Roof Condition Note for a Home Sale in Newport News, VA

What belongs in a listing note?

The covering on each slope, the flashing at each penetration, the drainage, the attic, any storm repair with its date and a list of what could not be reached.

A useful note names each slope and its covering, each penetration and its flashing, and each gutter and drain. It states whether the attic was reachable and what the decking looked like where it could be seen.

A note that says the roof is in good order, without naming the parts, gives a buyer nothing to test.

• The covering on each slope
• Each penetration and its flashing
• Any storm repair, with its date and scope

Should a seller repair before listing?

That is the seller's choice. The note shows what is open and what a repair would involve, so the choice rests on facts.

Some sellers repair before listing and others let the buyer decide. The note sets out the open items and what each would cost to put right, in the roofer's own words.

A repair made just before the sale is recorded with its date, since an unrecorded patch prompts more questions.

• Repair before listing, or disclose the item
• Record each repair with its date
• Keep the scope with the note

What the note cannot settle

It cannot show what lies under a finish, promise the roof's remaining life or decide what a buyer or insurer will do with it.

A roofer records what is visible and reachable on the day. A joint not yet failed, or a deck wet beneath a finished ceiling, may not show. The note says so.

The note is not a warranty. Price, sale and insurance belong to the parties, and the note is one of the facts they weigh.

• Only visible and reachable areas are recorded
• No promise of future performance
• Price and insurance decisions belong to the parties

What a buyer's inspector will ask for first

The roof edge, the attic, the flashing at walls and chimneys and any stain near an outside wall.

A buyer's inspector looks at the roof edge and the attic first, then the flashing at walls and chimneys and the stains near the outside walls. A note that already covers those points lets the seller answer quickly and shows the buyer what was checked.

• The roof edge and the attic
• Flashing at walls and chimneys
• Stains near the outside walls

Recording a storm repair in the note

Each storm repair is listed with its date, its scope and the event it followed, where the homeowner knows it.

A storm repair without a date is a question a buyer will ask. The note gives the date of each repair, the scope done and the storm it followed. Where the event is uncertain, the note says so instead of filling the gap.

• Date, scope and event for each repair
• Uncertain events marked as uncertain
• History shown in order

Keeping this part of the record current

The record for this part of the roof is updated at each visit, with the date and the result, so the history stays accurate.

A homeowner who keeps this section with the roof file can compare it with the next season's check, and the change between the two is the most useful thing the record can show.

The roofer confirms each point on the day and writes the result down before leaving, so the record reflects the roof as it was found rather than as it was remembered later.