Resources · Checklist
Roof Inspection Checklist
What to look for from the ground and from inside the house — before deciding whether it’s worth a professional look. This doesn’t replace a documented inspection; it tells you when to ask for one.
Inside the house
- Water stains or discoloration on ceilings, especially near exterior walls or below the attic
- Visible daylight through the roof boards when you look up in the attic
- Damp, matted, or discolored attic insulation
- Sagging in the roof deck when viewed from inside the attic
- A musty smell in the attic or top-floor rooms that wasn’t there before
From the ground, looking up
- Shingles that are curling, cracked, or visibly missing
- Bald patches where granules have worn away, exposing the darker underlayer
- Flashing around chimneys, vents, or skylights that looks lifted, rusted, or separated
- Sagging rooflines or valleys that don’t look straight
- Moss or dark algae streaking, especially on north-facing slopes
Gutters and drainage
- Granules collecting in the gutters (more than the normal small amount from a newer roof)
- Gutters pulling away from the fascia, sagging, or overflowing during rain
- Downspouts draining toward the foundation instead of away from it
After a storm, specifically
- Dented gutters, downspouts, vent covers, or AC unit fins — a sign of hail size and force, even if the shingles look fine from below
- Granule loss concentrated right after a hailstorm, rather than gradual wear
- Shingle tabs that look lifted or creased after high wind
- Debris on the roof itself — branches, hail accumulation against a chimney or valley
Found one or more of these? It’s worth a documented inspection rather than a guess from the ground — hail bruising and lifted flashing especially are easy to miss without getting up there.
Want this as a reminder before storm season?
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