Establish authority before you request estimates
On a condominium in particular, whether the covering is common property is the question that decides everything downstream — who contracts, who pays, whether the whole building is done at once, and whether a special assessment or reserve draw is required. Read the declaration before the first estimate, not after.
| Structure | Who typically authorises | What to confirm first |
|---|---|---|
| Single-owner rental building | The owner | Whether a manager has spending authority and to what limit |
| Condominium association | The association, per its documents | Whether the roof is common property, and reserve or assessment position |
| Townhome with individual roofs | Varies by declaration | Whether the whole building must be done together |
| Managed portfolio | Owner, executed by the manager | Approval thresholds and required number of bids |
| Mixed-use building | Owner, with commercial tenant implications | Lease terms covering access, noise and business interruption |
Occupied buildings need the plan in the scope
Roof work over occupied units is routine, but only when the disruption is planned rather than discovered. Noise, vibration, debris, access routes, entrance protection, parking displacement, and notice to occupants all need to be agreed in advance and written into the scope. On a mixed-use building, commercial tenants may have lease terms about business interruption that a residential schedule ignores.
The item most often forgotten is parking. On a dense Burlington or Winooski building, displacing tenant parking for a dumpster and a materials truck for several days is a real imposition that generates complaints, and it is much easier handled with notice than without.
- Written notice period to occupants, and who issues it
- Working hours, and any restriction for shift workers or home offices
- Parking displacement for dumpster, materials and crew
- Entrance and walkway protection during tear-off
- How belongings on balconies and decks are protected
- A named point of contact for occupant questions during the work
Records are what make the next decision cheap
On managed property the roof outlives the manager, the contractor, and sometimes the owner. A dated record of inspections, leak locations, repairs, and who was on the roof turns the next decision from a guess into an argument you can support to an owner, a board, or a lender.
It also changes the quality of the proposals you receive. A building with a documented assembly and maintenance history gets more accurate bids than one where every bidder is estimating what is underneath.
- A leak log with location, date, weather and action taken
- A record of every trade that accessed the roof, especially rooftop equipment work
- Warranty documents, and what activity could void them
- Photographs of the exposed deck from any previous replacement
- Reserve or capital planning informed by condition rather than by roof age alone
Page last reviewed August 16, 2026.