For years I have been asked by friends and family for help in their upcoming roofing projects. I have been in the roofing industry in one way or the other for 33 years. I have never been nor worked for a roofing contractor, but my mere proximity in the industry seems to require my help. (I was a roofing manufacturer sales rep).
Buying a roof is a really big deal and it’s not easily apparent how to start. You can purchase a car and do a lot of homework. You can compare and judge what dealer is the best and easiest to deal with. You can look up and see what a used car should be worth. Heck, now you can get the cars history.
For roofing you look in the yellow pages or call off a flyer stuck in your door. If you are lucky you can get a referral from a friend or neighbor that was happy with their installation. If you don’t have that, where do you start?
Your roof could cost $20,000 or more and you are left to calling companies you have never heard of for an estimate, Hmmmm.
I have a completely different take on how to go about finding a contractor if you don’t have a good reference. Are you ready…? Call your local roofing distributor and ask for a list of qualified contractors.
Why? Roofing contractors are their customers. They know who pays their bills on time, what companies are prepared for deliveries, they know if there are problems on the job. They know if the company is run like a business. That is important. It’s a great place to start. It’s just a thought, but that’s what I always did when someone came to me. I called my buddy down at the local roofing supplier and asked him for his finest contractors. He gave me a couple and I’d pass the information on to my friend.
I also came across something about a year ago that is changing the way a roofing contractor does business. He can now measure a roof accurately using aerial images and it eliminates a lot of the margin for error. My thought is that if we take that same product and give it to the homeowner it would be the one tool he could have that can kind of start him off on his roof quest with knowledge. Much like the car analogy above, I feel like if we know the size of our roof all the other dominoes will fall into place. I found a resource and I started a company to offer it to the consumer. It creates a report that I call “My Roof Measurement”. It’s the one thing a homeowner can have in his hand that can level the playing field. If you know how big your roof is you can weed through the confusion of estimates.
I have started this whole blog just to give my different perspective on purchasing a new roof. I am in a unique position being in the roofing industry my entire adult life and I am a homeowner and just had a roof installed myself last year. I have lots and lots of opinions on other things like permits and mechanics lien’s but I can’t go on and on forever. You will have to wait for my next blog in a few days.
OTHER SUBJECTS COMING UP
Never let them tear your roof off without having it covered right away.
Why I don’t want you to do it yourself. (Besides the fact that after you do install your roof you’d swear to never do it again?)
Mechanics Liens
What product to put on your roof
Why having an ugly roof is like getting dressed up and your hair looks like hell.
Referrals are the lifeblood of a contractor.
Licensed and insured.
Why you have 4 pallets of left over roof tile in your backyard? Horror Story No. 267
Why the Lowest bid may be bad.
How not to install a roof. A photo essay.
Permits and Licenses
Think real hard before you hire the neighbor’s kid to do your roof.
Contracts and Payments