Alabama will put up to $10,000 toward a roof built to survive a hurricane, and then require your insurer to cut the wind portion of your premium by up to 35%. We install to the FORTIFIED standard and walk you through the grant.
FORTIFIED is not a shingle brand and it is not a marketing badge. It is a construction standard written by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety for exactly the conditions we have on the Alabama Gulf Coast, and it exists because of a specific observation: in hurricane after hurricane, most catastrophic home losses start at the roof. Once wind peels the covering and water gets into the deck, the building is finished from the inside out.
So FORTIFIED targets the failure points rather than the product. On a FORTIFIED Roof:
Alabama runs a program called Strengthen Alabama Homes that grants eligible homeowners up to $10,000 to bring an existing home up to the FORTIFIED Roof standard. The two things people find hardest to believe about it are both true: there is no income limit, and it is funded by the insurance industry rather than out of tax revenue. The insurers would rather pay for a stronger roof now than pay a total loss later.
The catch is not eligibility. It is timing.
Baldwin County applications open on set dates and close when the money is gone. In 2026 the Baldwin County windows opened January 8, April 9 and July 9 at 9:00 AM, first-come first-served. They have been known to close within minutes. If you start gathering paperwork on the morning the portal opens, you have already missed it.
That is most of what we help with. We will tell you what the program wants to see, get your roof assessed and scoped ahead of the window, and have the documentation ready so that when applications open you are submitting rather than scrambling. Call (251) 313-4853 well ahead of the next window.
The grant is one-time. The discount is not. Alabama law requires admitted insurers to discount the wind portion of a homeowners premium for a FORTIFIED-designated home, by up to 35%. On the coast, where the wind portion is the expensive part of the policy, that is real money every year for as long as you own the house.
It also follows the house. A FORTIFIED designation is a documented, transferable upgrade that a buyer’s agent and a buyer’s insurer both understand — which matters in a market where a lot of Gulf Shores property changes hands.
Before you commit, ask your agent for a quote both ways: your current premium, and your premium with a FORTIFIED Roof designation. Put that number next to the grant and the decision usually makes itself.
We get on the roof, photograph the condition, and tell you whether your home is a realistic candidate — before you spend time on an application.
A written scope built to the FORTIFIED requirements, and help assembling what Strengthen Alabama Homes will ask for, ready before the application window opens.
Full tear-off to the deck. We re-nail the deck to FORTIFIED fastening requirements and seal it — this is the step a standard re-roof skips entirely.
High-wind-rated covering installed to manufacturer high-wind instructions, enhanced edge metal, and vents that will not let rain in sideways.
A third-party FORTIFIED evaluator inspects and documents the work, and IBHS issues your designation certificate — the document your insurer needs.
Baldwin County already requires roofing rated for 130 mph or greater, asphalt shingles meeting ASTM D7158 Class H or ASTM D3161 Class F, high-wind installation with a minimum of six nails per shingle, and synthetic underlayment county-wide — traditional felt is not permitted on new installations. A FORTIFIED roof meets all of that and goes past it, principally by sealing the deck and upgrading the perimeter.
If you are getting quotes, that is a useful way to read them. A bid that does not mention deck sealing, fastener type or edge metal is quoting a different job than the one described on this page.
Honestly, not for everyone. It makes the most sense if you own the home you live in, you plan to keep it, your roof is at or near replacement age, and you are paying a meaningful wind premium. It makes less sense if you are about to sell, if your roof has ten good years left, or if the property is a rental or condo unit that will not qualify for grant money.
We will tell you which of those you are. If a straight roof replacement or a repair is the better answer for your situation, that is what we will quote. Start with a free inspection and go from there.
Baldwin County applications go fast. A free assessment now means your paperwork is ready when the portal opens.
📞 Call (251) 313-4853 Request an Estimate