Cedar Shake or Architectural Shingles? A Reston Replacement Decision

Start with your standard, not the catalog

In Reston, the first question is what's allowed. Cluster standards on the Reston Association website can be very specific. Walden Cluster's roofing palette, for example, lists three options: cedar shake left to weather naturally, DaVinci "Tahoe" and CeDur "Walden". It also says the entire roof must be replaced at one time with the same roofing material, and that synthetic shake must be installed with a standard, not staggered, reveal. Glencourse Cluster's standard, by contrast, lists specific 3-tab and architectural asphalt shingles by color.

If you're a single-family home outside a cluster, RA's Design Guidelines for that property type apply, and the roofing application asks you to identify the material type: 3-tab, architectural, wood, simulated shakes, metal and so on. Either way, staff review roofing for compatibility with the house, its architecture and, in a cluster, what's approved around you.

The three families of options

Natural cedar shake

Real wood, split or sawn, that weathers to gray over time. It has a texture and depth that's hard to imitate, and on some houses it's the original design intent. It also asks more of the owner: wood roofs need airflow to dry, don't like staying wet under shade and debris, and are sensitive to moss and rot on the shady slopes that are common on wooded lots. Cedar is a specialist installation, and Roofing Roughnecks doesn't list natural cedar among the materials it installs.

Synthetic and shake-look products

Some clusters approve manufactured shake products alongside or instead of wood; Walden's palette lists DaVinci and CeDur products, and in May 2026 DRB minutes show a cluster being asked to update its standard to include a DaVinci shake color already on one home. These are distinct product categories with their own installation requirements, and they're not on the division's installed-materials list either. If your standard requires one, we'll tell you plainly.

Architectural and designer asphalt shingles

Architectural shingles are layered asphalt shingles with a dimensional look. Designer lines go further toward a shake appearance with thicker, more varied tabs. Roofing Roughnecks installs GAF Timberline HDZ and UHDZ and CertainTeed Landmark and Landmark Pro (architectural), plus GAF Grand Sequoia and CertainTeed Presidential Shake, designer shingles with a heavier, wood-shake look. Whether a shake-look asphalt shingle is acceptable where cedar was original is a question for your standard and, if needed, an application.

How to compare them for your house

• Approval: is the material on your cluster's list, or will it need an individual application or a standards update?
• Appearance: from the street and from neighbors' windows, does it fit the architecture? RA reviews compatibility with the house and the cluster.
• Shade and moisture: how much sun do your slopes get, and how much debris lands on them?
• Maintenance: how much upkeep are you willing to do over the roof's life?
• Consistency: in a townhouse row, how will it look next to neighbors' roofs, and does the standard require everyone to stay in one product?
• Cost: designer and premium materials sit at the high end of the range; the division's cost guide puts high-end replacements, with premium materials and complex roof lines, at $28,000–$50,000+ as a typical Northern Virginia reference range.

Switching from cedar to asphalt

If you're allowed to switch, the change affects more than the surface. Wood shake roofs were sometimes installed over spaced boards rather than solid sheathing, and shingles need a solid deck, so decking may be part of the scope. Ridge, edge and flashing details change too. Ask for the decking approach in writing before you compare prices, and put the product line and color in your application so what's approved is what gets installed.

Remember the partial-roof rule. RA's cluster Roofing guideline says the DRB generally won't approve partial re-roofing in a different color or material; Walden's standard says the entire roof must be replaced at once with the same material. A mixed cedar-and-asphalt roof isn't usually an option.