The Question Every Board Gets Eventually
It starts with a water stain on a ceiling or a shingle spotted from the street. Within hours, a homeowner is at your inbox asking the same question boards have fielded for decades: Who pays for this — me or the HOA?
Roof repair responsibility is one of the most disputed maintenance issues in community associations, and getting it wrong can mean costly litigation, special assessments, or a very angry neighbor. Here is what every board member should understand before that next request lands in your queue.
It Always Starts With Your Governing Documents
There is no universal answer. Responsibility is determined first by your CC&Rs (Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions) and, where those are silent, by state law.
Your CC&Rs will define two critical concepts:
- Common elements (or common area): Property the association owns and maintains collectively — typically the roof structure, exterior walls, and shared systems.
- Exclusive use common area / limited common elements: Portions of common property assigned to a specific unit for exclusive use, such as a balcony, patio, or in some communities, a skylight above one unit.
Read your maintenance matrix carefully. Many CC&Rs separate structural roof components from finished interior components. The association may own the roof deck and waterproofing membrane while the homeowner owns the drywall and insulation below it.
What California Law Says (Davis-Stirling)
For California HOAs, the Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act (Civil Code §4775) sets the default rule when CC&Rs do not specify otherwise:
- The association is responsible for maintaining, repairing, and replacing common areas.
- Owners are responsible for maintaining their separate interests — generally the interior of the unit.
- Exclusive use common areas (like a balcony deck waterproofing membrane) are maintained by the association unless the CC&Rs shift that duty to the owner.
Practically speaking, under Davis-Stirling, if the roof is a common element — which it almost always is in a condominium — the HOA bears the repair and replacement cost. However, if owner negligence caused or worsened the damage (say, an unauthorized rooftop installation punctured the membrane), the board may have grounds to charge back costs under Civil Code §4775(b).
What Illinois Law Says (Condo Act)
For Illinois condominium associations, the Illinois Condominium Property Act (765 ILCS 605/) takes a similar approach. Section 18.4 grants the board authority — and duty — to maintain, repair, and replace common elements. The roof of a condominium building is almost universally a common element under Illinois declarations.
Illinois boards should also note that Section 9 governs how repair costs flow through assessments. If a repair is urgent and unbudgeted, the board may be able to levy a special assessment, though member vote thresholds may apply depending on your declaration.
As with California, if an owner's action directly caused roof damage, Illinois law and your declaration likely allow the association to pursue reimbursement.
The Limited Common Element Gray Zone
Here is where disputes get complicated. Consider these scenarios:
- Skylights: Often installed above a single unit. Is it a common element (association responsibility) or a limited common element (owner responsibility for maintenance, association for replacement)?
- Rooftop decks: If a unit has exclusive rooftop access, who maintains the waterproofing below that deck?
- HVAC curbs and penetrations: Unit equipment that penetrates the roof — who owns the flashing?
For each of these, the answer lives in your CC&Rs and, if ambiguous, in a board resolution or legal opinion. Boards that proactively define these gray zones in a maintenance responsibility chart — and share it with owners — field far fewer disputes.
Can Owners Go on the Roof?
Short answer: almost certainly not without board authorization. Because the roof is a common element, access is controlled by the association. Unauthorized rooftop access creates liability exposure for the owner and the association alike. Your rules and regulations should clearly prohibit it, and your CC&Rs likely already do.
If an owner needs roof access for a legitimate reason — inspection of their HVAC unit, for example — require a written request, accompany them, and document the visit.
What Boards Should Do Right Now
- Pull your CC&Rs and read the maintenance and repair section in full. Highlight every reference to roof, roofing, waterproofing, and exterior.
- Create or update a maintenance responsibility matrix that categorizes every major component as association, owner, or shared. Distribute it annually.
- Document all repair requests in writing. A homeowner who reports a leak and receives no response has a much stronger claim against the association later.
- Fund reserves appropriately. Roof replacement is predictable. A funded reserve study that accounts for your roof's remaining useful life keeps a $60,000 repair from becoming a $60,000 special assessment.
- Respond promptly. Under Davis-Stirling Civil Code §4775 and Illinois case law, unreasonable delays in addressing known common element damage can expose the board to liability for consequential damages inside the unit.
How Boardly Helps
Boards using Boardly can track maintenance requests, log communications with owners, and store governing documents so the answer to who owns the roof repair is one search away — not buried in a filing cabinet. When a homeowner submits a repair request, you have a timestamped record from day one.
The Takeaway
In the vast majority of HOA and condominium communities, the roof is a common element and the association is responsible for its repair and replacement. But the details — limited common elements, owner-caused damage, interior finishes — require you to know your specific documents. Invest time now in a clear maintenance matrix and you will spend far less time mediating disputes later.
When in doubt, consult your association attorney before denying a repair request. A well-reasoned written response based on your CC&Rs protects the board and gives the homeowner a fair answer they can act on.