Hiring a roofer and reading a bid

Every page on this site that says “do not go on the roof” sends you here, so this page has to earn that. A roof is the largest single repair most homeowners ever buy, and the decision is usually made under time pressure, after a storm, from a list of companies you had never heard of a week ago.

We do not recommend contractors, take referral fees, or sell leads. What follows is how to tell a real bid from a bad one.

Verify these three things before anything else

Licensing. Whether your state licenses roofing contractors at all varies enormously — some license and regulate closely, some register, some do neither and leave it to municipalities. Find your state’s board, look the company up by name, and check the licence is current and in the right class. A licence number printed on a truck is not verification.

Insurance. Two separate policies: general liability, and workers’ compensation. Ask for certificates issued directly by the insurer, not photocopies from the contractor. If a crew member is injured on your roof and there is no workers’ comp, that can become your liability.

A physical local address. Not a PO box, not a phone number with an out-of-area code, not a magnetic sign. After a hailstorm, out-of-state crews arrive, work a season, and leave. A workmanship warranty from a company that will not exist next spring is worth nothing.

What a bid must itemize

A bid that says “replace roof — $18,400” tells you nothing and cannot be compared with anything. Insist on line items:

Squares. The number of roofing squares (100 sq ft each), and the pitch used. Two bids with different square counts on the same roof are not the same bid — check both against the roof area calculator.
Tear-off. How many existing layers, and whether disposal is included.
Decking. A per-sheet price for replacement. Nobody knows how much decking is bad until the roof is off, so an open “at cost” clause is where surprise money lives. Get the unit price in writing.
Underlayment. What product, and whether it is felt or synthetic.
Ice barrier. Where it is being applied and how far up. If your jurisdiction requires it, this is not optional.
Flashing. New or reused, and specifically whether step flashing and valley metal are new. This is the single most common corner cut and the most common cause of a leak in a new roof.
Drip edge. At eaves and rakes.
Ventilation. What is being installed at intake and exhaust, and whether the existing soffit vents are being cleared.
The shingle. Manufacturer, product line, and colour. “Architectural shingle” is a category, not a product.
Permit. Who pulls it and whether the fee is included.
Cleanup. Including a magnetic sweep for nails.

What a workmanship warranty should say

There are two different warranties and people routinely conflate them.

The manufacturer’s material warranty covers defects in the shingle. It is long, it is prorated, and it typically becomes worthless if the product was installed contrary to the manufacturer’s instructions. Some manufacturers offer an enhanced system warranty only when a certified installer uses their full accessory system.

The contractor’s workmanship warranty covers the installation, and it is the one that matters in the first decade — because almost everything that goes wrong in the first decade is installation, not material.

Read for: how long, what is actually covered, whether it transfers if you sell, what voids it, and whether it is written down. A verbal “we stand behind our work” is not a warranty.

Payment

A deposit is normal. A large deposit is not.

Be cautious of anyone wanting a substantial payment before materials are delivered, and never pay the full amount up front. A reasonable structure is a modest deposit, a payment when materials arrive, and the balance on satisfactory completion. Some states cap residential deposits by statute — worth checking yours.

Pay in a way that leaves a record. Cash discounts that require paying cash are a signal, not a saving.

Red flags

They knocked on your door after a storm. Not automatically disqualifying, but it changes the burden of proof entirely. Almost every problem in this vertical starts here.
They offer to waive, absorb, or “eat” your deductible. This is insurance fraud in most states, several have explicit statutes, and it exposes you as the policyholder as well as them. Walk away.
They want you to sign before your adjuster has been out. A contingency agreement signed on the doorstep can commit you to that contractor for whatever the insurer approves, at whatever the insurer pays, with a cancellation fee if you change your mind. It is a contract. Read it, at a table, not on your porch.
They offer to handle the claim for you. Adjusting a claim on your behalf for a fee generally requires a public adjuster licence. A roofer who is not licensed as one should not be negotiating your claim.
A price that expires today. Real roofing companies have a schedule and a backlog. Urgency is a sales tool.
No written estimate, or one with no line items.
They cannot produce current insurance certificates from the insurer.
Pressure to skip the permit. The permit is not bureaucratic friction; it is the inspection that catches an installation nobody else will look at.

Getting three bids

Get three, from companies you found independently rather than from people who found you.

Compare them on scope first, and only then on price. If one bid is dramatically cheaper, find the line item that explains it — it is almost always fewer squares, reused flashing, cheaper underlayment, or no deck allowance.

Ask each one what they would do about ventilation. Poor attic ventilation is the honest answer to a large share of “why did my roof only last fifteen years” questions, and a roofer who does not raise it is selling you a covering rather than a roof.