Spring Storm Season Arrives: What Every Southeast Michigan Homeowner Must Know Before the First Hail Hits

When a homeowner files a property damage claim, the insurance carrier typically issues an initial payment based on Actual Cash Value, or ACV. This figure represents the replacement cost of the damaged materials minus depreciation — an adjustment the carrier applies to account for the age and condition of what was damaged. A fifteen-year-old roof with a replacement cost of $18,000 might carry $7,000 in depreciation, producing an ACV check of $11,000. The homeowner who cashes that check and starts calling contractors is about to discover that $11,000 does not come close to covering the work.

Most standard homeowners insurance policies are written on a Replacement Cost Value, or RCV, basis. This means the carrier's ultimate obligation — after the work is completed — is to reimburse the full cost of restoration to like kind and quality, without the depreciation deduction. The difference between the ACV payment and the full RCV amount is called recoverable depreciation. The carrier withholds it initially and releases it when the homeowner provides documentation confirming that repairs were completed. In the example above, that means $7,000 is sitting with the carrier, waiting. It is not gone. It is not a concession. It is the homeowner's money, and the only way to collect it is to complete the work and file a supplement request with supporting documentation.

The process for recovering depreciation requires a few specific steps. First, the contractor must complete the permitted and inspected scope of work. Second, the homeowner or contractor must submit a completion certificate, final invoice, or certificate of occupancy — depending on what the carrier requires — as proof of completion. Third, the carrier reviews the submission and issues the depreciation release, sometimes called the recoverable depreciation check. Where disputes arise — and they often do — is in the scope of work itself. A carrier may have written an estimate that underpays for materials, omits required code upgrades, or fails to include applicable line items. A contractor experienced in insurance restoration will identify those gaps and submit a formal supplement to close the difference before the depreciation is released.

Homeowners leave thousands of dollars on the table every storm season by accepting the ACV check as final. They may not realize there is more money available. They may assume the contractor's lower bid is what the claim is worth. Or they may simply not want to deal with the carrier again after an exhausting claims process. Understanding how ACV and RCV work — and keeping the claim open until the full scope is documented, completed, and paid — is one of the highest-value steps any Michigan homeowner can take after a storm. A licensed restoration contractor who understands Xactimate pricing and supplement procedures can navigate the process on your behalf and ensure the carrier's final payment reflects the true cost of returning your home to its pre-loss condition. For a no-obligation review of a current or pending claim, contact Phase III Construction at (734) 237-7322 or visit phase3construction.com.

Michigan winters are hard on roofing systems in ways that storms often are not. The most damaging force is not a single weather event but an accumulation of freeze-thaw cycles that repeat dozens of times between late October and early April. Each cycle works like a lever: water infiltrates a small crack or gap in the roofing system, freezes and expands, then thaws and contracts. Over a single winter, a hairline crack in a flashing joint or a slightly lifted shingle can become a genuine pathway for water intrusion. By the time a homeowner notices a stain on the ceiling in April, the damage has been progressing for months.

Ice dams are the most visible form of winter roof damage, but they represent a symptom rather than a cause. They form when warm air from the living space below rises into the attic and heats the roof deck, melting snow on the upper slope while temperatures at the eave remain below freezing. The meltwater runs down, refreezes at the cold eave, and backs up behind the ice ridge. That standing water has nowhere to go except under the shingles. Damage from ice damming typically appears as water staining on ceilings near exterior walls, peeling paint on soffits, or wet insulation in the attic. The root correction is almost always an attic air-sealing and ventilation project, not simply a roofing repair — though both may be necessary.

During a spring inspection, a qualified contractor will look for several specific indicators of freeze-thaw damage: lifted or cracked shingles at valleys and eaves, failed or separated flashing at chimney bases and plumbing vents, softness or bounce in the roof deck that suggests wet or delaminated OSB sheathing, and any granule accumulation in gutters or downspout splash pads that is disproportionate to the age of the shingles. Inside the attic, a thorough inspection includes checking for daylight visible through the deck, moisture staining on rafters and ridge boards, and the adequacy of both intake ventilation at the soffit and exhaust ventilation at the ridge. These are not cosmetic items. Each one represents a point at which the building envelope has been compromised.

The line between a DIY inspection and a professional one is the ability to accurately assess what you are seeing. Homeowners can and should walk the perimeter of their home after winter breaks, look for obvious damage at ground level, and check gutters for granule loss and separation from the fascia. What they cannot safely do is evaluate the structural integrity of a roof deck, assess flashing performance at penetrations, or identify the early signs of sheathing failure that only appear under foot. If your home experienced multiple ice dam events this past winter, or if you noticed any interior water staining, that is a professional inspection job — not because the contractor is upselling you, but because what you cannot see from the ground is precisely what costs the most to ignore.

Gutters and downspouts. Clogged gutters are among the most common causes of avoidable water damage in Michigan homes. When gutters overflow, water runs behind the fascia board and saturates the soffit, the exterior wall, and eventually the interior framing. The fix is simple: clean them in late October after leaves have fallen, and again in early spring after debris has accumulated over winter. Downspouts should discharge at least four feet from the foundation — extensions are inexpensive and take ten minutes to install. Homes with mature trees overhead may need cleaning twice in fall. It is not glamorous maintenance, but it is the single most cost-effective preventive task a homeowner can perform.

Attic ventilation verification. Most homeowners have never looked in their attic, let alone assessed whether it is ventilating correctly. Inadequate attic ventilation is the primary cause of ice dams, premature shingle failure, and elevated cooling costs in summer. Before the heating season begins, confirm that soffit vents are not blocked by blown insulation, that ridge vents or gable vents are unobstructed, and that bath and kitchen exhaust fans vent to the exterior rather than into the attic cavity. A contractor or home inspector can check airflow in under an hour. Getting this right before November is worth far more than any HVAC upgrade.

Exterior caulking and sealant. Caulk is the first line of defense at every window, door, and penetration in a home's exterior envelope. It is also one of the first things to fail. Michigan's temperature extremes — routinely 90 degrees in summer and below zero in winter — cause caulk to shrink, crack, and separate faster than in moderate climates. Walk the exterior of your home each fall and look specifically at window and door perimeters, where siding meets trim or transitions in material, and around any exterior pipe penetrations. Reapplying exterior-grade caulk to compromised areas takes an afternoon and costs almost nothing. Ignoring it for three seasons can produce interior moisture damage that costs thousands to remediate.

HVAC filter replacement and furnace service. A clogged filter forces the furnace to work harder, shortens its operational life, and reduces air quality throughout the home. Filters should be replaced every 60 to 90 days, or more frequently in homes with pets. More importantly, the furnace should be serviced by a licensed HVAC technician before the heating season begins — not after it has already failed on a night when temperatures are single-digit and every service technician in the county is booked solid. A furnace tune-up typically costs $100 to $150 and catches the small problems that become $3,000 problems when ignored. Sump pump testing belongs in the same conversation: pour a bucket of water into the pit in late September and confirm the float triggers the pump correctly. Spring thaw is the worst time to discover that the pump that was running fine last year has since failed.

Michigan's Seller Disclosure Act, MCL 565.951 et seq., requires residential sellers to complete and deliver a written disclosure statement to prospective buyers before an offer is accepted. That statement covers a broad range of property conditions, and it explicitly addresses water, fire, and storm damage. Sellers are required to disclose known material defects, including any past flooding, water intrusion, roof leaks, fire damage, or structural problems caused by weather events. The statute does not require a seller to be omniscient; it requires disclosure of what is known or reasonably should be known. A seller who replaced a roof after a hail claim but did not disclose the claim history, or who completed interior repairs without permitting, is creating potential legal exposure for themselves and a significant financial risk for the buyer.

Buyers should approach the disclosure statement as a starting point, not a final answer. The questions that matter most often go beyond what the form requires: Has the property ever had a paid insurance claim for storm, water, or fire damage? Were all repairs permitted and inspected? Was the roofing contractor licensed under Michigan GC law? Are there currently any open or unresolved insurance claims on the property? Has the property experienced repeated ice dam events, and if so, was the underlying ventilation issue corrected? These are not unreasonable questions. A seller with nothing to hide will answer them without hesitation. A seller who becomes evasive at any of these points is telling the buyer something.

A pre-purchase roof and exterior inspection by a licensed Michigan general contractor — separate from the general home inspection — is the most cost-effective due diligence a buyer can perform on any home that has been in service for more than ten years in Southeast Michigan. A general home inspector will note visible damage and flag obvious concerns; a GC experienced in insurance restoration will document the exact condition of the roofing system, assess flashing and ventilation, and identify any signs of prior repairs that may not have been properly permitted or completed to code. In a transaction where the roof is already twenty years old or where the disclosure statement reveals any prior storm damage, that additional inspection is not optional. It is the difference between buying a house and buying a problem that someone else has already been paid to fix.

1. Can you provide your Michigan Builders license number? Roofing work on a residential structure in Michigan requires a builders license issued by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. A licensed GC carries a number in the format Builders License #262000615. Any contractor who cannot produce a valid license number or who deflects the question with assurances that they are "registered" or "bonded" without a license is operating illegally. Homeowners who hire unlicensed contractors lose several critical legal protections, including the ability to place a construction lien on the property for unpaid work — which means you have limited legal recourse if the contractor takes your money and disappears or performs substandard work. License status can be verified in seconds at michigan.gov/lara.

2. Will you provide a completed lien rights notice before work begins? Under the Michigan Construction Lien Act, MCL 570.1101 et seq., a contractor has the right to place a lien on a property for unpaid services or materials. Before work begins, a contractor should provide a written Notice of Furnishing or a disclosure explaining lien rights. This protects both parties: it puts the homeowner on notice of the contractor's legal rights and creates a documented chain of communication. Any contractor who is unfamiliar with the Michigan Construction Lien Act, or who dismisses the question as unnecessary paperwork, is not operating at the professional standard expected of a licensed GC.

3. What is my right to cancel this contract? Michigan law — specifically MCL 445.111 et seq., the Home Solicitation Sales Act — provides homeowners with three business days to cancel a contract for home improvement services that was solicited at the residence. This right must be disclosed in writing in the contract itself, including the cancellation deadline and the specific language of the right. A contract that does not include this disclosure is legally defective and gives the homeowner an extended cancellation window. Read every contract for this clause before signing, and be suspicious of any contractor who pressures you to waive the cancellation period or sign immediately.

4. Can you provide a current certificate of insurance? A licensed builder should carry general liability insurance and workers' compensation coverage. Request a certificate of insurance naming you as the certificate holder and confirm the coverage dates are current. A homeowner whose property is damaged by an uninsured contractor, or whose property is damaged by an uninsured worker who then seeks medical damages, faces personal financial exposure that a simple insurance verification would have prevented. If a contractor hesitates to provide a certificate of insurance, treat that as a decisive disqualifier — regardless of how competitive their price is. 5. What does your payment schedule look like? Legitimate restoration contractors do not require full payment upfront. A reasonable schedule for a roofing project ties payment milestones to verified completion stages: a deposit upon contract execution, a progress payment after materials delivery, and a final payment after the work passes inspection. Any contractor requesting more than one-third of the total contract value before work begins warrants scrutiny. Full upfront payment requests are among the most reliable warning signs of a contractor who will not complete the project.

Storm chasing is a real and organized industry. Following the path of major hail and wind events, crews from out-of-state — sometimes traveling from as far as Texas, Florida, or the Carolinas — deploy into affected communities within 24 to 48 hours of a significant weather event. They canvass neighborhoods, knock on doors, and offer fast assessments and same-day contract signings. Some do legitimate work. Many do not. The warning signs are consistent: no verifiable Michigan Builders license, an out-of-state business address or phone number, a contract signed before the insurance claim is even opened, and a refusal to provide a written estimate that aligns with the carrier's scope of loss. When things go wrong — and with storm-chasing crews they often do — the company is in another state and the homeowner has no practical legal recourse.

A legitimate local contractor looks different in several specific ways. They carry a current Michigan Builders license that can be looked up immediately at michigan.gov/lara. They have a local business address and a phone number with a Michigan area code that they have operated under for years, not days. They do not pressure a homeowner to sign a contract before the insurance carrier has had an opportunity to inspect. They provide a written scope of work that references the carrier's estimate, documents any discrepancies, and supplements through the proper carrier channels rather than asking the homeowner to cover the gap out of pocket. They pull permits for the work, schedule county inspections, and carry insurance that covers the homeowner against liability arising from work performed on the property.

The legal risk to a homeowner who hires an unlicensed contractor is significant and not immediately obvious. Michigan insurance carriers require that covered repairs be completed by properly licensed contractors; work performed by an unlicensed crew can provide the carrier with grounds to deny future related claims or void coverage provisions. If the workmanship fails and the contractor is unreachable, the homeowner bears the cost of both the failed work and the correction. And if an unlicensed worker is injured on the property, the homeowner's liability exposure in the absence of workers' compensation coverage is real. Verifying a license takes thirty seconds. It is the most important step a homeowner can take before allowing anyone to work on their roof.

The Michigan Residential Code, which adopts and amends the International Residential Code, contains specific requirements for roofing system installation that apply to any permitted roofing project in the state. Ice and water shield — a self-adhering rubberized asphalt membrane — is required at eaves and in valleys as a secondary barrier against water infiltration. Current Michigan code requires ice and water shield to extend from the eave edge to a point at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line, and in cold climate zones (which include all of Southeast Michigan), coverage requirements may extend further up the slope in certain applications. Drip edge — the metal flashing installed at the roof perimeter — is similarly required and must be installed in a specific sequence relative to the underlayment at eaves and rakes. These are not optional upgrades; they are code-minimum requirements on any permitted residential roofing project.

These code requirements have a direct relationship to insurance claims. When a carrier writes an estimate to replace a storm-damaged roof, the estimate should include the cost of all materials and labor required to bring the completed installation into current code compliance — regardless of what was present on the original roof. A 1990s-era roof that lacked ice and water shield or drip edge must include those items in the replacement scope because Michigan code requires them on the new installation. This is not an upgrade; it is a code requirement, and it is compensable under most standard homeowners policies. Carriers sometimes omit these line items from initial estimates, and homeowners who accept that estimate without question effectively absorb the cost of materials the carrier was obligated to include.

This is where Ordinance and Law coverage becomes relevant. Many homeowners insurance policies include an Ordinance and Law endorsement that specifically covers the cost of bringing a structure into compliance with current building codes as part of a covered loss repair. The endorsement amount — typically expressed as a percentage of Coverage A (dwelling coverage) — is the pool from which code-required upgrades beyond the direct loss scope are paid. Homeowners who have never reviewed their Ordinance and Law coverage limits should do so before the next claim, not after. If the endorsement limit is inadequate, it can be increased at renewal for a modest additional premium. And if a carrier's estimate on an active claim omits code-required line items, the homeowner or contractor has clear grounds to request a supplement and receive payment for what Michigan law requires to be included.