What a New Roof Costs in the Puget Sound
Real ranges, what actually moves the number, and what a low bid usually leaves out. None of this is a quote — your number comes in writing after someone looks at your roof.
The honest ranges
These are what this work typically costs around here. They are ranges rather than prices because until the old roof is off, nobody — including us — can see the deck underneath.
| Work | Typical range | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Roof replacement | $12,000–$20,000 | Size, pitch, number of old layers, roof complexity, deck condition |
| Roof repair | $500–$1,500 | What failed, how much roof has to come up to reach it |
| Roof cleaning and moss treatment | $300–$1,000 | Roof size and pitch, how much growth there is, access |
| Gutters and downspouts | $500–$3,500 | Linear feet, number of downspouts, how complicated the runs are |
A metal roof sits well above the asphalt range and lasts considerably longer. The trade-off is set out here.
The five things that actually set the price
Complexity, not square footage
Valleys, dormers, chimneys, skylights, vents and every run of roof-to-wall flashing are built by hand. A simple gable roof and a cut-up roof of identical area are not the same job, and the cut-up one is where leaks start.
Pitch
Steep roofs are slower and need more staging and fall protection. Past a certain pitch nobody is walking it, which changes the labor on every square of the roof.
How many layers come off
One layer is a straightforward tear-off. Two or three means more labor, more disposal weight, and a much higher chance of finding something underneath.
What the deck looks like
Nobody can see the sheathing until the old roof is off. Soft or rotten decking is replaced before the new roof goes on. This is the one line that can move after you have signed, which is why it should be priced per sheet in your estimate rather than left vague.
Access
Where the dumpster can sit, how far material has to be carried, whether there is room to work without damaging landscaping or a neighbor’s property.
What a cheap bid usually leaves out
A lower number is not automatically a worse deal. It is worth knowing what is different, because these are the lines that quietly disappear:
- An overlay instead of a tear-off. Going over the old roof is cheaper today and hides whatever the deck is doing. It also adds weight and traps heat.
- Reused flashing. New shingles around twenty-year-old flashing is a leak with a delay on it. Most roofs fail at the flashing, not the field.
- No ice and water shield. Cheap at install, and the thing that stops a winter thaw at the eaves getting into your ceiling.
- No deck repair allowance. If there is no line for it, either the bid assumes perfect sheathing or it becomes a change order later.
- Thinner shingles. Three-tab instead of architectural sits at the short end of the lifespan range and handles wind worse.
- Insurance that is not what you assume. Ask for the certificate. Ask whether the crew is covered by workers’ compensation.
Why nobody can price your roof over the phone
A roof estimate has three unknowns that only a visit resolves.
The measurements
Not just the footprint. Pitch multiplies the actual surface area, and the number of planes decides how much waste there is in cutting.
The details
How many penetrations, how many valleys, what the chimney flashing looks like, whether the existing ventilation is adequate.
What is underneath
The number of old layers is often visible at the eave. The condition of the deck is not visible at all until the roof comes off.
This is also why Daniel does the estimates himself rather than sending someone to take a measurement and phone it in.
Questions about roofing costs
Most of the replacements we do land between $12,000 and $20,000. A small, simple, single-story ranch can come in under that. A large house with multiple gables, several dormers and a couple of skylights can go above it.
Anyone quoting you a firm number over the phone without seeing the roof is guessing, and the guess is usually low so that it wins the appointment.
Almost always complexity rather than area. Valleys, dormers, chimneys, skylights and roof-to-wall junctions are hand-built details, and each one takes time and materials. Two houses with identical square footage can be very different roofs.
The other common reason is layers: if yours has two or three old roofs on it and theirs has one, your tear-off and disposal cost more.
Sometimes, and it is worth understanding why it is cheap before you decide. A lower number usually comes from one of these: thinner shingles, an overlay instead of a tear-off, reused flashing, no ice and water shield, no allowance for deck repair, or a crew that is not carrying the insurance you assume they are.
Ask what is different rather than assuming the work is identical. Our own guide to comparing roofing quotes walks through it.
No. The inspection and the written estimate are free and there is no obligation attached to either.
Get a written estimate you can actually compare
Free, no obligation, and yours to keep. Every line itemized, including what happens if we find bad decking.