael replacements don’t stall the permit window.
Common Roof Replacement Problems We See in San Rafael Homes
- Eichler built-up roof failure in Terra Linda: The original tar-and-gravel membrane fails at the membrane-to-deck seam, letting water wick into tongue-and-groove Douglas fir decking. By the time a drip shows on the ceiling, the decking is usually rotted and the quote has to include a deck-repair allowance.
- Illegal wood shake on hillside homes: Homes above the valley floor in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone often still carry wood-shake roofing that can’t legally be replaced with more wood shake. The re-roof becomes a Class A material swap, a decking assessment, and a permit issue.
- Salt-air corrosion in the Canal district: Bayfront humidity shortens the life of exposed metal flashings and fasteners faster than in inland San Rafael neighborhoods. A re-roof there routinely requires new flashing and drip edge, not just new shingles.
- Aged decking on mid-century wood-frame homes: Downtown and Canal district homes built in the 1940s through 1960s often have decking that wasn’t designed for modern material weights. The decking has to be evaluated before the shingle estimate means anything.
Pricing for Roof Replacement in San Rafael, CA
A typical asphalt shingle roof replacement in San Rafael runs $14,000 to $25,000 on a standard single-story home without major decking repairs. Architectural shingle upgrades add $2,000 to $5,000 depending on the home’s pitch and complexity. Flat or low-slope membrane systems on Eichlers in Terra Linda run $22,000 to $48,000, with decking repair allowances often adding another $3,000 to $8,000 when tongue-and-groove rot is found. Hillside Class A re-roofs fall in the $18,000 to $40,000 range due to fire-rated materials and site access. Every quote we write for a San Rafael roof replacement is a fixed, line-item price before the first nail goes in. For an exact number, call (945) 303-9821 and schedule a free estimate.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Rafael
Our crews cover the neighborhoods from San Rafael south through Larkspur and Corte Madera, west to Kentfield, and north to San Anselmo. If you’re in any of those surrounding communities and need a roof replacement, you’ll get the same written price and the same written guarantee from the Roof Replacement team that works San Rafael daily.
Serving San Rafael, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Rafael area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Roof Replacement in San Rafael
Yes. Eichler homes in Terra Linda sit on tongue-and-groove Douglas fir decking under low-slope built-up roofs, and when the original membrane fails, water wicks directly into that wood. By the time a homeowner sees a drip, the decking is usually rotted in sections. We write a deck-repair allowance into every Eichler quote so the cost is on the table before work starts. On a 1961 Terra Linda Eichler our crew opened up, the rot ran far enough that the decking replacement allowance was a meaningful line item the homeowner approved in writing before we touched a single square. Call (945) 303-9821 and ask for a Terra Linda Eichler inspection.
No. Homes above the valley floor in San Rafael fall under California’s Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, and wood-shake re-roofing is illegal in that designation. The replacement roof must meet Class A fire rating standards, which means swapping to fire-rated asphalt shingles, metal, or another Class A system. Those material choices run $18,000 to $40,000 on a typical hillside home depending on pitch and access. We pull the permit and handle the material swap as one written contract. Call (945) 303-9821 for a hillside-specific quote.
Modified bitumen or TPO membrane, not shingles. Eichler roofs were built as low-slope systems, and shingles don’t perform on slopes that shallow. We install membrane systems with new flashing and drip edge, and we price the decking repair separately in writing. Expect $22,000 to $48,000 for a full membrane replacement depending on decking condition and roof size. For a Terra Linda-specific number, call (945) 303-9821.
Because what’s under the roofing is often older and more compromised than the roofing itself. On older San Rafael homes, opening a roof can reveal outdated flashing, undersized decking, or rot that wasn’t visible from the surface. If the home is a mid-century wood-frame or a Terra Linda Eichler, the decking failure may already be in progress. We handle this with inspection first, then a written allowance in the contract, then a written change order before we proceed – so the higher number is explained and approved before work continues. Call (945) 303-9821 and we’ll walk the roof with you.
Salt-air humidity in San Rafael’s Canal district corrodes exposed metal flashings and fasteners faster than in the inland valleys. That means a Canal re-roof routinely includes new flashing, new drip edge, and corrosion-resistant fasteners, not just new shingles. A basic asphalt shingle replacement in the Canal district runs $14,000 to $22,000, with the flashing and drip edge work built into the quote. For a Canal-specific price, call (945) 303-9821.
Written by Greg Holloway, Owner at Tilehurst Roofing, serving San Rafael.