Zone 9, In Short
Both steep-slope and low-slope reroofs need a cool-roof-rated product here, on top of any landmark-district material requirements.
Roofing in PasadenaCraftsman Landmarks, Its Own Utility and Rules
Pasadena runs its own permits and its own water and power utility, and a meaningful share of its Craftsman bungalow stock sits inside a landmark district that reviews roof material before work starts.
What's going on with your Pasadena roof?
- Free estimates
- Written line-item quotes
- Photos of the roof before any work
- Permits pulled where required
Title 24 in Pasadena: Zone 9
Pasadena's zips, 91101 and 91103 through 91107, plus neighboring 91108, all fall in Title 24 Climate Zone 9. A steep-slope shingle or tile reroof, the common case on Pasadena's Craftsman and landmark-district housing, falls under the state's cool-roof rule for zones 4 and 8–15. Flat and low-slope sections fall under the separate rule for zones 4 and 6–15.
Zone by zip: SoCalREN Climate Zone Directory (CEC-sourced). Cool-roof rule: Cool Roof Rating Council, California Title 24 summary (2025 Energy Code; reroof values unchanged from 2022).
Permits: Pasadena's Own Building & Safety Division
Pasadena is its own incorporated city, so LADBS has no authority here. Reroofs go through the City of Pasadena's Planning & Community Development Department, Building & Safety Division, at the Permit Center on N. Garfield Ave, with applications filed through the city's EnerGov Self Service online portal rather than LADBS's PermitLA system. If your property is inside a landmark or historic district, plan on the design-review step described below before Building & Safety will issue the permit.
Pasadena Water and Power: No Cool Roof Rebate Currently
The LADWP Cool Roof Rebate doesn't reach Pasadena; the city runs its own utility, Pasadena Water and Power (PWP). PWP did offer a cool roof and skylight rebate, $0.20-$0.25 per sq ft, but discontinued it effective July 1, 2022, with applications for qualifying installs due by June 30, 2022. No cool-roof rebate is currently active in Pasadena. PWP still offers other residential efficiency rebates, including for heat pumps, air conditioning and water heaters, worth asking about even if the cool-roof program is gone.
Rebate, In Short
PWP's cool-roof rebate ended July 1, 2022. Don't budget for it; ask about PWP's other active efficiency rebates instead.
Fire hazard mapping after January 2025
The Eaton Fire and Updated FHSZ Maps
The January 2025 Eaton Fire burned roughly 14,000 acres and destroyed more than 9,400 structures, with the heaviest damage in neighboring Altadena and effects reaching toward the Rose Bowl area close to Pasadena's own edge. Pasadena sits directly against the San Gabriel Mountains foothills, and seasonal Santa Ana winds are a recurring fall and winter factor in fire behavior in this part of the county.
In the fire's aftermath, the state released updated 2025 Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps for Southern California, the first such revision in more than 14 years, and Pasadena is required by state law to adopt them. If your property sits near the city's northern or eastern edge, check its current status on CAL FIRE's FHSZ viewer or Pasadena's own fire hazard page rather than relying on an older map. A Class A fire-rated roof assembly is required for new construction and major work inside a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone.
Eaton Fire scope and 2025 map update: Pasadena Now, "Cal Fire Releases Newly Updated Wildfire Hazard Maps for Altadena and Pasadena" (2025); City of Pasadena Fire Department. Class A requirement: CBC Chapter 7A / CRC §R337.
Bungalow Heaven and Pasadena's Other Landmark Districts
Bungalow Heaven, designated a landmark district in 1989, protects roughly 800 Craftsman bungalows built between 1900 and 1930, bounded by Washington Blvd, Chester Ave, Orange Grove Blvd and Mentor Ave. It's the best known of several Pasadena districts with a design-review process, alongside Old Pasadena, the Pasadena Civic Center District, the Lower Arroyo Seco Historic District, and smaller districts including Orange Heights-Barnhart Tracts, Park Place-Arroyo Terrace, Prospect and South Marengo.
A reroof on a contributing property in any of these goes through design review before Building & Safety issues the permit, so ask the city which materials are acceptable for your property before choosing one. If you're not sure whether your address is inside a district boundary, the city's planning department is the source to check.
Common Roofs in Pasadena
Craftsman Bungalows
Pasadena has extensive early-20th-century Craftsman stock, including the Greene & Greene landmarks the Gamble House and the Robert R. Blacker House, concentrated in Bungalow Heaven and spread citywide. On a bungalow this age, shingle roofing age is the first thing to check.
Tile and Metal in Landmark Districts
Inside a landmark district, the material has to get through design review, so clay tile and standing-seam metal are the materials to raise with the city first.
A Longer-Lived Alternative
Steel metal roofing lasts 40 to 60 years against 20 to 30 for 3-tab shingle, so it's the comparison to make if a district property is due for replacement; see metal roofing, and ask the city whether it would pass review.
Timing and Nearby Areas
LA's wet season runs roughly November through April, wettest in February. Scheduling a Pasadena reroof between May and October avoids weather delays, and gives extra runway if your property needs landmark-district design review, since that step adds time a standard permit doesn't.
Glendale is the next city west and Highland Park lies to the southwest. For the rest of the region, start at Roofing Los Angeles.
Insurance and Older Roofs
Some CA carriers convert older roofs from replacement-cost to actual-cash-value coverage at renewal, and this can apply regardless of fire-zone status. Our roof insurance guide covers what to ask your carrier.
Pasadena Roofing FAQs
Who issues roofing permits in Pasadena?
The City of Pasadena's own Building & Safety Division, part of Planning & Community Development, at the Permit Center on N. Garfield Ave, not LADBS. Applications go through the city's EnerGov Self Service online portal. If your property is in a landmark or historic district, budget extra time for design review before Building & Safety issues the permit.
Does the LADWP cool roof rebate apply in Pasadena?
No. Pasadena has its own utility, Pasadena Water and Power, not LADWP. PWP discontinued its own cool roof and skylight rebate effective July 1, 2022; applications for qualifying installs had to be submitted by June 30, 2022. No cool-roof rebate is currently active in Pasadena, though PWP still offers other residential efficiency rebates.
Is my Bungalow Heaven home subject to design review for a reroof?
Yes, if it's a contributing structure in the Bungalow Heaven Landmark District, designated in 1989 to protect roughly 800 Craftsman bungalows built between 1900 and 1930. A reroof there goes through Pasadena's design review before Building & Safety issues the permit, so ask the city which materials are acceptable.
How did the Eaton Fire affect fire-hazard rules in Pasadena?
The January 2025 Eaton Fire burned roughly 14,000 acres and destroyed more than 9,400 structures, with the heaviest damage in neighboring Altadena and effects reaching toward the Rose Bowl area near Pasadena's edge. Afterward, the state released updated 2025 Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps, the first such revision in over 14 years, and Pasadena is required by state law to adopt them. If you're near the city's northern or eastern edge, check your address on the current map rather than an older one.
What roof types are most common in Pasadena?
Pasadena's housing is dominated by early-20th-century Craftsman bungalows, including landmarks like the Gamble House and the Robert R. Blacker House. Inside landmark districts, tile and standing-seam metal are the materials to ask design review about; elsewhere, shingle age is the first thing to check.
Bungalow Heaven or another landmark district? Tell us the street.
Tell us the neighborhood, whether you know if you're in a landmark district, and what you're seeing.