Guide
How to pick a roofer you will not regret
The difference between a good roof and a bad one is mostly the crew, not the material. Both quotes list the same brand of shingle.
Get it looked at
Three questions, and up to three Fountain Valley contractors. Free either way.
You are on the list.
No provider in Fountain Valley is taking requests through this service yet. We are lining them up, and yours is kept until one can.
- Nobody gets your details yet. Your request stays with us and is not passed to any company.
- One email when someone can help. When a provider covering your area can take it on, we email you once and ask whether you want that company, by name, to contact you.
- Deleted after 90 days. If nobody can take it on, or you do not say yes, your contact details are deleted 90 days after your request.
- You decide, or you do not. There is nothing to cancel and nothing to pay us.
Nobody will call you about this request unless you say yes to a company by name.
Ask for current certificates of insurance
Insurance certificates expire. A certificate dated eight months ago tells you what was true eight months ago. Ask for one issued this month.
Prefer somebody you could drive to
Ask where their yard is. Companies that follow storms across state lines do competent work and then vanish, which is fine right up until something needs putting right.
Check the licence yourself
Every state that licenses roofing contractors publishes a free lookup. It takes two minutes and tells you whether the licence is current, who holds it, and whether there are complaints against it. Do it even when somebody has already vouched for them.
Be careful with the deposit
Ten to thirty per cent is normal, often to order material. Full payment before work starts is not, and in several states it is not even legal. Hold the final payment until you have walked the job.
Compare scope, not totals
Lay the quotes side by side line by line. Underlayment type, ice-and-water coverage, drip edge, valley treatment, ventilation, flashing replacement, decking allowance and warranty. Large gaps in the total are almost always gaps in the scope.
Get everything in writing, including the unknowns
The contract should say the material and the layers, who pulls the permit, the per-sheet price for replacing bad decking, what happens to the old material, the payment schedule, and the workmanship warranty. The decking clause is the one people forget and the one that moves the price.
In short
Three quotes, three licence checks, three certificates of insurance. It is a dull hour that routinely saves five figures.
Related questions
Should I repair or replace?
Rough rule: if the covering has more than about five years left and the damage is confined to one area, repair. If it is at the end of its life or you are patching the third leak in two years, you are paying instalments on a replacement.
What happens to my information?
Your details are passed to up to three local roofing contractors so they can quote. That is the only use. You can ask us to delete them at any time, and there is a do-not-sell page for exactly that.
Do you handle commercial buildings?
Yes. Commercial requests go to contractors who do low-slope and flat systems rather than to residential crews. Say so on the property question and it routes correctly.
What is it going to cost?
Free, no obligation, and your details go to no company until you say yes.