Five Tips for Choosing a Roofing Contractor After a Storm

My neighborhood was recently hit by a hail storm that beat paint off eaves, punched holes in siding and gutters, flattened gardens, and, of course, did severe damage to roofs. My roof was 10 years old and was totaled by my insurance adjuster. However, even neighbors with roofs less than two years old had enough damage for their insurance adjusters to total their roofs. Once the adjuster has cut the check to pay for a new roof, how do you go about finding a qualified, trustworthy roofing contractor? Here are five tips to avoid getting ripped off and to ensure a quality roof installation.

1. Ignore all the signs that pop up on street corners and all the fliers that suddenly show up on your front porch. For some reason, everybody becomes a roofer after a major storm. You don't want to use the roofer who is only a roofer after a storm. You want an experienced contractor who knows what he or she is doing. Call roofing contractors with yellow page listings who have been in business for several years. Ask your insurance company for recommendations. If you have used a roofer in the past or liked the roofer who put on the now-damaged roof, call that company. Ask your neighbors for recommendations, unless they used the guy who just printed a sign at the quick print shop and stuck it on the street corner!

2. Don't be the first on your street to get a new roof. Instead, pay attention to the companies your neighbors have chosen. Watch the crews work. Pay attention to how long it takes them to do the job and how well they clean up after they are finished. Look closely at the finished roof. Does it look smooth? Did they replace the vent pipes and other roof vents and paint them to match the new shingles? Ask your neighbor if he or she is happy with the work. Personally, I decided not to even bother with estimates from a couple of companies because of the crews and the look of the new roof. I don't want a loud, messy crew doing my roof. I want clean and efficient. And I want a quality roof without any waves in the shingles.

3. Get a minimum of three estimates. Compare them closely. Most contractors offer the same basic services. You probably won't find a great variation in pricing. However, you may find that some contractors offer a longer warranty than others. Make sure each estimate is itemized so you can tell how much each is charging you. Common line items on the estimate include: the cost of tearing off the old roof, the new shingles and felt, roof pipes, roof vents, flashing, plywood (if any decking needs to be replaced), and the material for any valleys on the roof. The estimate should tell you how many "squares" of shingles the contractor will use for the job. The estimate should also indicate that the contractor will clean up and roll the yard for nails when the job is finished. When I was comparing my estimates, I discovered that two contractors had not acknowledged that there was more than one layer of shingles on the back side of the house. I had to call them back out to re-estimate the cost of the job. If I had not compared all the estimates closely, I might have chosen a contractor based on a lower price, only to have the price go up after they started the job.

4. Ask the contractor if the company is bonded and carries workers comp insurance. Don't take the salesperson's word for it, ask to see the certifications. You don't want to discover that you and your homeowners insurance are on the hook if one of the roofers gets injured on the job.

5. Once you choose a roofing contractor, ask for a meeting to sign off on the estimate, choose your shingle color and set a date for the new roof to go on. Of course, you can make the arrangements over the phone. However, sealing the deal in person gives you a chance to review the estimate and make sure everything is going to go as planned.

If you take the time to carefully select a qualified contractor, you shouldn't have any problems. The crew should show up on time and do the job in the amount of time specified on the estimate. Your new roof will look great for many years to come - or at least until the next big hail storm rolls through.