The Florida 25% roof rule
A storm takes out part of your roof, and a contractor tells you Florida code requires the whole thing replaced. Sometimes that is true. Often it is not — and the difference between the two is a five-figure decision that turns on what year your roof was built.
The rule: Florida Building Code sections R908.1.1 (residential) and 706.1.1 (commercial) provide that if more than 25% of a roof section is repaired, replaced or recovered within any 12-month period, the entire roof section must be brought into compliance with the current Florida Building Code.
The exemption: Senate Bill 4-D, passed in 2022 as Chapter 2022-271, amended Florida Statute 553.844 so that a roof built or last replaced in compliance with the 2007 Florida Building Code or a later edition does not automatically have to be brought entirely up to current code merely because more than 25% is being worked on.
And no local government can tighten it. The same bill prohibited local governments from adopting amendments stricter than the state provision, so a county or city cannot impose a harsher version on you.
What it means for your roof
If more than a quarter of the section is damaged, the whole section has to come up to current code — which in practice means a replacement, because current code brings sealed deck, current fastening and current product approvals with it.
The exemption may apply, and a genuine repair may be legitimate rather than a full tear-off. This is the case worth fighting for, and the one a contractor quoting a replacement has no reason to raise.
The 25% threshold is measured across any 12-month period, cumulatively. Splitting a job into two 20% repairs six months apart does not keep you under the line — it puts you at 40% within the window. Building departments track permits by address.
How to actually use this
Pull the permit history for your address from your county building department. You are looking for the last re-roof permit and the code edition in force when it was issued. This single date decides which side of the exemption you fall on.
“More than 25%” is a measurement, not an opinion. Ask any contractor claiming the threshold is crossed to show you the damaged area against the total area of that roof section — in square feet, on paper. A satellite measurement of your roof gives you a total to check their percentage against.
The rule applies per section, not to the whole building. A detached garage, a low-slope addition, or a separate wing can be a distinct section. This can cut both ways, so it is worth asking how the sections on your roof are being defined.
The building department applies this rule daily and has no stake in your contract. A phone call costs you nothing. “Code requires a full replacement” is a claim to verify, not a closing line to accept.
One honest caveat. We cite the exemption from the enrolled text of SB 4-D and from how local building departments describe the rule in practice. We have not verified the complete current text of the qualifying conditions in F.S. 553.844 from primary source, and the Florida Building Code’s 9th Edition takes effect 31 December 2026, which may change details. Confirm your specific situation with the building official before relying on it.
Measure your roof from satellite imagery in about thirty seconds and get the square footage and facet count you need to hold a claim up to scrutiny.
Related Florida guides
The law is the same across the state. Pricing is not — that is what the city pages are for.