Compare Each Roofer's Fast Yes Against Three Written Answers

Most St. Louis homeowners hear a yes from the first roofer they call. The yes sounds good on a warm porch in April, when hail season has passed and the gutters are clear. It is harder to read in November, when the freeze thaw cycle starts working at loose flashing and the next crew is three weeks out. A quick yes costs nothing to say. What matters is what it commits the roofer to write down, and that is where two bids that look the same start to split.

Roofer comparison

Treat the first yes as an opening line, not a decision. Ask each roofer the same three follow-up questions, in writing, and note how long each one takes to answer. The three questions that separate a firm yes from a loose one are: what exactly is included in the scope, when the crew would start and what would move that date, and which crew members will be on your roof on the first day. A roofer who answers all three by email or text with the same details you heard on the phone has given you something to compare. A roofer who answers with "we will figure it out on the day" has not.

Keep the replies in one folder, dated, with the date you received each one. If a roofer names the shingle, get that line into the scope itself. Keys Roofing installs Atlas and Malarkey shingles only, so a different brand name on another bid is a line to question, not a detail to skim past. When you compare the bids, set the answers side by side and read the facts, not the adjectives. Two bids can both say the crew is experienced and both say the job is guaranteed. Only one of them may say how many days the crew expects to be on the roof.

A useful test is whether the answer holds when you ask it again. Put the scope question to each roofer a week later, using the same words you used the first time. If the number of squares, the ridge line or the tear-off depth moves without a reason, the first yes was a guess. That does not make the roofer dishonest. It does mean the bid is not yet something you can sign against.

Watch the tone of the replies as well. Plain answers that name a crew, a date window and a material are easier to hold a roofer to than long messages full of hedges. The goal is not to reward the most polished email. The goal is to find which roofer put the same facts on paper that they gave you on the phone, and which one changed them.

What it costs

A fast yes can hide a price that moves later. Ask each roofer what the bid assumes about three things: the square count, the number of layers already on the roof, and how the old shingles are hauled and disposed of. If a roofer quotes a total without naming those three, the gap between two totals may come from what each bid left out, not from the work itself.

Ask for the price in a form you can check. That means the number of squares measured, the price per square or the lump sum, and any line marked allowance or to be determined. An allowance is a number that is not yet a price. When two roofers both say yes to the same roof, the one whose allowances are named and sized is usually the one whose total you can trust. A bid with three allowances and no sizes is not a lower bid. It is a bid that has not finished counting.

Also ask what happens to the price if the start slips into a colder stretch or a new month. A roof that is open through a St. Louis cold snap needs a different plan than one that is closed in the same week, and crews handle that in different ways. A roofer who has thought about the delay will have an answer ready. A roofer who has not may add a charge later that was never in the first number.

What to ask

Use the same list with every roofer, in the same order, and write each answer under its question. A short list works best. Ask who will act as foreman on your roof, and whether that person is the one who walked your roof. Ask what the crew does if rain stops work on day two, and whether that day is billed, held or rescheduled. Ask who calls you if the start date moves, and how long the office takes to return a call during a weekday.

Then ask the question most roofers hope you skip: what would make them change this bid? Good answers name a real condition, such as a soft deck found after tear-off, a permit desk that requires a different underlayment layout, or a shingle line that is no longer produced. Vague answers that say nothing could change the number are a sign to ask again, in writing, and to note the reply.

Permit questions matter across the county. Each municipal permit desk in St. Louis County and the city keeps its own inspection order and its own hours, and a roofer's answer about who pulls the permit shows whether the schedule was built around that desk. Ask each roofer who pulls the permit and when the first inspection is expected, then compare those answers with the desk you will actually call. If two roofers name different desks for the same address, you have found a question worth settling before anyone signs.

Finally, ask each roofer to put the answers in one document, dated and signed by the person who will be responsible for the job. A roofer who will not write down what they already told you on the phone has shown you how the job will be run once the tear-off begins. That is useful information, and it costs you nothing to learn it now.

When two answers disagree

If two roofers give different answers to the same question, do not split the difference. Write down both answers, send each roofer the other's reply, and ask for a one-line response in writing. The roofer who answers with a specific reason is usually the one who has actually checked the roof. If neither changes the answer, ask the person who would sign the contract to explain the difference on paper before you choose.

If you want to talk through the questions before you compare bids, the Keys Roofing office can be reached at (314) 220-2333. Ask for the list in writing, so you can send the same one to every roofer you are considering.