Exterior & envelope
Roof-over installation on manufactured homes
A new roof system installed over the existing one without a tear-off — where the home's DAPIA-approved design allows it, which is the part almost nobody checks.
- How it is priced
- Per home, by roof area and system type
- Timeline
- Set in your written estimate, after the walk-through
- Who performs it
- NRBS crews, self-performed
What a roof-over is, and when it is the right call
A roof-over installs a new roof system directly over the existing roof. There is no tear-off, no disposal, and the home stays dry throughout — which on an occupied unit is the whole argument.
On a home that qualifies, a roof-over is usually the correct choice. It keeps the existing deck in place, so there is no tear-off, no demolition and no disposal, and it adds insulation value in the process.
The word doing the work in that sentence is qualifies.
Wind zones and roof load zones change the answer
Manufactured homes are not built to one national specification. They are built to the zone they are destined for, under 24 CFR § 3280.305. [U.S. Government Publishing Office, current eCFR]
| Wind Zone I | The baseline zone, inland |
|---|---|
| Wind Zone II | 100 mph design wind speed |
| Wind Zone III | 110 mph design wind speed — coastal high-wind regions |
| Roof Load Zone North | 40 psf |
| Roof Load Zone Middle | 30 psf |
| Roof Load Zone South | 20 psf |
The practical consequence for an operator with communities in more than one state: a roof-over that is routine on a home in a southern roof-load zone may not be permissible on an identical home in a northern one. The home is different because it was built for a different zone, even though it came off the same line.
This is why our state pages carry the zone data rather than repeating the same roof-over pitch everywhere. See where we work for the zone that applies to your community.
Systems, and what each is actually for
Metal roof-over. A new metal roof panel system installed over the existing roof, typically with a framing or purlin system and added insulation. It is the long-life option and the one that makes sense on a home you intend to hold.
Membrane roof-over. A single-ply membrane over the existing roof. Appropriate on low-slope and flat manufactured home roofs where a metal system is not the right geometry.
Coating. Worth being precise about: a coating is not a roof-over. It is a maintenance interval applied to an existing metal roof that is still sound. If the roof underneath is failing, a coating buys a season and hides the problem. See metal roof recoat for where coating is genuinely the right answer, including published service lives by chemistry.
Roof-over or replacement
The full decision, with cost, disruption and service life laid out side by side, is in the roof-over vs roof replacement guide — it is the piece we get asked about most and it is ungated.
Also in exterior & envelope
What the price covers
In the scope
- Systems we install: Metal roof-over, membrane roof-over, and insulated panel systems
- Governing rule: 24 CFR § 3285.3 — an alteration must not impose additional loads
- Zone inputs: HUD Wind Zone I/II/III and Roof Load Zone North 40 / Middle 30 / South 20 psf
- Never assumed: That the existing structure can carry the added dead load
Not in the scope
- Anything not written in the scope. Extra work found on site is raised as a written change order before it is done.
How the job runs
Walk-through
We walk the units or the roof, or work from the walk sheet you already have.
Written scope
A written scope and price before any work starts, priced as shown above.
The work
Our own crews do it, to the written scope. Anything extra is a written change order first.
Final walk-through
We walk it again with you and close out anything on the punch list.
Step one is your scope, as it already exists.
Request a bidPricing a whole community? Request a park-wide quote.
Common questions
W-9, written safety programme and certificates of insurance (GL and workers’ comp): being prepared. What is published so far is on vendor credentials.
Usually specified alongside
- Roof replacementTear off, inspect the deck and framing that nobody has seen in thirty years, and rebuild the roof system properly.
- Metal roof recoatExtend a sound metal roof with the right coating chemistry — and be told plainly when the roof underneath is past coating.
- Belly wrap & insulationClose the underside of the home before anything is installed on top of it — this is the sequencing error that costs the most money in this category.
Where we perform roof-over
Self-performed crews based in Houston. Each city page carries local housing context.