Yes, I hoped our Lantana roof was hip. But it has gables in the front and insurance co. classified it as gable.

Rule
 

10% of roof can be gables, the other 90% must be hip.

it gets extremely hot/humid here in the summer. The sun will fry you. A lanai that faces west is not a good idea, whether it is enclosed or not.

The front of our house faces South and our lanai and birdcage faces North. We like the lanai facing North because we do not get the afternoon sun ever and can enjoy the lanai and birdcage even in the summer.

Pay attention to where the sun will shine in the afternoon. If the afternoon sun is on your lanai it be unbearable from June through September. East to north works best.

Hips, gables, and more!
 

I had no idea there were so many types of roofs!!

Hip Roof vs. Gable Roof: Roof Design Advantages & Disadvantages - IKO

Welcome to TV. Frankly, tornados freak me out much more than hurricanes. But that’s me. As far as what direction you want to face, as others have advised here, look for a home where your lanai faces east or north. If it faces west you will cook!!! I’m not sure about south. I’m guessing it would depend on the season. Also, we can see the rocket launches from Cape Canaveral from our east facing lanai. It’s really cool.

we are not too far in from a hurricane and absolutely within reach. Do your research on Gulf Storm paths. Tornados are the main problem. Your Sunroom should Face East or North , the Unbearable Sun will cook you in a west or south Sunroom. Most Yankee homeowners will make that mistake once. Glad you are researching your options...Your Home owners Insurance Company should be called next

The front of our house faces South and our lanai and birdcage face North. As a result, we enjoy the sunrise with our coffee and the sunset with our wine. We never get any direct sun. It was accidental and we are quite happy.

The wind could come from any direction depending on where the hurricane is. To the right of the eye of a hurricane produces the most damages because that’s where the tornadoes are.

As for direction to face, the last few houses in the south, we made sure the house front and back are facing north and south if you want to enjoy the lanai year round. Take your phone with the compass app to verify the direction of your lanai.

I think it’s better to be facing gators in the morning and fire ants in the afternoon. Or maybe I have that backwards

I would be more concerned about afternoon sun on a porch or where you want to spend leisure time. My 1st house faced W and you would burn your hand on the front doorknob. For a porch face East would be my recommendation. Hurricanes barely hit T V. Lightening is a big thing here. Wind is what it is.

LOL ok calm down. Here is what the essentials are.

Forget about Hurricanes around here, Tornados might be a different story. So far it's faring pretty good for weather. We are too far inland to have to worry about any hurricane (unless a rare 'cross the state' on occurs but I wouldn't worry. It's nowhere close to how it is on the coast.

What you do need is this -

IF you enjoy planting things and watching them grow in your back yard, then you want that to face east. Keep the tree lines to a minimum especially oaks, the moss is very damaging. We grow flowers in the back which faces east, I used to have a back facing west - nada anything I put back there didn't work except for plumeria (nice) and moonflower (highly do NOT suggest them) . Everything else burned up and died.

as for the roof, again hurricane doesn't matter here. Everything is built to code which means 125 MPH winds. I prefer to think 100mph winds, nothing is perfect. There are specifications for roofing, shingles, etc.

You're better off just being concerned on which way the front of your house faces.

Definitely better solved by not buying a house with a west facing lanai where it can cost $20k plus to enclose it, put ac in, and put in blinds to keep the hot sun out and to prevent baking in your family room. We made that mistake one time! No real concerns about hurricane issues here being pretty far inland and experiencing minimal to no damage throughout TV in the storms that have come through during the 8 years we’ve been here.

Roof and direction
 

Morning all, we have a hip roof facing all directions, meaning we have no flat surfaces above the eves. As far as the direction our lani faces ours face north and we love it and wouldn’t have it any other way. No direct sun in the morning or evening.