Hail Damage Found After Buying a House — Windows and Next Steps
You closed in spring. By fall you notice cracked glass on the west side, dents in the capping and a torn screen nobody mentioned.
Reply within one business day. Or call / text 763-204-2099.
Hail damage found after buying a house raises two questions: who pays, and what it takes to fix. The first belongs to your insurer, your agent and maybe your real estate attorney. The second is ours. JMB Builders photographs every window and door, notes which damage looks old and which looks fresh, and writes a line-item repair quote by opening, for a claim or paid direct. Twin Cities metro. Priced per project.
- Every window and door photographed and listed
- Old vs fresh damage noted line by line
- Line-item quote by opening, for a claim or paid direct
New owners find hail damage all the time. The inspector looked at the roof from the ground, the screens were stored in the garage, the glass was dirty enough to hide a crack, or the storm hit after the inspection and before closing. Some damage was claimed and paid to the last owner and never fixed. Some was never claimed at all.
Who pays depends on facts we cannot settle for you. When the storm hit compared with when your policy started is the big one, and whether the last owner was already paid for it is another. Ask your insurance agent first. If the damage was known and not disclosed, that is a question for your real estate agent or an attorney, not a contractor. We do not give legal or coverage advice.
What we can give you is a clean record. We walk every window and door with a camera and a scale reference, and write down what we see: clean-edged cracks and bright metal that look recent, dirt in old cracks and dulled dents that look older, screens and capping that were patched before. That record is useful whichever way it goes. Then we quote the repair line by line by opening, so it can go to your insurer, to the seller's side, or be phased and paid direct. Minnesota law (Minn. Stat. 325E.66) bars a contractor from waiving, rebating or paying any part of your deductible, and we do not.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough: a reply within one business day, or ask for a free in-home estimate. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
What you supply
- Your closing date and the start date of your homeowner's policy
- The home inspection report and the seller's disclosure, if you have them
- Listing photos, which often show the windows before closing
- A claim number, if your agent says to file
- Access to every window and door inside and out
What JMB supplies
- A full walk of every window, door, screen and storm door with photos and a scale reference
- Notes on each item: what is damaged, and whether it looks fresh or older
- A line-item repair quote by opening: glass, sash, whole unit, screen, storm door
- Meeting your adjuster when you want us there, if you file
- One in-person measure of every opening before anything is ordered
- Room-by-room install with floors protected and every opening closed the same day
- Finished photos and a final invoice by opening
How it is priced: per project
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- How many windows, doors and screens are damaged
- Glass, sash or whole-unit repair for each opening
- Whether parts are still made for the windows the house came with
- Full-frame work in siding, brick or stucco
- Second-story access and staging
- Whether the repair is done at once or phased by side of the house
Send photos of the damage and the listing photos if you can find them. We reply within one business day, or book a free in-home estimate.
How long it takes
Documentation: one visit, an hour or two. Order: depends on the brand and is written on the quote. Install: a day for a few windows, several days for the whole house.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized reply within one business day. Prefer a look in person? A free in-home estimate is always an option.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Hail Damage Found After Buying a House — Windows and Next Steps: questions, answered
I found hail damage after buying my house. Can I file a claim?
Ask your insurance agent. Whether your policy covers it depends largely on when the storm hit compared with when your policy started, and on what your policy says. A dated record of the damage helps the conversation either way. We provide the photos and a line-item scope.
What if the previous owner was already paid for the hail damage?
Then the same damage may not be paid again under your policy, and whether you have any claim against the seller is a question for your real estate agent or an attorney. We do not give legal advice. We document the damage and quote the repair so you know what is at stake.
How can a contractor tell if hail damage happened before I bought the house?
Not to the day, but the damage gives clues. Fresh glass cracks have clean edges; old ones collect dirt. New dents in aluminum show bright metal; old ones dull. Listing photos and the inspection report are often the best evidence of what was there at closing.
Why didn't my home inspector find the hail damage?
Home inspections are visual and limited to what the inspector can see and reach that day. Screens in storage, dirty glass and second-story units are easy to miss. Your inspection agreement says what was covered; ask your real estate agent if you think something was missed.
Can I just pay to fix the hail damage myself?
Yes. Many buyers do when the damage is small or the claim question is messy. The quote is line by line by opening, so you can fix the worst side first and phase the rest. Keep the photos either way.
Can the contractor cover the deductible since I just bought the house?
No. Minnesota law bars a contractor from waiving, rebating or paying any part of your insurance deductible, and JMB Builders does not. That is true whether the house is new to you or not.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and the builders we work with. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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Read morePage reviewed October 9, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All insurance repairs pages
Where we work
Insurance & Storm Damage Repairs near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: