Is a new roof tax deductible?
Not on the home you live in. A new roof there is a personal expense, and since January 1, 2026 there’s no federal tax credit for one either. The Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit, which some metal and coated roofs used to qualify for, isn’t allowed for anything installed after December 31, 2025.
A roof does still touch your taxes in a few situations: when you sell the house, when it’s a rental, when you claim a home office, and when a declared disaster leaves you with damage insurance didn’t pay for.
Last updated: .
What happens to the cost of a new roof
| Situation | What happens to the roof cost | IRS source |
|---|---|---|
| The home you live in | Not deductible. The cost is added to your home’s basis, which can lower the taxable gain when you sell. | IRS Pub. 523 |
| A rental property | Depreciated over 27.5 years as a capital improvement, not deducted in the year you pay. | IRS Pub. 527 |
| A home office | The business-use share of the roof is depreciated over 39 years. | IRS Pub. 587 |
| Storm damage after a declared disaster | The uninsured part of the damage may be deductible as a casualty loss. The new roof itself isn’t. | IRS Pub. 547 |
Your own home: keep the invoice
The IRS treats a new roof as an improvement, because it adds to the home’s value and extends its life. You can’t deduct it, but its cost is added to your home’s basis, the figure your taxable gain is measured from when you sell. A higher basis means a smaller gain.
For most homeowners this won’t change the tax bill, because the first $250,000 of gain on a main home is excluded from income, or $500,000 for married couples filing jointly. It matters if you’ve owned the house a long time, live in an area where prices have risen sharply, or don’t meet the rules for the exclusion. Either way it costs nothing to keep the roofer’s final invoice with your house papers.
The line the IRS draws is between a new roof and a repair. Replacing the roof adds to basis. Fixing a leak or replacing a few shingles is a repair, and it doesn’t. If insurance paid for the roof, the basis works differently, so ask a tax advisor how to record it.
A rental property: depreciated over 27.5 years
On a residential rental, a new roof is a capital improvement. You can’t deduct it in the year you pay. Instead it’s depreciated over 27.5 years, the same period as the building. A $16,500 roof works out to about $600 a year in depreciation, with a little less in the first year because depreciation starts from the month the roof is put in service.
Repairs are different. Fixing a leak or replacing storm-damaged shingles on a rental is usually deductible in the year you pay. The boundary between a repair and an improvement matters to landlords, since one is written off at once and the other over decades, and it’s the main question to take to your accountant before the work starts. If the roof is for a property you also live in part of the year, the rental share is what counts.
A home office: a share, over 39 years
If you claim a home office, a new roof counts as an improvement to the whole house. The business-use share is depreciated over 39 years, so if the office is 10% of the home, 10% of the roof cost is depreciated and the rest is personal. Repairs that benefit the whole home are handled the same way: at the same percentage, but deducted in the year you pay.
Storm damage: casualty losses
This is a deduction for the damage, not for the new roof. If a storm damaged your roof and insurance didn’t cover all of the loss, the uninsured part can count as a personal casualty loss, but only if the storm was part of a declared disaster. Starting with the 2026 tax year, state-declared disasters qualify as well as federally declared ones, and the rule is now permanent.
The limits make it worth claiming mainly for large losses. Under the rules for 2025 returns in IRS Publication 547, each loss is reduced by $100 and the total by 10% of your adjusted gross income, and you have to itemize deductions. Losses from certain specially designated disasters are reduced by $500 instead, with no 10% rule. Check the 2026 edition of Publication 547 when you file. Your insurance claim almost always comes first and is worth far more, so start with our guide to getting your roof paid by insurance.
Where the real saving is
Since taxes won’t pay for much of a roof on your own home, the price you agree with the roofer is where the money is. Quotes for the same roof often differ by thousands of dollars, and the gap often comes from what each quote includes rather than from the roofer. Check what a fair price looks like in our guide to how much a new roof costs, ask each roofer the questions that expose a padded or thin quote, and compare at least three. A roofer who quotes a federal tax credit as part of the price in 2026 is working from out-of-date information.
Compare quotes from local roofers
Our matching partner, Networx, connects you with up to 3 local roofers who quote your job independently. No obligation to hire.
Questions about roofs and taxes
This page is general information, not tax advice. Your own situation, and any insurance payments, can change how a roof is treated, so check with a tax professional before you file.
Related guides
Get a fair price on your new roof
Up to 3 free quotes from local roofers, matched through our partner Networx. No obligation to hire.
Get free quotes →