1. Compare Scope Before Anything Else
- Is tear-off included, and how many layers?
- What underlayment, and how much ice-and-water coverage?
- Is new flashing metal included at the chimney, sidewalls and valleys?
- Is ventilation addressed as an intake-and-exhaust system?
- Is there a published per-sheet decking rate?
- Are disposal, driveway protection and magnet sweeps written down?
2. Compare Who Does the Work
The person who sells the roof is frequently not the person who installs it, and on some jobs the installing crew has no relationship with the company beyond that week. Ask who will be on your roof, who supervises them, and how you reach that supervisor on a Tuesday afternoon.
3. Compare Insurance and Standing
Liability coverage and workers' compensation are the two that protect you. Ask the carrier to send the certificate directly. It is a routine request and a contractor who is properly covered will not blink at it.
4. Compare Warranty — Both Halves
Material coverage comes from the manufacturer; workmanship coverage comes from the contractor. Get the length of each in writing, confirm who administers the workmanship half, and ask whether it transfers if you sell.
5. Compare How They Communicate Before You Are a Customer
The estimate stage is the most attentive a contractor will ever be. If calls go unreturned, if the written estimate takes two weeks, or if every answer arrives as a reassurance rather than a specific, that is your preview of the project.
6. Compare Longevity and Local Presence
A thirty-year roof is a thirty-year relationship with whoever installed it. How long has the company operated, under what name, and out of where? A contractor based in the market they serve is simply easier to reach in year eight.
Where we land on this list
Roof Masters has worked out of Tomahawk since 2014, in a family that has been in the roofing trade since the 1940s. We are insured and certified, we write the scope out in full, and the person you call is local. Use the list on us — we would rather be chosen on the criteria than on the total.
Common questions
- How many roofing estimates should I get?
- Two or three is plenty if you compare them properly. A fourth bid rarely adds information; matching the scope across the bids you already have almost always does.
- What should I ask a roofing contractor before signing?
- Who installs and supervises the work, what happens if bad decking is found and at what rate, who backs the workmanship warranty and for how long, and what could legitimately change the price after tear-off.