Roof Replacement Contractor — Full Roof Replacement, Start to Finish
Your roof is at the end of its life and you want one contractor for the whole job: inspection, materials, tear-off, deck, flashing, permit and cleanup, with the number written down before the first shingle comes off.
A roof replacement contractor takes the roof from inspection to final cleanup: the old shingles and flashing off to the deck, soft decking replaced, ice and water shield at the eaves and valleys, synthetic underlayment, new drip edge and step flashing, balanced ventilation, new shingles, the city's permit and inspection, and a magnet sweep of the yard. JMB Builders does full roof replacement across the Twin Cities metro, priced per project by squares, pitch, layers, decking and access.
- Priced per project: squares, pitch, layers, decking, access
- Tear-off to the deck, decking checked sheet by sheet
- Send photos, reply within one business day
- Free roof inspection in person before you sign
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
Send photos and hear back within one business day — or book a free in-home estimate.
A full roof replacement is about twenty separate decisions, and the shingle color is the least important one. What matters is what happens between the tear-off and the first course: whether the decking got walked and probed, whether the ice and water shield runs far enough up from the eave for a Minnesota winter, whether the step flashing was replaced or just bent back up, whether the ridge vent has soffit intake to feed it, and whether anybody pulled the permit so the city inspector sees it. Those are the things that decide if the roof lasts thirty years or leaks in eight.
Here is how we run one. It starts with photos from your yard and, if you can get in, the attic. We reply within one business day and set up a free roof inspection in person: we walk the roof, count squares, measure pitch, count layers at the edge, look at the deck from underneath and check every penetration. From that comes a written scope with the material list and a per-project number. Nothing is ordered until you have approved it.
On the job, the order is fixed. Tear-off to bare deck. Deck repair, quoted per sheet before the job so there is no surprise. Drip edge at the eaves. Ice and water shield at the eaves to the coverage the Minnesota code calls for, in the valleys and around every pipe, vent, chimney and skylight. Synthetic underlayment on everything else. Drip edge at the rakes, over the underlayment. Starter strip. Shingles nailed to the code's nailing pattern. New step flashing at every wall, new pipe boots, new vent caps, ridge vent with the slot cut. Ridge cap last. Then the magnet sweep, the gutters cleaned out and the walk-around with you.
We are a licensed Minnesota residential building contractor based in Zimmerman and we replace roofs across the Twin Cities metro and north toward St. Cloud: ramblers, story-and-a-half houses, two-stories with dormers, townhomes, duplexes and lake cabins. The pages linked below go deeper on each of those situations, on shingle choices, on insurance claims and on what the day itself looks like for you.
What you supply
- Photos of each roof slope from the ground, the attic underside if you can reach it, and any ceiling stains
- Your shingle choice: color and line, picked from samples at the inspection
- Clear driveway space for the dumpster and the shingle delivery
- Cars out of the garage and driveway on tear-off day; pets and anything on the attic floor moved
- Your insurance adjuster's scope if the roof is going through a claim
What JMB supplies
- A free roof inspection in person: squares, pitch, layers, deck condition, penetrations, ventilation
- A written per-project scope listing every material by name, and the city's building permit and inspection
- Tear-off to the deck, all old flashing and boots removed, dumpster, daily cleanup
- Decking replacement where soft or delaminated, quoted per sheet; plank decks overlaid when required
- Ice and water shield at eaves, valleys, penetrations and low-slope areas; synthetic underlayment elsewhere
- New drip edge, starter strip, step flashing, kick-out flashing, counter flashing and pipe boots
- Architectural shingles (options such as GAF Timberline HDZ, Owens Corning Duration, CertainTeed Landmark, Malarkey Vista)
- Ridge vent cut in and soffit intake checked, with bath fan and plumbing vents capped new
- Magnet sweep of lawn, beds and driveway, gutters cleared, finished photos in your job folder
How it is priced: per project
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- Squares: the roof area in hundred-square-foot units, measured at the inspection, not guessed from the ground
- Pitch: a steep roof slows every step and needs roof jacks, planks and harness anchors
- Layers: a second or third layer of old shingles doubles the tear-off labor and the dumpster weight
- Decking: how many sheets are soft, delaminated or plank with wide gaps, confirmed from the attic and after tear-off
- Access: how close the dumpster and boom truck can get, landscaping to protect, a walk-out basement or deck below the eave
- Complexity: valleys, dormers, chimneys, skylights, walls that need step flashing and kick-outs
- Shingle line: standard architectural vs. a heavier or Class 4 impact-rated shingle
- Add-ons done at the same time: gutters, skylights, attic insulation top-up, a low-slope section in membrane
Send a photo of each slope from the yard and one of the attic if you can reach it. The free in-person inspection is where squares, layers and decking get confirmed and the number becomes firm.
How long it takes
Most single-family roofs: one to two working days on site after the material is delivered. Steep roofs, several layers or a plank deck: two to three days. The city inspection follows at the city's schedule.
How your project works
- 1
Photos in, reply within one business day
Send photos of each slope, the attic and any stains. We reply within one business day to schedule the free in-person roof inspection.
- 2
Free roof inspection, written scope
We walk the roof, count squares and layers, measure pitch, probe the deck, check soffit intake and bring shingle samples. You get a written scope with every material named and a per-project number.
- 3
Permit and material order
Once you approve the scope we pull the city's building permit, order shingles, underlayment, flashing and vents, and book the dumpster and delivery around your schedule.
- 4
Tear-off and deck repair
Old shingles, underlayment, flashing and boots come off to the deck. Soft sheets are replaced. You get photos of the bare deck before anything goes back on.
- 5
Dry-in, flashing and shingles
Drip edge, ice and water shield, synthetic underlayment, starter, shingles, step flashing, boots and ridge vent go on in that order. The house is never left open overnight.
- 6
Cleanup, inspection and walkthrough
Magnet sweep, gutters cleared, debris hauled. The city inspects the finished roof. We walk the house with you and put finished photos in your job folder.
Situations and options
Rambler and single-story roofs
Low pitch, long eaves, usually one or two layers and a lot of square footage per foot of height. Fast to tear off, and the eave membrane coverage matters most because the slope sheds slowly and ice dams sit on it.
Story-and-a-half and steep roofs
Steep main slopes, dormers and knee-wall rooms under the roof. Staged with roof jacks and planks, more flashing per square, and the attic above the knee walls is where we check ventilation and insulation.
Two-story with dormers and valleys
Every valley gets ice and water shield under a woven or closed-cut shingle valley, every dormer wall gets new step flashing and a kick-out at the bottom. Complexity, not height, is what adds the time.
Insurance claim roof replacement
Hail or wind took the roof. You file the claim, we meet the adjuster, write a line-item scope that matches theirs, do the work to that scope and send the final invoice that releases the recoverable depreciation. Deductible paid to us, never waived; Minnesota law does not allow it.
Roof plus gutters, skylights or insulation
The roof is open once. New seamless gutters hang on the new drip edge, skylights get set in the new underlayment with their flashing kit, and attic baffles and a blow-in top-up go in while the soffit is being opened. Each is its own line on the scope.
Shingle over a low-slope section
A flat porch, addition or entry roof tied to the main roof. Shingles go on the pitched slopes; the low-slope section gets a membrane, and the seam between the two is where the detail work is.
Roof Replacement Contractor — Full Roof Replacement, Start to Finish: questions, answered
What is included in a full roof replacement?
Everything from the old shingles down to the deck and back up: tear-off and disposal, decking repair where it is soft, drip edge, ice and water shield at the eaves and valleys, synthetic underlayment, starter strip, shingles, new step and counter flashing, new pipe boots and vent caps, ridge vent, ridge cap, the city's permit and inspection, and the magnet sweep. If a quote does not list the flashing and the membrane as new, ask why; reusing them is where a new roof leaks first.
How is a roof replacement priced?
Per project, built up from squares (hundred-square-foot units of roof), pitch, the number of layers coming off, how many sheets of decking need replacing, access for the dumpster and delivery, and complexity like valleys, dormers, chimneys and skylights. Shingle line and any add-ons (gutters, skylights, insulation) are separate lines. We measure all of it at the free inspection so the number on the scope is the number on the invoice, apart from decking confirmed after tear-off, which is quoted per sheet up front.
How many squares is my roof?
A square is one hundred square feet of roof surface. A simple rambler is often in the twenties; a two-story with a steep roof and dormers can be the same footprint but many more squares because pitch adds surface. We measure it on the roof at the inspection rather than estimating from the footprint, because the pitch and the overhangs change the count, and the count sets the material order and the price.
Do I need a permit to replace my roof in Minnesota?
In most Twin Cities cities, yes. A full tear-off and reroof takes the city's building permit and inspection, and we pull it as part of the job. The inspector typically looks at ice and water shield coverage at the eaves, underlayment, flashing, nailing and ventilation. A roof done without the permit can come up when you sell the house. Permit fees vary by city and are listed on the scope.
Do you tear off the old roof or go over it?
We tear off. A second layer hides soft decking, leaves the old flashing in place, adds weight the rafters were not sized for, and comes off anyway at the next roof. Tear-off is the only way to put ice and water shield on the deck where it does its job and to replace step flashing at the walls. If your roof already has two layers, both come off and the dumpster is bigger; that is a line on the scope.
What shingles do you install?
Architectural (laminated) asphalt shingles are the standard; options such as GAF Timberline HDZ, Owens Corning Duration, CertainTeed Landmark and Malarkey Vista, and Class 4 impact-rated lines from those makers when you want the hail rating. We bring samples to the inspection and match the starter, hip-and-ridge cap and ridge vent to the shingle line. 3-tab is available for a garage or shed match but we do not recommend it on a house in Minnesota wind.
How long does the whole roof replacement take from first call to finished roof?
The reply to your photos comes within one business day, the free inspection is scheduled from there, and the written scope follows the inspection. Once you approve it, the permit and the material order take a week or two depending on the city and the supplier, and the roof itself is one to two days on site for most houses. Weather moves the work days; we do not tear off ahead of rain.
Can a roof be replaced in the fall or winter in Minnesota?
Fall is the busiest and best season. Winter installs are possible on dry, cold days: shingles are hand-sealed where the self-seal strip will not activate in the cold, and we wait on days with snow on the deck or when the shingles get too brittle to nail without cracking. If the roof is leaking and it is January, we tarp and schedule; if it is sound, waiting for a run of dry days costs nothing.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners, builders and dealers. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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 763-333-4066.
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Read morePage reviewed October 2, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All roofing pages
Where we work
Roofing near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: