Your Estimator's Years on St. Louis Roofs Belong in the Comparison

Many roof bids come from two people you may never meet: the estimator who measured and priced the roof, and the foreman who runs the job on your lot. The estimator sets the number. Their experience with St. Louis roofs shows whether that number includes what a local roof needs, such as the freeze-thaw cycle that backs nails out of a deck, the hail that arrives in spring, and the permit desk in your municipality that wants a particular set of drawings before a crew can start. A comparison of two bids that never asks who priced them is missing a column.

This page is for a homeowner who has two or three written bids and is deciding whose pricing to trust. It does not rank anyone. It shows what to ask about the estimator, what to request on paper, and how to read the answers side by side.

Roofer comparison

Start by asking each roofer to name the person who measured your roof and wrote the number. A company name on the bid does not tell you who did the arithmetic. Put the same question to Keys Roofing at (314) 220-2333 and to every other company on your list, and compare the answers as written.

Then compare four points: how long the estimator has priced roofs in the St. Louis area, whether they have priced roofs in the municipality you are in, whether they can show you the dated photos and measurements behind your number, and whether the person who answers your later questions is the same person who wrote the bid or someone who can read their notes. Write each answer beside the roofer's name. A blank cell means the question went unanswered. A vague reply such as a long time or our team should count as a blank for comparison purposes.

Local experience matters because St. Louis roofs fail in local ways. Ice damming shows up at the north eave of older houses in St. Louis County, a three-tab roof that has been patched for years may be near the end of its useful life, and a May hail storm can leave bruises on a deck that a roofer who has priced many storm roofs knows to look for. An estimator who has priced a dozen roofs in your area after a hard freeze has seen where the nails back out. An estimator whose work is mostly in another region may not have that record yet. Note that in your comparison as a fact, not as a verdict.

Permit experience belongs in the same column. Each municipality in St. Louis County and the city itself has its own permit desk, its own inspection sequence, and its own habits about what a roof package must show. An estimator who has worked those desks prices the permit fee, the inspection visits, and any drawing the city may ask for as named lines, not as surprises later. Ask each roofer which jurisdiction they have pulled a permit in over the past year and what the inspector asked for at the nailing stage. Even when both roofers are competent, that answer tells you how closely the bid tracks your city's process.

What it costs

Estimator experience shows up in the number. Two bids can carry the same shingle, the same square count, and the same crew size and still differ, because one estimator priced tear-off, disposal, and deck repair from what they have seen on local roofs while the other used a flat allowance. Neither number is wrong on its face. The comparison question is which assumptions went into each bid and whether every one of them is written down.

Ask each roofer for their assumptions as a list, not a paragraph. A useful list covers the square count and how it was measured, the pitch of each slope, the number of layers to be removed, the price of deck repair per sheet, the permit fee, the disposal, and any work the inspector may require. Set the list beside the bid total. When two totals differ by a few hundred dollars, the list usually shows where the gap sits, and you can decide whether that gap matters to you.

Do not treat a lower number as proof of a better estimator. A bid that leaves deck repair out until the tear-off is open is priced on a guess, and the guess may be fair or may not be. Ask each roofer what they charge per sheet of decking if rotten boards turn up, and ask whether that rate is written into the contract. A rate on paper is easier to compare than a promise to work it out later.

If an insurer is involved in your roof, keep that conversation with your insurer. Under RSMo 407.725, a roofing contractor may not represent or negotiate your insurance claim, and may not say anything about paying or covering your deductible. The roofer's job on that front is to document the damage, hand you a written scope with photos and measurements, and attend as the contractor while you deal with your own insurer.

What to ask

Use the same questions with each roofer, in the same order, and write the answers in the same columns:

1. Who measured the roof, who wrote the price, and how many roofs in the St. Louis area has that person priced in the last twelve months?
2. Which St. Louis County or city permit desk will this job go through, and what did the inspector ask for on your last permit in that jurisdiction?
3. Can you show me the dated photos and the measurements behind the square count on my house?
4. What is your per-sheet rate for deck repair, and is that rate written into the contract?
5. Which assumptions in this bid would change the total if they turned out wrong, and by how much?
6. Who will answer my questions after the contract is signed, and how do I reach that person?

Mark each answer as specific, general, or missing. Specific answers name a permit desk, a date, a count, or a rate. General answers describe a process. Missing answers are blank cells. A bid with several specific answers is easier to trust than a lower bid backed mostly by general ones, because you can check the specific answers against your house and the city's records.

Ask in writing whenever you can. An emailed or texted reply gives you a dated record to compare. If a roofer answers by phone, write the answer down that day and send the same sentence back to them to confirm it. Keys Roofing takes calls at (314) 220-2333, and the same written-answer habit applies to every company on your list.