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Roofing estimates and inspections are not the same thing. Roofing inspections (whether done with a drone or by the traditional method) help you find any damage or defects on a roof. You will pay a set fee for a roofing inspection and use it to get certification or to determine whether repair or replacement is necessary. Beware of unsolicited contractors coming to your home and offering a so-called free roof inspection—these are often scams.

Roofing estimates, on the other hand, are typically free and offered by a roofing company hoping to earn your business. Some roofing estimates are performed with drones, while other companies will still opt to send people up onto the roof. Either way, the estimate is for roof repair or replacement costs the company wants you to hire them for.

No, you can’t use your home’s square footage. You have to calculate your roof’s square footage, and then you may have to convert your square footage measurement to correspond with how the roofing material is measured. For instance, some roofing is sold in “squares,” which equals the total square footage of the roof divided by 100. Shingles are sold in bundles that may not correspond to the number of squares you need. Metal roofing is sold as sheets, so determine the amount of square feet each panel will cover and then divide the total square footage by the coverage area.

The roof overhang, also known as the eaves, does count as part of the roof’s square footage because it must be covered with the roofing material. The overhang is one of the reasons why you can’t base your roof's square footage on the square footage of the house. The roof square footage must also account for the pitch of the roof as well as the eaves.

Mansard roofs are still popular in Paris, where they originated, and throughout France. In the United States, you can find mansard roofs on some older buildings in Manhattan. The architecture also appears on some Victorian and Colonial-style homes. There are pockets of homes with mansard roofs in New York City and Los Angeles, where they were once more popular than they are today.