Finding a Reliable Louisville Roofing Company
Imagine your home without its roof. Youd be exposed to outside weather among other things! You risk serious damage to your entire house and all its contents if youre roof isnt kept in good condition. Water leaks from snow and ice can do some serious damage to the entire structure of the building. Continually neglecting your roof will only make for costly repairs down the road. The quicker you contact a reliable Louisville Roofing Company to fix the problem the less it is going to cost you.
Replacing your roof is a big expense regardless of the materials used. The actual roofing materials are only a small portion of the total cost of a new roof. Labor costs will probably be your greatest expense when hiring the Louisville Roofing Company. Roofing is a profession requiring many skills including framing construction, mathematics and carpentry. Finding a Roofing Company is not difficult. Locating a reliable Louisville Roofing Company with know-how and ability to do the work properly might be a little harder.
You Can Find a Louisville Roofing Company
Finding a good Louisville Roofing Company can be initiated in a number of ways. One of the best places to start your search for a Roofing Company is by asking your family and friends. Find out if someone you know has worked with a Roofing Company before and if they were pleased with the results. Check out the work first hand. A happy homeowner with a sound roof over his head is a good sign so get the contact information on his Roofing Company.
Have a look through your local yellow pages or check out the home improvement centers. Often a Roofing Company and other contractors of all sorts have their contact information posted in these businesses. Searching for a local directory for a good Louisville Roofing Company via the web is a quick source. Normally it is the professional that goes to the extent of getting listed.
Evaluating each Roofing Company from your list you have compiled is the next step. The Better Business Bureau will have helpful information as far as a Roofing Company with a not so pristine past. Make sure the Louisville Roofing Company has the proper licensing. You can call the state contractors license board to verify this. If there are any complaints on file or you have doubts about a Roofing Companys license, its best to remove him from your list.
Getting to Know the Louisville Roofing Company
Interview each Louisville Roofing Company about the work you need done. An interview will give you an idea if the Roofing Company is able to handle the job as well as getting a feeling for how well you connect. Good communication skills are often indicative of how well a project will proceed. Begin by asking about their experience. The reliability of a professional job will be determined by how many years of experience the Roofing Company has invested in his career. Ask to see a copy of their state contractors license and make note of the number. You may need to check this later.
Also make sure that all insurance polices are in place and up to date. Workers compensation and liability insurance must be carried. Ask to see copies of the insurance policies and get the contact information for the carrier. The department of workers compensation should be called to assure that complete coverage is in place. If a worker is injured while working on your roof and there is no insurance, you could be held liable for medical and other expenses and if they are extensive you could lose your home.
Ask the Louisville Roofing Company for references from other jobs but dont rely on references alone when making your final choice. Unhappy customers may be out there and you will need to some further investigation to see if there are. Call the Better Business Bureau to ask if there have been any complaints made against the Roofing Company. Ascertain whether they were resolved to the satisfaction of the customer. A few complaints are no reason for a red flag, but several that have not been resolved certainly are.
The Bidding Process for a Louisville Roofing Company Made Easy
After you have your list of potential contractors, youll want to request some bids. The more bids you get the better is not true. Three or four should meet your needs and wont be time prohibitive. Too much competition on the table may cause a Roofing Company to back out. In actuality, a well known Roofing Company could have other clients waiting while you're still in the decision process, thus you may lose a bid from the most qualified Louisville Roofing Company. Choose just a few and then qualify each Roofing Company from which youll ask a bid.
Remember when asking for a bid, you dont want just a slip of paper with a number on it. An itemized list including cost plus labor is in order. Give each Louisville Roofing Company a list of what you want to see in all the bids. By doing this you should receive quotes that are based on the same work, making them easier to compare. If one bid is significan'tly lower than another youll be able to pinpoint exactly where the differences are.
You dont necessarily want the lowest bid, but the highest one isnt a guarantee of better service or materials either. You should look for a balance of both reasonable price and good service. If a bid is lower than any others you are offered, ask why. Low bids may come from legitimate reasons such as fewer employees, low overhead or lower cost for materials and the Roofing Company may be willing to share that lower cost with the customer but you need to check into this to be sure all is legitimate.
Once youve selected the Louisville Roofing Company you want for your project, you should ask for a contract.