How do we hire a roofer to replace an HOA clubhouse or condo building roof?

By OurHOA · General information · Revised September 27, 2026

How an HOA board hires a roofer for a clubhouse or condo roof replacement: license checks in TX, FL and CO, hail and wind ratings, bids, warranties and the contract.

Part of the HOA board handbook: vendors, projects and upkeep.

The short answer

Hire the roofer last. First get a written scope from someone who isn't bidding. Then check each bidder's license the way your state requires, compare bids on the same roof system, and sign a contract that names the products, the warranty, the payment schedule and who pulls the permit. A reroof on a clubhouse or a row of townhomes is often the biggest check a small association writes in a decade. Settle who owns the roof first. In many townhome communities owners maintain their own roofs and the association only approves color and material. Where the declaration puts roofs on the association, the board hires. Rules vary by state and by governing documents, and this guide is general education, not legal advice.

Write the scope before a roofer climbs a ladder

A roofer who writes the scope will write it around the system that roofer installs. For one small clubhouse roof, a director with a checklist can write it. For several buildings, pay a roof consultant or engineer to inspect and write specifications. Our guide on how to plan a major HOA project covers hiring that consultant and lining up the money. A scope bidders can price the same way names: - Each roof area and its size in squares (one square is 100 square feet) - Full tear-off to the deck, not a second layer over the old shingles - The roof covering by type and rating, plus the underlayment - New drip edge, new wall and chimney flashing, and new pipe boots, none reused - Attic ventilation, intake and exhaust - Rotted decking priced as a unit cost per sheet, and fascia per linear foot - Gutters in or out of the job - Debris haul-off, a magnetic nail sweep every evening and working hours Price any low-slope section, such as a flat clubhouse roof or a covered entry, as its own line. It takes a different membrane and often a different crew.

Check the license, which depends on the state

Texas has no state license for roofing contractors. The House committee analysis of HB 3344, a 2025 bill to create one, says so directly, and the bill never got past the House Calendars Committee. That leaves the checking to the board. Confirm the company's registration with the Texas Secretary of State, ask the city what permit and contractor registration it requires, get a certificate of insurance, and call references on roofs at least three years old. The Texas Department of Insurance's checklist for hiring a roofer also tells owners to check references and points to the Roofing Contractors Association of Texas member list. Florida licenses roofing as its own trade under chapter 489 of the Florida Statutes. Look up every bidder on the Department of Business and Professional Regulation's license search and confirm the license is active and matches the company on the bid. Section 489.128 makes a contract entered into by an unlicensed contractor unenforceable by that contractor. In Colorado, start with the city or county building department that will issue the reroof permit. Ask what license or registration it requires of roofing contractors, then confirm each bidder holds it. Colorado's state roofing law is about the contract, and it is covered below.

Ask for hail and wind ratings by name

In Texas and Colorado, hail decides how long a roof lasts. Ask every bidder to price a shingle rated Class 4 under UL 2218, the impact test insurers use, at least as an alternate. The Texas Department of Insurance recommends Class 4 products and says a Class 4 roof covering gets the highest credit on its impact-resistant roofing credit schedule. Before choosing the product, ask your agent in writing whether the association's carrier gives a credit or a smaller hail deductible for a Class 4 roof. The same TDI checklist recommends shingles tested to ASTM D3161 for winds of 110 mph or more. Colorado created the Strengthen Colorado Homes Enterprise in SB26-155, signed June 4, 2026 and effective August 12, 2026, to fund grants for resilient roof systems on residential property. Its board sets roof standards and eligibility by rule. Find out whether an association roof can qualify before you pick a product. In Florida, ask each bidder for the Florida product approval number of the roof system they priced and look it up on the Florida Building Commission's product approval site. Section 553.844(5) matters when only part of a roof has failed. If the existing roof was built to the 2007 Florida Building Code or a later edition, repairing or replacing 25 percent or more of it requires only the replaced portion to meet the current code. A bidder who says the whole roof must come off because of the 25 percent rule should explain why that subsection doesn't apply to your building.

Compare bids on the same roof

Send the same scope to three roofers, walk the property with all of them at once, and have each fill in the same bid form. Put the answers side by side: total squares, price per square, the decking and fascia unit prices, product line, underlayment, warranty, start date, days per building, and exclusions. Check the square counts first. A low bid that measured 20 fewer squares than the other two isn't low. It is a change order waiting to happen. Ask whether the roofer's own employees or a subcontracted crew will do the work, and make the roofer responsible for either in the contract. Get a certificate of insurance showing general liability and workers' compensation. OSHA requires fall protection for employees doing roofing work 6 feet or more above a lower level, so ask each bidder how their crew meets it on your buildings. A worker hurt on an uninsured crew can end up as a claim against the association.

Two warranties, two different promises

A new roof comes with two warranties that cover different failures. The manufacturer's warranty covers defective materials. The upgraded system warranties some manufacturers sell can also cover labor, but they often require a certified installer, the manufacturer's matching components and registration after the job. The roofer's workmanship warranty covers installation mistakes like bad flashing, and it is only worth as much as the company that wrote it. Get both in writing before you sign. Each should state its length, what voids it (a satellite installer drilling through the new roof is a common one), and who registers it. Make registration in the association's name, with the confirmation in hand, a condition of final payment. Put an inspection about 11 months after completion on the board calendar, while the workmanship warranty still has time on it.

Contract terms the law and the job require

Colorado's roofing contract law, C.R.S. 6-22-101 and the sections after it, reaches many association roofs. Section 6-22-102 counts townhome-style buildings up to three stories, where each home has its own entrance, as residential property when a condominium or homeowners association is responsible for the roof. For those roofs, section 6-22-103 requires a written contract signed by both sides that states the scope and materials, the approximate dates and cost, the roofer's contact information, its surety and liability insurer, and its cancellation and refund policy. That policy must include the right to rescind within 72 hours and get the deposit back. The contract must also state that the roofer can't pay or waive an insurance deductible, and say in bold on its face that the roofer holds payments in trust until materials are delivered or most of the work is done. When insurance is paying, section 6-22-104 lets the owner rescind within 72 hours after the insurer denies the claim in whole or in part. A stand-alone clubhouse isn't a dwelling and may fall outside these rules. Ask for the same terms anyway. In Texas, Business and Commerce Code section 27.02 requires a contract of $1,000 or more that the seller expects insurance proceeds to pay to carry a notice that the insured must pay the deductible. In Florida, section 489.147 bars roofers from offering residential property owners a deductible waiver or gifts for roof inspections or claims. If a claim is paying for the roof, our guide on how to handle an HOA insurance claim after a storm covers the deductible and the storm chasers. In every state, attach the scope and the bid to the contract, name the products, pay by building completed, hold back retainage, and collect a conditional lien waiver with each payment. The roofer pulls the permit in its own name. Add a weather rule: no tear-off without a dry forecast, and tarps on site every day.

A sample timeline and wording to copy

Month 1: consultant or committee finishes the scope. Month 2: bids go out with a site walk and three weeks to respond. Month 3: bid sheet, reference calls, license and insurance checks, then a vote at a noticed board meeting. Month 4: contract signed, permit filed, materials ordered. Thirty days before the start: owner notice. Then one building at a time, followed by a punch list walk and the final inspection before the last payment. A motion can read: "Move to award the roof replacement for Buildings [A through F] to [roofer] for $[amount], with decking at $[amount] per sheet, conditioned on the association attorney's review of the contract, a certificate of insurance meeting the association's requirements, and license verification recorded in these minutes." An owner notice can read: "Roof replacement on your building is scheduled to start [date] and takes about [number] working days in dry weather. Rain will move the date. On work days, park off the driveway by 7 a.m., take pictures and mirrors off walls under the roof line, and keep pets inside. The crew sweeps for nails each evening. Report any damage with a photo to [contact] within 7 days after your building is finished."

Mistakes boards make on a reroof

Signing with the roofer who knocked on the clubhouse door the week after a hailstorm, before anyone wrote a scope. Comparing prices per square without checking that every bidder measured the same number of squares. Leaving rotted decking unpriced, then paying time and materials for 60 sheets. Paying a large deposit up front. Tie payments to delivered materials and finished buildings. Filing the manufacturer warranty in a drawer instead of registering it in the association's name.

Sources

These guides are general education for HOA boards and residents, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules vary by state and by your community's governing documents - check with a professional for your situation.

More on home & property

Or browse all home projects & property rules guides.