AttarCo Homes › Service Areas › West University Place
West U is a two-square-mile city inside the Loop where 1920s and '30s cottages sit alongside architect-designed full rebuilds, often on the same block. It's one of the most tree-shaded, walkable neighborhoods in Houston — close to Rice University, Bellaire, Southside Place, Rice Village, and Braeswood — and the homeowners here don't want a truck full of strangers and a lowest-bid patch job. They want a process that matches the house.
That's how we work in West U: real written warranties, materials chosen to fit the home rather than whatever's cheapest that week, and a crew that treats a hundred-year-old cottage roof and a brand-new custom build with the same level of care. We're also fluent in the city's own building department — West U runs its permitting and inspections tighter than most Houston-area municipalities, and we plan around that rather than letting it become the project's bottleneck.
Two things define most West U roofs: the mature live oak canopy overhead, and the age split in the housing stock. The oaks that make these streets beautiful also drop limbs, leaves, and pollen year-round, trapping moisture against the shingle and hiding wear from the ground — a roof that looks fine from your front walk can have soft, waterlogged decking under a shaded valley. We inspect those spots specifically, not just the obvious slopes.
The housing stock itself splits two ways. Original 1920s–40s cottages are reaching the point where their roofs need genuine replacement, not another patch, and the right material is usually a designer or slate-look architectural shingle that keeps the home's character intact. Full teardown-rebuilds, which are common here, tend to have more complex rooflines — multiple planes, dormers, steep pitches — and often call for standing seam metal or a heavier dimensional shingle built to carry that complexity. Either way, the city inspects the work closely, and we build to pass the first time.
It doesn't have to. West University Place runs its own building department and inspections are genuinely thorough — drainage, setbacks, and code compliance get checked, not rubber-stamped. We pull the permit, schedule inspections around your project timeline, and show up ready for them, so the city's diligence becomes a formality instead of a delay.
It depends on the house. A 1920s or '30s cottage usually calls for a designer or slate-look architectural shingle that reads as premium from the street without fighting the home's original character. A full custom rebuild often calls for standing seam metal or a heavier dimensional shingle that can carry the more complex rooflines new construction tends to have. We'll recommend the material that fits your specific house, not a default.
Fill out the quick quote form on this page and we'll get you a free quote by the end of the next business day, guaranteed — often the same day. For an in-person inspection, we're usually out within a day or two. Call (281) 686-9227 and we'll get you on the schedule.
More answers on our main FAQ, or call (281) 686-9227 and ask us directly.
Tell us about your roof and we'll text or email your free quote by the end of the next business day, guaranteed (often the same day).
We'll reply with your free quote by the end of the next business day, guaranteed (often the same day). Check your inbox — we just sent a link to confirm your request. And save (281) 686-9227 in your phone — that's the number we call and text from, so you'll know it's us.