Roofing for Kirkwood homes: replacement, leaks and storm damage. In Kirkwood, the 2021 IRC is in force and the median home was built in 1962. Any permit the job needs is ours to pull.
Kirkwood runs to about 9.2 square miles and roughly 29,461 people. It sits about 12 miles west of downtown St. Louis. The community dates back to 1853. We cover ZIP code 63122.
No completed roof in Kirkwood is logged in our job records yet.
Kirkwood's housing spans 1850s-era districts (Jefferson-Argonne, West Argonne, North Taylor), a 1920s district (Central Place) and 1950s Mid-Century Modern subdivisions (Barrett Brae, Craig Woods, Sugar Creek Ranch).
We work across Kirkwood rather than one corner of it — Barrett Brae, Central Place, Craig Woods, Jefferson-Argonne, Meramec Highlands, North Taylor, Savoy, Sugar Creek Ranch and West Argonne included. Age and construction change between them, which is why we look before we quote.
Kirkwood has a city Landmarks Commission and 9 locally designated historic districts, spanning the 1850s to the 1950s and including three Mid-Century Modern districts. Of those districts, 4 are also individually listed on the National Register, and the city has 85 designated individual landmarks.
The postwar housing in Kirkwood is mostly simple to roof, which is why it gets done badly so often. Decking is usually 1x6 boards or early plywood, still sound but worth walking rather than assuming. The recurring problems are the low-slope sections — porch roofs, carport tie-ins, the flat bit over an addition — where a shingle was installed below its rated pitch and has been failing quietly ever since. Attic ventilation on houses of this era is also routinely short of what current shingle warranties require, and under-venting cooks a roof from underneath. We measure intake against exhaust before we quote rather than just nailing on a ridge vent and calling it solved.
By the Census Bureau's estimate there are 12,978 homes in Kirkwood, with a median year built of 1962. 2,144 of them (17%) went up before 1940 — 10th of 48 places on this site for pre-1940 share — and 2,443 (19%) in 2000 or later. The 1950s were the busiest decade, adding 2,623 of today's homes (20%). Across St. Louis County the pre-1940 share is 10%, so Kirkwood sits above it.
About 25 years is the usual working life of a roof, by the figure Missouri's insurance department publishes. On that yardstick the 10,535 homes in Kirkwood built before 2000 (81%) have outlived at least one roof; 7,739 of them (60%) predate 1970, old enough for two replacements already. The 1,320 homes from the 2000s are where first replacements come up now, while the 1,123 built since 2010 are mostly still on the roof they were built with. On houses that old, the question worth asking is how many layers are up there: a roof laid over an old one hides the deck.
75% of homes in Kirkwood are single-family detached houses (9,693) and 3% attached ones such as townhouses (327). 1,379 homes (11%) sit in two- to nine-unit buildings and 1,563 (12%) in buildings of ten units or more, whose roofs are normally an owner's or a board's call rather than a resident's. 9,254 of 11,992 occupied homes (77%) are lived in by their owners. Read together, those figures point toward full tear-offs on houses past two roof lives and deck and flashing checks on pre-war board sheathing.
| Built | Homes | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before 1940 | 2,144 | 17% | |
| 1940s | 1,383 | 11% | |
| 1950s | 2,623 | 20% | |
| 1960s | 1,589 | 12% | |
| 1970s | 1,375 | 11% | |
| 1980s | 923 | 7% | |
| 1990s | 498 | 4% | |
| 2000s | 1,320 | 10% | |
| 2010s | 858 | 7% | |
| 2020 or later | 265 | 2% |
Census ACS 2020–2024, tables B25034, B25035, B25024 and B25003: 12,978 homes, 11,992 occupied. Survey estimates.
Between 2016 and 2025 there were 23 reports of 1-inch-plus hail within 5 miles of Kirkwood’s center in the records of NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center, on 6 separate days. 2 of them were 1.75 inches or larger. The largest, 2 inches, came on May 19, 2025, about 3.9 miles northeast of the center. A report needs someone to see the hail and send it in, so the count is a floor, not a full tally.
| Latest reports | Size | From center |
|---|---|---|
| May 19, 2025 | 1.25 inches | 3.6 mi NE |
| May 19, 2025 | 1.75 inches | 0.1 mi NE |
| May 19, 2025 | 1 inch | 2.9 mi N |
| May 19, 2025 | 2 inches | 3.9 mi NE |
| May 16, 2025 | 1 inch | 4.5 mi N |
If one of those storms crossed your street and nobody has been on the roof since, a storm inspection photographs what it did.
Nothing Kirkwood publishes says whether a like-for-like re-roof needs a permit. We call the department (314-822-5823) before the job and pull whatever is required.
Kirkwood enforces the 2021 IRC. Kirkwood moved from the 2015 ICC codes to the 2021 ICC codes, with local amendments, effective April 1, 2026. The 2015 codes applied through March 31, 2026.
The published number is 314-822-5823. The building official on record is Randy Noland, Building Commissioner (314-822-5814). The department page is here.
Wind 115 mph (ultimate) and ground snow 20 psf, the same across the metro; see the roofing code guide for what they govern.
Kirkwood borders Des Peres, Frontenac, Glendale, Huntleigh, Oakland and Warson Woods. Our pages for them:
Also in St. Louis County:
| City | Re-roof permit | Code | Median built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kirkwood | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1962 |
| Des Peres | Not published | 2018 I-Codes | 1976 |
| Affton | Conditional | 2015 IRC | 1958 |
| Ballwin | Yes | 2015 I-Codes (2024 I-Codes proposed for 2026) | 1976 |
| Brentwood | Not published | 2024 IRC | 1956 |
| Chesterfield | Not published | 2015 IBC / 2015 IRC | 1982 |
| Clayton | Not published | 2021 IRC | 1954 |
All 21 St. Louis County cities side by side →
Kirkwood publishes no rule on it. We ask the building department first and pull whatever it requires.
Kirkwood enforces the 2021 IRC. Kirkwood moved from the 2015 ICC codes to the 2021 ICC codes, with local amendments, effective April 1, 2026. The 2015 codes applied through March 31, 2026.
Older than most people guess: the Census puts 81% of Kirkwood's homes before 2000 and 60% before 1970, with a median year built of 1962 (2020–2024 estimates). A roof usually lasts about 25 years, so the deck and the layers get checked before any quote.
23 reports of 1-inch-plus hail fell within 5 miles of Kirkwood between 2016 and 2025, the biggest 2 inches on May 19, 2025 (NOAA Storm Prediction Center).
The building official on record is Randy Noland, Building Commissioner. The department's own number is on this page, beside its name.
It can. Kirkwood has Downtown Kirkwood (NRHP), East Monroe (NRHP), Jefferson-Argonne (NRHP) and North Taylor (NRHP). Inside a designated district, changing a visible roof material or color can need preservation review before the permit is issued. Like-for-like replacement usually raises fewer questions, but we check before quoting.
Not yet: no completed roof in Kirkwood is in our job records, so this page shows no job count.
Researched 2026-09-09; housing, Census ACS 2020–2024; hail, NOAA SPC. Sources: www.kirkwoodmo.org · www.kirkwoodmo.org · ecode360.com · en.wikipedia.org · www.kirkwoodmo.org · censusreporter.org · www.bestplaces.net · data.census.gov · www.spc.noaa.gov. Rules and staff change; check with the jurisdiction.
