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Roofing in Santa Barbara, CA: Red Clay Tile and High Fire Area Rules
Roofing in Santa Barbara, CA is subject to two sets of city rules: historic design guidelines that spell out how red clay tile goes on, and High Fire Hazard Area standards that rule out wood shake roofs. Overhead Roofing handles tile roofing, roof repairs, and reroofing in Santa Barbara, with inspection visits scheduled in advance.
Licensed, bonded and insured, CSLB #1119699
The housing is old: the median year built is 1965, and 73.5% of units predate 1980 (ACS 2020-2024). On clay tile that old, the tile can often be reused while the underlayment beneath it has worn out.
Two-piece terra cotta, booster tiles, and mortar bird stops
After the June 29, 1925, earthquake destroyed downtown, Santa Barbara rebuilt its center in the Spanish Colonial Revival style. The City’s Historic Resources Design Guidelines (Chapter 2.5) now set out how historic tile roofs are redone:
- Tile: two-piece cap-and-pan, red, terra cotta, with no other materials that simulate terra cotta.
- Eaves: a doubled starter course with booster tiles, closed with mortar bird stops rather than manufactured ones (guideline 2.5.22).
- Existing roof: tile salvaged where possible, and the original form and pitch kept.
- Add-ons: no plastic gutters, which the City says “easily become brittle and fail”; flat skylights; and solar panels flat to the roof, off the street-facing slope.
Mortar bird stops also help in a wildfire: the Santa Barbara County Fire Safe Council asks owners to seal clay tile roof edges with bird stops or cement to keep embers out.
Who reviews a reroof depends on the property:
Landmark, Structure of Merit, or historic inventory property
Historic Landmarks Commission (HLC)
El Pueblo Viejo Landmark District
HLC; like-for-like reroofs approved by staff
Home in the Hillside Design District
Single Family Design Board (SFDB) if material or color changes
Home in the Mission Area or Lower Riviera
SFDB for exterior changes
Sources: City of Santa Barbara Design Review Checklist; HLC consent record of June 5, 2024 (two East Canon Perdido Street reroofs approved administratively).
The building permit itself comes from the City’s Building & Safety counter, (805) 564-5485.
Class A roofs and the shake ban in the High Fire Hazard Area
Sundowners, the evening winds off the Santa Ynez Mountains, have driven the city’s worst fires. In the November 2008 Tea Fire, gusts up to 85 mph pushed the fire into Santa Barbara; it burned 1,940 acres and destroyed 210 homes, 106 of them in the city.
The City’s High Fire construction standards (Building Code Chapter 7A and Residential Code R337, as amended by Ordinance 5920) set the roof rule inside its High Fire Hazard Area: roof coverings on existing buildings, additions, and repairs must be Class A or noncombustible fire-retardant material, and wood shakes and shingles, treated or untreated, are not permitted. The one exception is a patch: an existing shake or shingle roof may be repaired with fire-retardant-treated shakes when less than 20% of the roof is replaced within two years.
The High Fire Hazard Area has four City zones: Coastal, Coastal Interior, Foothill, and Extreme Foothill. The City Council also adopted maps aligned with CAL FIRE’s new zones on July 1, 2025, effective July 31; the state counts 1,754 acres of Very High in the city, down from 3,584. Ratings vary across the city: an upper Riviera point is Very High, while downtown and Samarkand are NonWildland. We check both maps for each address.
Roofing in Santa Barbara, CA, for tile, composition, and flat roofs
With 45.8% of housing in single-family detached homes and 30.0% of units in buildings of five or more, the work covers houses and apartment roofs alike:
- Clay tile repair and reroofs: broken or slipped tile, failed underlayment, and flashing at chimneys and walls, done to the City’s terra cotta standard where it applies. See tile roof repair.
- Composition shingle and shake replacement: tear-off and a Class A shingle; on historic buildings, the City favors dark grays, charcoals, and dark browns over light colors and earth tones.
- Flat and low-slope roofs: repairs and replacement on apartment and commercial buildings. In Climate Zone 6, a residential low-slope reroof over half the roof needs a rated cool roof; tile and shingle roofs on houses don’t.
Before you sign with any roofing contractor in Santa Barbara, look up the license with the CSLB. Overhead Roofing holds license #1119699 (C-39 Roofing), is bonded and insured, and has an A rating as a BBB Accredited business. Our team brings 25+ years of roofing experience, estimates are free, and each job carries a workmanship warranty. For wind or fire damage, we provide photos and a written estimate you can send your insurer.
For the rest of the South Coast, see the Santa Barbara County roofing guide and our Goleta page.
Santa Barbara questions on tile approvals, shake repairs, and scheduling
Does a like-for-like tile reroof in El Pueblo Viejo need a Historic Landmarks Commission hearing?
Usually not. The HLC reviews exterior changes in the El Pueblo Viejo Landmark District, but like-for-like reroofs typically get staff Administrative Approval instead; two East Canon Perdido Street reroofs were approved that way in June 2024. A change of tile type or color is different, so call the Planning Counter at (805) 564-5578 before ordering material.
Can I get a roof repair in Santa Barbara on a wood shake roof?
Only a limited one inside the City’s High Fire Hazard Area, where an existing shake or shingle roof may be patched with fire-retardant-treated shakes while less than 20% of the roof is replaced within two years. Larger work needs a Class A or noncombustible covering. Outside that area, the City may accept some newer fire-retardant wood shingles on historic buildings, case by case.
Can I change the roof material or color on a Lower Riviera or hillside home?
Yes, with design review. The City’s Design Review Checklist sends exterior changes to single-unit homes in the Mission Area and Lower Riviera to the Single Family Design Board. In the Hillside Design District, a permitted reroof goes to the SFDB when the material or color changes; the same material in the same color avoids that trigger.
Is Overhead Roofing a roofing company based in Santa Barbara?
No, and we say so up front. We take tile, repair, and reroof projects in Santa Barbara and set every inspection date in advance; call (877) 557-7778, Sunday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The 24/7 emergency line takes leak calls at any hour, and we book the visit on that call rather than promise an arrival time.
Goleta to Solvang, clay tile services, and guides on historic roofs
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