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Roofing in Arlington, VA: repair, replacement, flat and metal roofs
Roofers of Arlington installs, repairs and replaces roofs in Arlington and nearby, including flat and metal systems. Most Arlington homes are in buildings of five or more units, not single houses, so the first job is working out which kind of roof you have and which rules sit above it. Pick the work you need below, find your building type, then call.
- 4 services: repair, replacement, commercial and flat, metal
- 61.5% of Arlington homes are in buildings of 5 or more units
- 5 guides that route you by building type
Pick the work you need
Four kinds of work cover most calls. Each page says what the job involves, what decides it and what a written scope should name.
Roof repair
A leak, a lifted or missing section, a flashing detail that lets water in. Repair is scoped to a located problem, so the starting point is where the water shows and what is above it.
Roof replacement
Removing the existing covering and putting on a new one. In Arlington the amount of decking replaced can change the county permit answer for a house, so the scope should say how decking will be handled.
Commercial and flat roofs
Apartment buildings, condo and co-op buildings, offices and any building taller than three stories. Some are low-slope or flat. The county treats apartment buildings of three or more units and buildings above three stories as commercial.
Metal roofing
Installation or replacement with a metal system. In a local historic district, a material change is a question for county review before it is a quote.
Not sure which tile is yours? The table below starts from the building instead of the work.
Find your building
The county decides most roofing questions by building type. Find the row that describes yours and follow the link for the documents that apply.
| Your building | What decides the path | Go to |
|---|---|---|
| Detached house or townhouse, three stories or fewer | The county's residential table: how much decking is replaced, and whether a townhouse was framed with fire-retardant-treated lumber | Arlington roofing guide |
| House in a 1940s subdivision | Original materials in the nomination papers, and whether the street is a local district | 1940s subdivision roofs |
| Garden apartment on or near Columbia Pike | Commercial path, plus any historic documents for the complex | Columbia Pike garden apartments |
| Flat-roof apartment in Clarendon or Lyon Park | Commercial path and a low-slope roof system | Clarendon and Lyon Park flat roofs |
| Condo or co-op building | Who decides: the board, the association documents and Virginia's statutes | Condo and co-op replacement |
| Slate or a listed historic property | Certificate of Appropriateness rules and the district's roof guidelines | Slate and historic roofs |
| Office, retail or other commercial building | Commercial permit path and the roof system on the building | Commercial roofing |
Building type rules: Arlington County, Residential or Commercial? page (archived January 29, 2026).
The mix matters. Arlington has 121,970 homes and 61.5% of them are in buildings of five or more units, so for many callers the decision belongs to an owner group, not one person.
Before you call
- Write down the street address and the building type from the table above.
- Count the stories above ground. Three or fewer is the county's cutoff for the residential side.
- Note where water shows inside, and whether it appears after rain or after snow melts.
- If you rent or own in a shared building, find out who approves roof work and who pays for it.
- Check whether your building name or address appears on the county's list of local historic districts.
- Take a few photos from the ground. You do not need to go on the roof.
That is what a consultation starts from. Roofers of Arlington asks for the address, the building type and what you can see, then talks through the next step by phone.
The Arlington path in brief
Three questions shape an Arlington roof job. The full detail, with the county's table, is on the Arlington roofing guide.
1. Permit
For a house or townhouse, the county prints a table: no permit when only the covering changes and the decking stays, and a permit above 256 square feet of replaced decking. Anything unusual goes to the Permit Arlington Center, 703-228-3800, as the county prints it.
2. Historic review
The county lists 43 local historic districts and sites. Inside one, exterior changes need a Certificate of Appropriateness, except routine maintenance, repairs and replacements using the same materials.
3. Building type
Detached or townhouse at three stories or fewer is residential. Apartment buildings of three or more units are commercial under the Building Code, and condo or co-op roofs also run through the association.
The state building code has its own exemption list for roof covering (13VAC5-63-80), and it lets a building official require a permit in a locally designated historic district, so confirm with the county for your address. For a material change on a historic building, read the slate and historic roofs guide first.
What to ask any roofer
These come from the Board for Contractors regulation on residential contracts. Ask every company on your list, this one included.
- The license: number, class and specialty, on the proposal and on the contract. Check them on the state license lookup.
- A signed written contract: the regulation says it must be legible and signed by both sides before work starts or payments are taken.
- Dates: when work begins and the estimated completion date.
- The scope: a listing of the materials and the work you specifically asked for.
- Permits and inspections: a statement that the contractor will comply with local permit, inspection and zoning requirements.
- Payments: the schedule for progress payments, with a stated down payment.
- Changes: any change to cost, materials, work or completion date in writing, signed by all parties.
- Your protections: cancellation rights and a notice of the Virginia Contractor Transaction Recovery Fund.
The Code of Virginia says no person may engage in, or offer to engage in, contracting work in the Commonwealth without a license. A contract with an unlicensed contractor is also not enforceable by that contractor unless the statute's conditions are met.
The regulation also says the contractor must hand you a fully executed copy before work starts. For the full licensing picture, see the Arlington guide, and for how insurance claims fit around a roof job, the roofing insurance page.
Nearby areas
If your building is outside Arlington County, the county rules above may not apply. These pages cover the neighboring cities.
The services page and the roofing materials page apply anywhere we work. When you are ready, book a phone consultation.
Where these facts come from
Arlington County pages are blocked to automated downloads, so county text comes from archived copies, dated below. State sources were opened directly on October 18, 2026.
- Arlington County: Residential Building Permit (archived December 30, 2025)
- Arlington County: Residential or Commercial? (archived January 29, 2026)
- Arlington County: Local Historic Districts (archived December 16, 2025)
- 18VAC50-22-260, Board for Contractors: prohibited acts and contract minimums
- Code of Virginia 54.1-1103, necessity for license and 54.1-1115, prohibited acts
- 13VAC5-63-80, Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code
- Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024 five-year estimates, Arlington County
Questions people ask
What roofing work does Roofers of Arlington do?
Roofers of Arlington installs, repairs and replaces roofs in Arlington and nearby, including flat roof and metal roof systems. The service tiles at the top of this page lead to the repair, replacement, commercial and flat, and metal pages. To talk through your roof, book a phone consultation or call (571) 397-6072.
Is this page for homeowners or for building owners?
Both. The difference is the path, not the roof: a detached house or townhouse of three stories or fewer follows the county's residential rules, while an apartment, condo or co-op building follows the commercial path and, for condo and co-op buildings, an association decision as well. The find-your-building table sorts you in under a minute.
How do I decide between a roof repair and a replacement?
Start from what is visible and where: the room, ceiling or wall that shows water, and whether it is one spot or several. A written scope then settles the question, because it names what will be repaired or removed. In Arlington, how much decking is replaced also changes the permit answer for a house. The repair and replacement pages go through the details.
What should I have ready before a phone consultation?
The street address, whether the building is a house, townhouse, apartment, condo or commercial building, the number of stories, and where you see a problem. Say if an association or landlord must approve work, and whether the address might be in a local historic district. Photos taken from the ground help.
Will replacing my Arlington roof covering trigger a county permit?
For a house or townhouse, the county's published table says no permit when only the covering is replaced and the decking is untouched, and a permit once replaced decking passes 256 square feet. A fire-retardant-treated townhouse needs one for any decking. Taller or multi-unit buildings sit on the commercial side, so confirm with the Permit Arlington Center.
What must a Virginia residential roofing contract include?
Virginia's Board for Contractors regulation lists minimums: start and estimated completion dates, the total cost statement, the payment schedule, the specified materials and work, a permit and inspection compliance statement, cancellation rights, the contractor's license number, class and specialty, and a written, signed process for changes. It must be signed by both sides before work or payment.
How do I check that a roofing contractor is licensed in Virginia?
Ask for the license number, class and specialty, then look it up on the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation license lookup. The Code of Virginia says no one may engage in or offer contracting work in the Commonwealth without a license, so the number should be on the proposal and on the contract.
Do you serve areas near Arlington?
Yes. This site has pages for Alexandria, Falls Church, McLean and Vienna, and the services page lists the wider area. If your building is outside Arlington County, the county permit and historic rules described here may not apply, so use the page for your own city.
Talk through your roof with Roofers of Arlington
Share the address, what you are seeing on the roof and the decision you need to make. We will tell you what to expect before anything is scheduled.