Los Angeles County, California

Roof Repair in Los Angeles

First, what to do in the next hour while the water is still coming in. Then the question that decides the bill: one failed detail, or a roof that has run out of years.

Tell us about your roof Call (310) 857-2520

Free, and there is no obligation to go ahead.

Free roof inspection
Someone comes out, gets on the roof, and tells you what they find.
The price in writing
A written quote before anyone starts, with nothing to sign on the day.
Licensed roofers
The roofer who turns up holds a current California license.
Across Los Angeles County
From the Valley and the foothills to the Westside and the South Bay.

Most Los Angeles roof leaks are one specific fault, not a failing roof. A cracked or slipped tile, a flashing that has let go where a chimney meets the slope, an open seam on a flat section, or a perished rubber boot around a vent pipe.

Water coming through the ceiling? Start with the list below, then get someone out. Tell us what's going on and we'll get a licensed roofer out to look at it. They'll get on the roof, find where the water's getting in, and give you a written quote. It's free, and there's no obligation.

Small repairs$400 to $900

A few slipped tiles, resealing a vent or clearing a drain sits in that band. A single-source leak, meaning a chimney or skylight flashing rebuilt in metal, a localized shingle repair or a flat-roof seam, runs $800 to $2,500. Everything larger is on the costs page.

A stain on the ceiling is rarely directly below the fault. Water runs along the top of the drywall or down a rafter before it drops, so the entry point is often somewhere else entirely, and finding it is most of the job.

If it's leaking right now

Move what's underneath.Furniture, rugs, electronics. Water runs along the framing and comes out somewhere other than where it got in.
If the ceiling is bulging, pierce it.It's holding a pool of water. A small hole at the low point drains it into a bucket. Left alone, the whole section lets go at once.
Cut the powerto that area if water is near a light fixture or an outlet.
Take photosof the stain and anything visible from the ground.
Stay off the roof.Wet tile is dangerous, and walking on Spanish or concrete tile is the easiest way to turn one leak into three.

Then get it looked at. The rain season runs October through March, and every roofer in LA is slammed for days after real rain, so get on a schedule early.

Where LA roofs actually leak

A valley carries more water than any other part of the roof. Debris holds that water against the metal instead of letting it run.

Roofs here fail slowly, in the sun, and the first November rain finds the weak spot. Where it is depends on your roof type.

The tile is usually not the problem

The big misunderstanding in LA. On a Spanish or concrete tile roof, common in Pasadena, Glendale, San Marino, Hancock Park, Silver Lake and Palos Verdes, the tile isn't what keeps water out. It's a shell that sheds the bulk of it and takes the UV. The waterproofing is the underlayment underneath, and that's what dries out and splits. Tile lasts 50 years or more; the underlayment rarely gets past 25 or 30. So a 1980s roof with good-looking tile can be leaking in six places.

The fix is a lift and relay: tile comes off and gets stacked, old underlayment stripped, new laid, the same tile back down. Much cheaper than a new tile roof, because you keep the expensive part. Slipped and cracked tiles are the other tile issue, and those are a small repair.

Composition shingle

The volume material here, especially in 1950s tract stock like Torrance. Sun kills it. Look for granules in the gutters, curled edges, bald patches, or shingles brittle enough to crack when lifted. A young shingle roof with one bad area repairs well. An old one shedding granules everywhere is telling you something.

Flat and low-slope

Mid-century homes, duplexes and light commercial. Look for ponding, water still standing 48 hours after rain, usually a blocked drain or a slight sag. The other one is seam failure, where joints between sheets open up. Years of standing water usually means a damaged deck underneath.

Flashing is the answer more often than you'd think

A surprising share of leaks aren't in the open roof at all. They're at the penetrations: chimneys, skylights, vents, the wall where a second story meets a lower roof. Flashing is the metal sealing those joints, and it's where an old repair got done with caulk instead of metal, or a solar mount went through unsealed. If the roof looks fine and one leak won't quit, that's where we start.

Repair or replace, honestly

Repair usually makes sense when the roof is under about 15 years old, the damage is in one area, and the cause is identifiable, like a slipped tile, failed flashing or a blocked drain.

Repair is often money thrown away when you're patching the third or fourth leak in two years, when tile underlayment has failed across the roof instead of in one spot, when shingles are brittle across the whole roof, or when the deck is soft.

The solar exception. Panels have to come off before any work underneath and go back on after, commonly $4,000 to $10,000 on its own. The LA rule of thumb: if the roof is 15 years or older, replace it first instead of paying twice to pull the same panels.

LA County's median home was built in 1965, and about 44% of City of LA homes predate 1960 on the Census Bureau's 2024 American Community Survey five-year estimates. Plenty of roofs here are done, and the leak is the first symptom.

Roughly what repairs cost here

Ballpark estimates, not quotes. Access, pitch and height move the number, and anyone pricing a roof over the phone is guessing.

Small repairs, like a few slipped tiles, resealing a vent or clearing a drain, run roughly $400 to $900.
A single-source leak, say rebuilding chimney or skylight flashing in metal, a localized shingle repair, or a flat-roof seam, runs roughly $800 to $2,500.
Sectional lift and relaymeans new underlayment under one tile slope, commonly $2,500 to $7,000.
Rotten deckingmeans plywood cut out and replaced. Add several hundred to a few thousand, rarely knowable until the roof is open.

Tarping is a stopgap

Run from below the damage up over the ridge and fastened at the edges. That holds for weeks. Bricks on a folded tarp hold for one night.

A blue tarp weighted with bricks gets you through one night. It flaps, holds water in the folds, and shifts by the second storm. Done properly, a heavy cover runs from below the leak up over the ridge, fastened at the edges so wind can't get under it. That holds for weeks instead of hours, long enough to do the real repair in dry weather, when it should happen anyway.

What happens when you get in touch

Here's how it goes, from your first call to the written quote.

Tell us the area, what you're seeing, and the roof type if you know it.
We book a visit and send a roofer who works your area and knows your roof type.
The roofer coming out gives you their CSLB license number up front, so you can check it yourself.
We inspect the roof and give you a written quote. Free, no obligation.
Want another look at something before you decide? Say so and we'll get them back up, at no cost.

The quote spells out the work, the materials and the price, so you can see what you're paying for before anyone starts. Our job is getting to your door quickly and telling you straight what the roof needs.

Common questions

How quickly can someone come out?

In dry months, usually a day or two. In the rain season it depends how bad the week's been. Active leaks get triaged first, so say so when you get in touch.

Will a roofer work in the rain?

Not on a permanent repair, and you shouldn't want them to. Sealants and underlayment need a dry surface to bond, so a repair made onto a wet roof is one you'll pay for twice. What can happen in the wet is diagnosis and temporary protection. The source is often easiest to find while water is moving through it.

How much does a roof repair cost?

Most single-source leaks in Los Angeles land between a few hundred dollars and a couple of thousand, with tile underlayment work running higher. The only honest number comes from someone standing on your roof, which costs nothing.

Is it worth repairing an old roof?

Sometimes, yes. A 25-year-old roof with one bad flashing detail and otherwise sound material is worth fixing. The same roof leaking in four places and soft underfoot is one you'll repair every winter until you replace it. Ask us what we'd do if it were our house, and ask to see the photos.

Do I need a permit for a repair?

For a few tiles, a flashing detail or a patch, generally no. Once you're replacing a meaningful portion of the covering or any decking underneath, a permit is usually required, and for a full re-roof it definitely is. In the City of LA that's LADBS; Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank and the other independent cities run their own departments. In the foothills and burn areas, the California Wildland-Urban Interface Code applies: a Class A roof assembly, earned by the whole build-up including underlayment and vents instead of the shingle alone, plus ember-resistant vents and non-combustible gutters. The contractor pulls the permit and it should be their name on it. If a roofer asks you to pull it yourself, ask why.

Get it looked at

Tell us what's happening and we'll get a licensed roofer out to your part of LA County. Free inspection, written quote, no obligation.

The offer

$500 off a new roof, 10% off any repair

Start online and it is attached to your request, with nothing to remember.

We get on the roof, and into the attic if that is where the answer is
You get photographs of whatever we find
The price in writing, with nothing to sign on the day

Claim it on a free inspection

Perished vent bootThe commonest leak on a shingle roof, and among the cheapest to put right.
Slipped or cracked tileWorth fixing, but the felt underneath decides how big the job really is.
Failed ridge mortarBedding cracks, the caps lift, and the ridge opens straight to the underlayment.