There are various sections of your roof. One of which are the eaves.
Eaves are the section of the roof which project over the side of your building.
Some historic Portland homes – specifically craftsman homes – have wide eaves with decorative brackets.
This part of the roof don’t seem extremely vital to the integrity of your home. However, cracked or rotted eaves can cause leaks over your porch. Additionally, damage or rot in your eaves may be a symptom of damage on your general roof.
Eaves are an easy thing for the owner to check, as they are generally very visible and don’t often have things like insulation or drywall to leak through.
If your eaves are leaking, get your roof inspected by a trusted roofer.
Finally – to leave you with a fun note – the term “eaves dropper” was formed because people would sometimes spy on conversations climbing onto a roof and leaning over the eaves to hear through a window. If they leaned far enough, they’d lose their balance and fall, giving away their presence. Thus “eaves dropper”.