I am in the process of getting quotes to put a skylight into the front of the roof of a Cape Cod. The house was built on 1954 and has a shed-extension all along the rear.

The master bedroom has two horizontal beams that I thought were decorative but might paly a roll in holding the walls together.

According to a skylight contractor who came yesterday the roof is moving apart (as a result possibley of the shed extension removing a bunch of equalateral rafters along one side) and from the garden one can see slight bowing along the legth of the gutters. He reckons the roof needs one or more "ties" to hold the walls together. He reckoned its no big deal although the aesthetics of covering up the "ties" might be a challenge.

Any thoughts on this - problems, cost etc? What sort of contractor would one contact?