When to replace your roof in Michigan (and when not to).
"My neighbor just replaced theirs and ours is the same age — should we?" "There's a missing shingle, is it time?" "We've had this leak twice now — repair it or replace it?" We get these calls every week. Here's the framework we walk homeowners through — same one we'd use on our own house.
Age alone doesn't decide it.
The internet will tell you "asphalt roofs last 20-30 years." That's roughly right, but it's not actionable for your specific house. We've pulled off 17-year-old roofs that were ready and we've walked 34-year-old roofs that had ten more in them. Three things matter more than age:
- Original install quality. A four-nail layover at year zero loses 30% of its life expectancy on day one.
- Attic ventilation. A poorly ventilated roof bakes from underneath. The shingle ages from the back side, not the front.
- Sun exposure. A south-facing slope under a shadeless sky in Troy will age faster than a north-facing slope under mature trees in Bloomfield Hills. Same shingle, same age, different remaining life.
So when someone says "this roof is 22 years old, is it time?" — the honest answer is "let's go up and look."
What to look for. From the ground.
You can learn a lot without climbing. Walk around the house and check:
- Curling, cupping, or clawing shingles. Edges turning up or corners curling down is the asphalt mat releasing from the granules. End-of-life sign.
- Missing granules. Look at the shingles facing the sun. If they're starting to look smooth or shiny rather than textured, granules are gone.
- Bald spots. Big dark patches where granules are completely missing. Often south-facing.
- Sagging or wavy ridge line. Indicates decking failure underneath. Not always urgent, but a flag.
- Missing shingles after wind events. One or two is a repair. Five or more, or repeated losses, is a roof telling you it's done holding.
- Granules in the gutters. Open the downspout strainer. If it's full of black sand, those are your shingles.
What to look for. From inside the attic.
Even more diagnostic — and most homeowners never look. Get a flashlight, go up there, and check:
- Daylight through the deck. Pinholes of daylight through the underside of the roof deck = nail pops or thinning shingles. Wasn't there ten years ago.
- Water stains on the rafters. Even old, dry stains tell a story. Look near the valleys, around vents, around the chimney, and along the eaves.
- Soft, spongy, or stained decking. Press on the underside of the deck with your hand. If it gives, the deck is rotting.
- Mold or dark stains. Means moisture has been getting in and not drying out. Often a ventilation issue, but a roof problem too.
The four scenarios we see most.
Scenario 1: "Roof is 18-22 years old, no leaks, everything looks okay from the ground."
Decision: Get an inspection now, plan to replace in the next 1–3 years. Don't panic. Start saving or planning financing. Most roofs in this age range are within the runway window — not urgent, but not "ten more years" either.
Scenario 2: "We have a leak. Just had a repair, and now it's leaking somewhere else."
Decision: Replace. A roof leaking in multiple locations on a 20+ year-old shingle is on its last legs. Repairs become whack-a-mole. The next leak will find another spot, and the one after that, and eventually you're chasing leaks in finished rooms.
Scenario 3: "Tree fell on the roof. Insurance is involved."
Decision: Inspect first, decide second. If the damage is localized and the rest of the roof is in decent shape, an insurance-funded partial repair is sometimes the right call. If the rest of the roof is anywhere near end-of-life, this is a chance to do a full replacement with insurance covering the damaged portion. Either way, get an honest inspection before you sign anything.
Scenario 4: "Selling the house in 12 months. Listing agent says replace before listing."
Decision: Mixed. A new roof is a strong selling point, but it doesn't always recoup at sale. If your roof is genuinely past end-of-life or visibly tired, replacing improves the sale. If it has 5-10 years left and just looks tired from the ground, a pre-list inspection report (showing remaining life) is often the better play.
What we'll do at a free inspection.
We come out, walk the roof if it's safe, look at the attic from inside if you'll let us, and photograph what we see. Then we send you a written assessment with one of three recommendations:
- Replace now. Past end of life, actively failing, or large enough secondary damage that repairs aren't economical.
- Repair and monitor. Specific issues that can be fixed (flashing, a few shingles, a vent), with 5+ years of life remaining in the field.
- Hold. Roof is fine, you don't need to do anything. We'll tell you that, free, and we don't get offended if you don't call us back for 8 years.
About 30% of our inspections come back as "hold" or "minor repair." We'd rather give you that answer than push a roof you don't need.
What you should never do.
- Sign a contract on the day of a door-knock. Especially after a hailstorm. The good roofers don't work that way.
- Pay 50% deposit on a roof. 30% materials deposit on special orders is reasonable. Half-down before tear-off is a red flag.
- Layovers (covering one roof with another). Cheap up front, expensive over time. Most don't last 12 years.
- Pick the lowest bid without reading the spec. The cheapest bid is almost always cheap because something is missing — usually the things that matter most in Michigan (ice and water shield, six-nail pattern, new flashing).
How to get a real answer.
Request an inspection. If you're in Oakland County, it's free, it doesn't put you on any list, and you don't have to do anything with the result. We'll tell you what your roof needs (or doesn't need) and you can call us, call somebody else, or do nothing. That's the whole thing.