Free written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
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AfterFast, Reliable Roofing Across Kensington
Roof replacement in Kensington typically runs $8,000-$20,000, while targeted roof repair costs $400-$1,800 depending on what we find after tear-off. The wild card here isn’t labor or shingle choice. It’s what’s hiding under the old roof on a 1920s-1950s hillside home: fog-fed redwood rot, sagging rafters, and county fire-safety requirements that flatland roofers never think about. Our Roofing crew works Kensington every week, and we’re the ones who show up knowing the permits go to Martinez, not Berkeley. Call (877) 610-1318 for a free estimate, and we’ll walk your roof before we quote it.
Why Barrett & Sons Construction Is Kensington’s Preferred Roofing Company
Tom Barrett founded this company in 1998, and the name on the truck is still the name answering the phone. Our crews are Tom’s sons and their teams, not strangers dispatched from a call center. When a Kensington homeowner calls with a leak, the person who picks up knows the difference between the flatlands of El Cerrito and the fog-heavy lots above Arlington Avenue because they’ve worked both. We carry GAF and CertainTeed materials, scoped in writing before the first shingle comes off, with a 90-Day Done Right Promise on every contract. If it’s not right, Tom comes back. One call.
Kensington customers call us because we publish our name, address, and license number, and because every price change arrives as a written change order before work proceeds. No end-of-job surprise invoices. The permit inspector works for you, not for us, and that’s the way we like it. Ask anyone on your street or look up the license number yourself.
Our Roofing Services in Kensington
Roof Replacement & Installation
A full roof replacement in Kensington means navigating two things most out-of-town roofers fumble: the County Building Department in Martinez and the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone designation that covers nearly all of the hills. We handle both. Tear-off reveals what the old shingles were hiding, and on Kensington’s pre-war homes, that’s often redwood framing with rot from decades of fog. We scope those repairs as a written change order, bring the sheathing up to WUI ember-resistant standards, and get the county sign-off before closing the roof deck. Expect $8,000-$20,000 for a complete replacement.
Roof Repair
Roof repair in Kensington runs $400-$1,800. The tricky part is diagnosis. A leak that shows up after two weeks of fog may have nothing to do with the shingles and everything to do with failed flashing where a steep hillside drainage path meets an old fascia board. We inspect first. If we find rot, you see the scope in writing with a price before we touch it. No surprises after the fact. That’s the Barrett & Sons way.
Metal Roofing
Standing seam metal roofs are a strong fit for Kensington’s fire-zone requirements and hillside exposure. They shed embers better than composition shingles, and they handle the moisture-heavy air better than most materials when properly underlaid. Metal roof installation in Kensington typically runs $15,000-$40,000. We specify the full system: Class A underlayment, ember-resistant venting, and flashing detailed for steep slopes where water moves fast. The county cares about the first two. Your roof deck cares about all three.
Tile Roofing
Tile roofs look right at home on Kensington’s Mediterranean revival and Spanish-style houses, but the original 1930s clay tile installs were rarely built to modern seismic or WUI expectations. Most tile roof repair in Kensington, $600-$2,500, comes down to cracked or slipped tiles and failed underlayment underneath. On a hillside lot, water gets under tile in ways it never would on flat ground, and fixing the tile without replacing the rotted substrate is a waste of your money. We inspect what’s under the tile before we quote the repair.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Kensington
We install and repair GAF and CertainTeed roofing systems on Kensington homes. These are materials you can look up, with published specs and warranties, not mystery brands off a van. When a tile roof calls for a specific profile or a metal roof needs a matching standing seam panel, we source it and bring it to Kensington. That’s also true for the hardscape work we do around these hillside properties, including Techo-Bloc and Cambridge pavers used for the retaining and drainage details that protect foundations. If the roof drains into a paver walkway, we make sure that transition actually works.
Common Roofing Problems We See in Kensington Homes
- Fog-fed rot in original redwood framing. The Kensington hills trap coastal moisture against steep roofs in ways the flatlands of El Cerrito and Richmond never see. We routinely open eaves on craftsman bungalows and find rafters that have been quietly rotting for decades, hidden under shingles that looked fine from the gutter.
- Permit delays from filing in the wrong jurisdiction. Kensington is unincorporated Contra Costa County. The counter is in Martinez, not Berkeley or El Cerrito. Contractors who file the wrong way stall the job for weeks. We don’t make that mistake.
- WUI non-compliance on remodels. Nearly all of Kensington sits in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. That means ember-resistant venting, Class A roofing, and ignition-resistant detailing on any substantial remodel or replacement. Miss one item and the county fire-safety inspection fails. We build to it from day one.
- Steel-sash skylights failing at the curb. Many Kensington homes still have original single-pane steel-sash windows and skylights from the 1920s-1950s. During a roof replacement, these curbs often show rust and failed seals that leak into the roof cavity. They’re frequently a code-upgrade trigger once the roof is open.
Pricing for Roofing in Kensington, CA
Here’s what we quote in Kensington. These are our market ranges, not national averages pulled from a website:
| Service | Price Range |
|---|---|
| Roof Replacement | $8,000-$20,000 |
| Roof Repair | $400-$1,800 |
| Tile Roof Repair | $600-$2,500 |
| Metal Roof Installation | $15,000-$40,000 |
What moves the number is what we find at tear-off: the condition of the original redwood framing, the presence of fog rot at the eaves, and whether the county requires a geotechnical review for your slope. These are real variables, and we write every one of them into the contract as an allowance with a hard number before work starts. A free estimate means we walk the roof, the eaves, and the drainage path. Call (877) 610-1318 to schedule yours.
We Also Serve Cities Near Kensington
Beyond Kensington, our crews regularly work El Cerrito, Albany, Richmond, and Berkeley. The permitting and fire-safety rules shift fast once you cross a city line, and we know which counter to file at in every one of them. If you’re a Kensington homeowner, you get the same crew, the same written change orders, and the same 90-Day Done Right Promise.
Serving Kensington, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Kensington area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Roofing in Kensington
Sometimes, yes. Because Kensington is unincorporated Contra Costa County, hillside grading and foundation work often requires a county-reviewed geotechnical report before a permit is issued. For a straightforward reroof with no structural changes, usually not. For any roof work tied to a larger remodel, drainage correction, or foundation concern on a steep lot, the county may require it, and we’ll tell you before anything is filed. Call (877) 610-1318 and we’ll tell you exactly what applies to your address.
Because the Kensington hills trap fog against your roof for days at a time, and that moisture gets into the roof assembly through failed flashing, cracked tile, or rotted eaves in a way a fast-moving storm never does. Rain runs off in minutes. Fog sits and soaks. The fix is usually at the eaves and fascia, where old redwood has decayed. Call us for a look. The estimate is free.
Yes. Nearly all of Kensington falls within a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, which means any substantial roof work must meet WUI standards: ember-resistant venting, Class A roofing, and ignition-resistant underlayment at the minimum. County fire-safety inspection is part of the permit sign-off. We build to those codes on every Kensington roof we touch, whether it’s a repair or a full replacement.
We write the unknowns into the contract as allowances with hard numbers before we start. If we find fog-fed rot in the original redwood rafters during tear-off, that repair was already priced as an allowance. If the allowance isn’t enough, you get a written change order with the new number before we touch the framing. You approve it or we don’t do the work. No approval, no surprise invoice. That’s the whole system, and it’s on paper from day one.
Very often, yes. The original single-pane steel-sash skylights on 1920s-1950s Kensington homes usually have rusted curbs and failed seals by the time the roof comes off. Once the roof deck is open, the county’s energy and safety requirements mean these are frequently a required upgrade. We’ll tell you during the inspection, and the cost goes into your quote as a written line item before work starts, not as a discovered surprise later. Call (877) 610-1318 to get an exact number for your roof.
Written by Tom Barrett, Owner at Barrett & Sons Construction, serving Kensington and the surrounding East Bay hills.