Cost is the #1 consideration that homeowners make when choosing who to hire for any job, including roofing. Roofing is expensive, and so it makes sense to look for the best pricing.
But roofing – even more so than many other home renovations – can have wildly varying prices, and it’s not just because some contractors are trying to price gouge you or profit as much as they can. Many contractors that offer cheap roofing estimates are doing so because they’re cutting corners significantly, and one of the problems with this type of roofing is that problems may not occur right away.
Think of it this way:
Roofing is designed to last 10, 20, or even 50 years. A poor roofing job may not start showing problems until year 3. By that time, your “cheap roofer” may be nowhere to be found, and now you’re spending more than double the price to fix their work.
You have to be very, very careful with cheap roofing estimates, because there are many places that roofers can cut corners to save a lot of money that will create significant, expensive problems for you in the not-too-distant future.
Let’s Be Clear: Not All Cheap is Bad
We have roofing starting at $4999 for an entire re-roof depending on the size of your property. We are also an Owens Corning platinum preferred installer, the highest rating given to roofers.
How can we do both?
One of our goals here at Christian Construction is to offer the best pricing we possibly can on all of our services – ESPECIALLY roofing. We’re able to do this because we are in a unique situation compared to other roofing companies:
- We employ all of our team in house, which means that we don’t have to pay extra for subcontracting.
- We have a large team, which means we can work more efficiently, allowing us to take on more projects and reduce operating costs.
- We make it our goal to do the best work we can so that you also call us for other services, like kitchens, masonry, siding, flooring, and more.
It’s that last point that makes the biggest difference. Roofing companies that only do roofing typically need to make as much as they can on any one project, because they may never see you again. On our end, even if we make less now, as long as we do an amazing job we know that you’ll call us for other projects in the future. We can continue to work together, helping us both be happy in the long term.
What Makes Cheap Roofing Estimates So Risky?
Still, Christian Construction is different. Our roofing combines high quality with low costs. But many other low estimates come with very high risk. For example:
Bait and Switch
Estimates are just that: estimates. Even on our end, we do our best to provide you with an estimate cost, but what if something comes up that requires extra repairs? We can only estimate what the costs will be.
Some companies, however, use this as a tactic. They provide you with an estimate knowing that they are going to charge you more later, using excuses about “finding issues” that they already knew existed or are not really there. The company’s history in the Staten Island community really matters, so you have to make sure that the estimates you’re getting are typically close to what homeowners end up paying.
Can legitimate issues arise? Yes. We’ve seen it happen. But typically, a good roofer will be right about the estimate about 80% of the time.
Cheaper Materials
Can you tell the difference between a low quality asphalt shingle and a high quality one?
We can, but most people cannot. They often look the same as you’re glancing at them, but the material is extremely poor quality. Off-brand materials wear down extremely quickly.
The challenge, of course, is that it will still take a few years. But instead of 10, 20 or 50 year lifespans, you get 3 or 4 years and then a roofing company that will not honor any warranty.
Skipped Steps and Labor Shortcuts
Many of the costs associated with roofing come from the materials. These are non-negotiable. We cannot make nails cheaper, for example.
What a company can do to offer a lower price is skip critical steps that are needed for the longevity of your property. For example, they may use fewer nails per shingle (code requires 4 to 6, but cheap jobs may only use 2 or 3). Or they may re-use flashing.
Some may not use the right underlayment, or may skip the ice/water shield altogether. All of these save money on materials, but hurt the quality of your roofing considerably – especially in the long term.
Low Quality Labor
Similarly, roofers should know how to do roofing. Some companies will find people that can work for cheap *for the job* without vetting their backgrounds and abilities.
We mentioned earlier that we hire our team in house. But, perhaps even more importantly, we hire *roofers.* We have roofing experts that know roofing, and these are typically different than our flooring guys that know flooring. You’re getting individuals that truly know their stuff.
But if a roofer just hires out to the cheapest labor, you’re going to be getting just that: bad labor. It takes a long time to know how to be a roofer, and if you send someone up there that isn’t fully trained and vetted, the quality of their work may not be as high as it should be.
The Real Costs of a Cheap Roof
With all this in mind, let’s talk about what really happens if you’re getting a quote that seems too good to be true, especially without the proper vetting. You’re getting:
- Premature Failure – Cheap materials may work for a few years, but they degrade extremely fast, which means that you’ll quickly be buying a better roof. Still, maybe you don’t know if you’re going to stay in that property for long. Then you still run additional risks, such as:
- Insurance Headaches – Before insurance will pay out any claim, they’ll investigate, and if they find extremely poor installation from a discount roofer, they’re going to point you in the direction of the roofer and may deny the claims. It would be your job to chase down the roofer and try to sue their insurance. It is not an ideal situation.
- Inspection Challenges – Let’s say you are selling your property soon so you’re not worried about failure in 5 or 10 years. Even still, home inspectors are trained to look for low quality work. It will come up on your inspection report, and you are very likely to get lower bids and renegotiations that are lower than you saved on the roof.
- Poor Energy Efficiency – Even on a daily basis, a poorly installed roof is more likely to have energy leaks, which in turn means that your energy bills are higher. If the roof is VERY poorly installed, there is an increased chance that you’re losing thousands every year.
Even if your installer used real roofing shingles from legitimate companies, that is no guarantee that you’re in the clear. Many manufacturers will deny claims if they find that the installation did not meet their required specs. Warranties are only valid if the original roof was installed correctly, and unfortunately they typically leave that up to the homeowner to validate.
How Do You Know if a Roofing Quote is Too Low?
Many homeowners can struggle to navigate the roofing industry, and prices can vary wildly. How do you know if you have an estimate that’s too low?
Typically, you have to ask the right questions:
- Are permits included?
- What is the exact make and model of the materials?
- What is your contractors license and do you have insurance?
- Do you subcontract labor?
- What is your own long term policy for installation errors?
Here at Christian Construction, we point to our Owens Corning Platinum Preferred Installer status because earning it requires a commitment to quality. They stand behind their warranties with us because they know that we do a good job installing. If you can’t find these details on your roofer, you have to be careful.
You should also read reviews. Lots of them. Try your best to find all the many places people write reviews and check them all out. Also, do your best to spot fake reviews. They are usually glowing over the owner of the business, short, and end with something like “choose COMPANY!” with no accompanying photos or information.
That’s not a guarantee, of course. Owners that are on the front line of work get good reviews all the time. But it is still something to watch for when you’re not sure if someone is legitimate.
Also, make sure you avoid what we call “Storm Chasers.” These are individuals that go door to door after bad weather looking to provide low quotes to someone that has a leak. Usually, they’re looking for someone desperate, do low quality work, and then you never hear from them again.
Some Money Saving Can Be Bad
It is true that many times in the world of home contracting, prices can vary wildly, and a low cost individual can still offer great service if they want to offer a good price. But roofing is a bit different. It’s hard to offer low pricing because a lot of the pricing is in the materials, and the labor costs are fairly static per roof. We’re able to offer very low cost pricing because of the way that we’ve designed our business model, but it’s a challenge, and it even took us time to get everything together.
You are looking at a roof that is not only meant to be a 20+ year investment, but also something that affects your property each and every day. One mistake, and you can have a leak that leads to mold that leads to significant costs. The money you save now will, frequently, end up costing you significantly more not only in the long term, but in the short term as well.
Still, that doesn’t mean that you cannot find good pricing. Reach out to Christian Construction today, serving Staten Island, all over New York City, and parts of New Jersey. We’re here to help with some of the lowest prices you will find online, and are a great choice for anyone that wants to get a high quality roof for a lower price.
Learn more by reaching out today.
