Best Roofing Material for your Architectural Home Style

Your roof is an important architectural element, so it’s key to consider your home’s visual style when selecting a roofing material in South Florida. Certain roof materials, like clay tile, are best suited with a specific style of architecture. Whereas, concrete tiles are versatile enough to work with almost any home style in Miami. Whether you are building and designing a home from scratch or just re-roofing, understanding how each type of roof and home structure fits together is essential.

Most Common Roofing Materials:

• Clay Barrel
• Clay Spanish S
• Concrete Flat Tile
• Concrete S Tile
• Metal Panels

Most Common Architectural Home Styles in Miami & Broward

Southern Colonial

Designed to handle South Florida’s hot and humid weather, the Southern Colonial home style reflects the traditional charm and hospitality of the old south with a sophisticated elegance. It typically features a front colonnade, large portico, upper and lower balconies, ornate woodwork and iron trim.

Best Roofing Material
This home style is usually paired with the Flat Concrete tile to match squared windows, columns, and other features. The most common colors utilized in Miami are white or dark grey to match the columns window frames.

Southern Colonial Examples

Spanish Colonial

Influenced by the Spanish when they explored the Americas, this architectural style home continues to shape the residential fashion of South Florida. These homes typically feature light-colored stucco exterior walls and chimney finishes.

Best Roofing Material
This home style is usually paired with the Clay Spanish S or Clay Barrel Tile in terracotta tones. The Clay Barrel tile is the original Spanish colonial roof choice, but to avoid additional time and costs, the Spanish S clay is a favored alternative. These round tiles are best suited due to the matching arched windows, round columns, and other arched features.

Spanish Colonial Home Examples with a Clay Barrel Tile Roof

Spanish Colonial Home Example with a Clay S Tile Roof

Mediterranean

Inspired by the Mediterranean countries, this architectural home is typically a modern style. The elements of the Mediterranean style include red tile roofs, stucco exteriors, outdoor openings, and arched windows.

Best Roofing Material
With similar roof options as the Spanish Colonial, this home style is typically paired with the clay Spanish S or barrel tile. The most popular choice is the clay barrel, since it closely matches with the façade features. The overhang of the tile provides shade in warm climate areas in South Florida. The most common color utilized for this home-style in Miami is Terracotta.

Mediterranean Home Example with a Clay Barrel Tile Roof

Mediterranean Home Examples with a Clay S Tile Roof

Ranch

The most common South Florida home style and the most flexible when it comes to roofing materials. The prominent style is typically a long, low and built as a one-story house. It is followed along with a low-pitched roof with gables and overhanging eaves. In recent years, new design concepts have gained popularity such as flat tile and metal roofs in dark tones, giving the home a modern look.

Best Roofing Material
Before selecting a flat tile, round tile or metal for this home, make sure to inspect other features of the home. If the windows, doors, and columns are squared, then a flat tile or metal is best suited, whereas if the features are arched, then a round tile is the best match. Sometimes, the home style may have squared and round features, thus any of the three options would work. An emerging popular option for a Ranch home style is the Dark flat concrete tile. As for the salty, coastal regions of South Florida, clay tiles are highly recommended to avoid oxidation of metals.

Ranch Home Examples with a Flat Concrete Tile Roof

Ranch Home Examples with a Clay S Tile Roof

Ranch Home Examples with a Metal Roof

Key West

Perfect for a warm and humid climate, this styled home originated along the coast of Key West. This tropical style features raised foundations, shady porches, and many windows to allow the cooling ocean breeze to flow freely.

Best Roofing Material
This home style provides significant roof overhangs to provide shade and is best suited to handle the heat and rain. Metal roofs reflect the heat of the tropical sun and are the best option for a Key West style home.

Key West Home Examples with a Metal Roof

Now that you understand the best roof design options and its benefits, you will be able to flow rather than fight with the natural architectural home design, while providing your home with the best roof quality possible in South Florida.