Roofer in Fall River, MA

We take roofing calls across the city, which uses ZIP codes 02720 through 02724 and 02790. Wikipedia describes a few of its neighborhoods:

• Globe Village: in the south end, near Cook Pond and Broadway
• The Lower Highlands: in the north end, running from Bedford Street up High Street to Prospect Street

Fall River covers 40.2 square miles, 7.1 of them water. It sits on the eastern shore of Mount Hope Bay at the mouth of the Taunton River, borders Freetown to the north and Dartmouth to the west, and meets the Rhode Island state line at Tiverton to the south. We work on both sides of that line, so if you are on a street near the border, one call covers it.

Not sure whether the rules below apply to your address? Call (401) 593-1512 and we will check before we quote.

Fall River is direct about roofs. The city's Inspectional Services page, Why Do I Need a Building Permit?, answers that replacing roof shingles on a house requires a building permit. Permits exist, the city says, so work is designed and built to the Massachusetts State Building Code and the city's Zoning By-Laws.

• The Fee Is Based On Job Cost. The city's residential remodeling checklist lists a renovation permit fee of $9.00 per $1,000 of estimated job cost, calculated by the Building Inspector.
• Payment. The city says building permit payments are accepted by cash or personal check.
• Who Can Pull It. The same checklist requires a state construction supervisor license with at least a 1G endorsement and a valid Home Improvement Contractor registration, unless the homeowner takes out the permit for their own owner-occupied work.
• Inspections. Fall River's Building Inspectors review plans, issue permits and inspect during different phases of construction. The city pages we read do not list which inspections a re-roof gets, so ask the office.

Ask any contractor you are comparing which licenses and registrations they will put on the permit, and check them with the state.

Fall River has a regulatory Historic District Commission. According to the city's Historical Commission page, it covers 47 properties within the Highland Historical District, and the city lists a Highlands Local Historic District map and a certificate application among its local historic district resources.

We could not read the district's design guidelines as text, so we cannot tell you from here what the Commission says about roofing materials. If your house is one of the 47, ask the Commission what it needs to see before you choose a material, or give us your address and we will find out before we quote. The city's Planning Division staffs both the Historical Commission and the Historic District Commission.

Water shapes Fall River. The city sits where the Taunton River meets Mount Hope Bay, and its Master Plan recommends discouraging residential development in the floodplain of the 100-year flood.

Flood planning is not roof planning. Floodwater does not come through shingles. Wind, rain and winter weather are what act on a roof. For storm and winter questions, see our storm damage and insurance claims page and our ice dam guide.

We go up on the roof, and into the attic when it matters, before we tell you anything. You get a plain read on what we found, whether it is a repair, maintenance or a replacement, and what the city or the Historic District Commission will want to see. Request an estimate or call (401) 593-1512.

Thinking about solar for your Fall River home? See solar in Fall River from Rooftop Power. RTP Roofing is a Rooftop Power company.