Buying or Selling a Home in Snohomish County: When a $349 Roof Report Is Worth It

You found the house in Lake Stevens, or maybe in Edmonds or Marysville. The kitchen is right, the school is right, the price is close. Then the general home inspection comes back with a short note about the roof: shingles showing age, some moss, recommend evaluation by a roofer. That note raises more questions than it answers. How old is old? Is it a repair or a replacement? And what should you plan for when the closing date is coming up fast?

What a Roof Report covers

A general inspection covers the whole house, so the roof usually gets a short section. A Roof Report is a roofer looking at nothing but the roof. Pacific Pride's $349 Roof Report is built around a short list of things:

• An on-site visit to verify the details of the roof.
• A review of leaks and problem areas.
• A repair versus replacement evaluation.
• Clear written recommendations you can hand to an agent, a lender or a spouse.
• Coverage for homeowners and commercial properties alike.

The written part matters most. A verbal opinion from a roofer standing in a driveway is useful, but it is hard to share and easy to forget. A written recommendation lets everyone looking at the decision see the same facts.

When it is worth it for a buyer

The Roof Report earns its price in a few situations. The roof looks older than the rest of the house. There are stains on the ceilings or in the attic. The seller cannot say when the roof was last replaced. There are flat or low-slope sections, which hide problems well. Or the inspection report used words like worn, aged or evaluate. In each of those cases, knowing the real condition of the roof before you commit can change the offer, the repair request or your savings plan.

Jeff W., a customer who evaluates properties before buying them, describes it this way in his own words: “They are outstanding at assessing properties we are in the market to purchase.” He goes on: “We know what to expect in regard to maintenance and repair upfront, allowing us to budget right away.” That is the real value for a buyer. The roof stops being an unknown and becomes a line in your budget.

When it is worth it for a seller

Sellers sometimes assume it is better not to look. A leak you do not know about still exists, and it tends to surface during a buyer's inspection, when you have the least room to respond. A Roof Report before you list lets you decide on your own schedule whether to repair a small problem, deal with moss, or tell buyers what you know.

It also helps if your roof is in good shape. A written evaluation from a roofer who has been in business since 1989 is one more piece of paper that shows the house has been looked after. You decide whether to share it, and it does not change the roof underneath.

What it is not

The Roof Report is an evaluation with written recommendations. It is not a promise that the roof will pass anyone else's inspection, and it is not a sales appointment in disguise. If the recommendation is a repair or a replacement, the natural next step is the free roof estimate, where Pacific Pride measures the roof, emails a digital estimate with a price range, and has a roofer verify the details on site. If the recommendation is that the roof is fine, you will hear that.

That honesty is the whole point of the product. Pacific Pride's stated standard is honest recommendations, not what is easiest, and thorough evaluation that identifies both visible issues and underlying problems. Ron Palmer, who has worked with the company for more than 10 years, wrote in his Google review: “High quality work, excellent service, and great communication.”

Timing and next steps

Real estate moves on deadlines, so call early. Pacific Pride serves Everett, Edmonds, Woodway, Lynnwood, Snohomish, Lake Stevens, Marysville, Bothell, Kirkland and North King County, and the office is open Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 4 PM. They are a bonded and insured contractor, BBB accredited since 2006, with the licence number PACIFPR823O1 printed on the company site.

To order a $349 Roof Report, call (425) 252-0444. If you are not at the buying or selling stage yet and only want a first number, ask for the free roof estimate instead.