Roofing in Cave Creek, Cave Creek (85331)

Common roof types in Cave Creek

• Concrete Tile
• Flat/Foam (parapet roofs)
• Clay Tile
• Metal (outbuildings and custom homes)
• Asphalt Shingle

Typical home age: 20–35 years for most homes (median year built 1998) · Population: 31,968

One ZIP code, three jurisdictions

The 85331 ZIP code is far bigger than the Town of Cave Creek. When we checked addresses and sample points across the ZIP against Census Bureau boundary maps, they fell in three places: the Town of Cave Creek, the City of Phoenix and unincorporated Maricopa County. Tatum Ranch, for example, has Cave Creek addresses but is inside Phoenix city limits. Much of the open land and larger-lot desert property in the ZIP is unincorporated county.

For a roof, the difference is real:

• Town of Cave Creek: the Town's re-roof checklist says the only re-roof that skips a permit is a single-layer shingle overlay with no more than 128 square feet of decking replaced. Tear-offs, structural work and heavier materials need a permit, with a pre-inspection after tear-off, a nailing inspection when new decking goes down, and a final. Contractors also need a Town business license before a permit is issued. We confirm the current requirement with the Town's Building Department on each job.
• City of Phoenix: replacing a roof covering with the same type of material is exempt from a permit. Changing material types needs one.
• Unincorporated Maricopa County: a re-roof with the same type of material is exempt. Material changes and structural work go through the County.

Your property tax bill or the County Assessor's parcel record shows which one you're in. We confirm it before quoting, because it changes the schedule and the paperwork.

Roof ages and styles across 85331

Census data for 85331 shows about 42 percent of homes were built in the 1990s, 24 percent in the 2000s and 17 percent from 2010 to 2019, with smaller shares from the 1970s and 1980s. The median year built is 1998, and about 90 percent are detached houses.

That breaks into a few common situations:

• 1990s master-planned homes, such as those in Tatum Ranch, a golf community built largely from the late 1980s through the 1990s. These are mostly concrete tile. If the original underlayment is still in place, it's 26 to 36 years old, well past the 15 to 25 years it typically lasts in Arizona heat.
• Desert custom homes in Santa Fe, territorial and contemporary styles, often with flat roofs behind parapets, sometimes with tile accents. These depend on coatings, scuppers and parapet caps.
• Older homes in and around the town core from the 1970s and 1980s, which have usually been reroofed and added on to over the years.
• Ranch properties with barns, shops and covered stalls, usually metal.

Each needs a different first question. On tile, it's the underlayment's age. On flat roofs, it's the coating and drainage. On older homes, it's how many layers are already up there.

Wildfire country and your roof

Cave Creek sits at the edge of the Tonto National Forest and open Sonoran Desert. The Cave Creek Complex Fire, started by lightning on June 21, 2005, burned about 248,000 acres in the forest northeast of town. Wildfire is a real consideration here in a way it isn't in most of the Valley.

What matters on the roof:

• Fire rating. The International Residential Code classes clay tile, concrete tile and metal roof coverings as Class A, the highest fire rating. If you're choosing anything else, confirm its rating on the manufacturer's data.
• Openings at the eaves. The open ends of tile at the roof edge can let in embers, birds and rodents. Eave closures, sometimes called bird stops, close those gaps. We check that they're in place and intact.
• Debris. Dry leaves and plant debris in valleys, gutters and against parapets can catch embers, and they also hold water during storms. Clear them before fire season and again before the monsoon.
• Vents. Attic and roof vents should have intact screens so embers and animals stay out.

None of this replaces defensible space around the house, but the roof is where wind-blown embers land first.

Flat and parapet roofs in the desert

Flat roofs behind parapet walls are common on Cave Creek custom homes. They work well in a dry climate, but only while their drainage and coatings are kept up.

Where they usually fail:

• Scuppers clogged with leaves, nests or debris, which makes water pond behind the parapet.
• Cracked parapet caps that let water into the wall, where it shows up as a stain far from the actual entry point.
• Worn foam coatings. Once UV wears through the coating, the foam underneath breaks down and absorbs water.
• Transitions where a flat section meets tile, which need flashing lapped correctly in both directions.

If the foam is dry and firm, a recoat is usually the right call, at about $2.00 to $3.75 per square foot. Wet or damaged foam has to be cut out and rebuilt first. A new foam roof typically runs about $5.00 to $8.00 per square foot, and a TPO membrane about $5.50 to $9.00. On roofs that pond, we rebuild the slope to the scuppers as part of the work.

Ranch outbuildings and metal roofs

Horse properties and acreage are a big part of Cave Creek, and barns, shops, hay covers and stall shades often get less attention than the house. Most have exposed-fastener metal roofs. Their usual failure is the rubber washer under each screw, which dries out and cracks in the sun until every screw is a small leak. Wind also loosens ridge caps and panel edges.

The fixes range from replacing fasteners and sealing seams, to a reflective coating over sound metal, to replacing panels. We look at each building and price it separately so you can decide what to do now and what can wait.

On houses, standing-seam metal fits both rustic and modern Cave Creek styles, reflects heat well and holds up to wind when fastened correctly. It typically runs about $9.50 to $14.00 per square foot installed. Switching a house to metal from another material needs a permit in all three jurisdictions, and HOA rules may apply too.

Monsoon storms, access and costs

Monsoon storms between June 15 and September 30 cross open desert and hillsides here with little to slow them down. After a big storm, look for lifted ridge tiles, flat-roof edges peeling back and branches from mesquite or palo verde on the roof. If you find damage, we can cover openings, photograph it and give you a written report. If you file an insurance claim, your insurer decides what the policy covers, so read your policy and talk to them directly.

Access shapes the job. Long driveways, steep grades and gravel roads affect deliveries, where tile is staged and how debris leaves the site. We plan that during the estimate.

Typical ranges:

• Repairs: $300 to $5,000.
• Tile underlayment replacement: about $4.00 to $7.00 per square foot for concrete tile and $5.00 to $8.50 for clay, roughly $10,000 to $22,000 for most concrete tile homes.
• New concrete tile: about $6.50 to $10.50 per square foot.
• Foam: roughly $4,000 to $18,000 depending on size and condition.

Permits, access and how much of the roof is flat versus pitched all move the number. Use our roof cost calculator for a ballpark and book a free estimate. Financing through Service Finance and GreenSky is available, including 0 percent for 24 months for qualified buyers, subject to credit approval.