Deciding to replace the roof of your home is one of the most important things a homeowner will ever do. It’s something most homeowners will only do once, and it’s a major expense. So with that being the case, you need to make sure you hire a contractor who will serve your needs well. However, you may be somebody who’s in unfamiliar territory when it comes to choosing a roofer.

If that’s the case, you need to know how to go about hiring the right Portland roofers. Interstate Roofing can help. As a professional and experienced contractor, we can tell you there are a variety of questions to ask before you hire Portland roofers. The answers you receive will be crucial in helping you make the right choice.

What Does Past Work Look Like?

Reputation and word of mouth are two incredibly important components of vetting potential contractors. If you need Portland roofers to come in and replace your roof, you’re likely going to do what you do when you’re thinking of trying a restaurant for the first time or looking for a family doctor. That is, ask friends, family members, and acquaintances for recommendations. After all, if people you trust give a product or service a thumbs up, you know it’s on the level.

That said, we live in a time when thousands of people review everything from libraries to hospitals on the internet. When choosing Portland roofers, you should absolutely look to those close to you first for recommendations. You should also surf the web for reviews by unbiased, third-party customers. This will give you a strong general idea of whether a contractor has a history of doing good work.

How Long Has the Contractor Been in Business?

If you’re looking for a new family doctor, you probably wouldn’t want to pick somebody who just graduated from medical school. This is nothing personal against that doctor. It’s just that whoever you trust to be your doctor is going to be crucial to your family’s health. You want somebody with a proven track record of being successful with numerous patients.

While choosing Portland roofers may not be quite as important as choosing a family physician, it’s still critical to hire contractors who have proven over time that they can produce high-quality roofing work. So selecting contractors who have been in business for a long time is generally a smart move. It’s rare that a company would be operational for many years if it wasn’t good at what it does.

This isn’t to say that just because a company has been around for a significant period of time it’s the right one for the job. No matter what, you still need to investigate the company’s reputation and reviews. However, knowing they’re not new and unproven is often one of the first steps in determining whether to look into the company further as a potential candidate to replace the roof of your home.

Should You Base Your Decision On Price?

It’s not that price isn’t important, because it is, especially if you’re on a tight budget. However, you would be wise to remember the adage, “You get what you pay for,” when selecting a contractor.

Sometimes, a company’s price is the lowest around for a reason, and it isn’t always because it’s just a great deal. It could be because that company does subpar work or uses cheap materials and inexperienced workers.

The best course of action is to get estimates from multiple roofing contractors and compare those prices. Then weigh those price estimates against each company’s reputation and past work history. You may ultimately decide to go with the cheapest estimate, but you should keep in mind that sometimes it’s worth paying a little more if you know you’ll get more in the way of quality. It’s all about doing your research.

Is the Contractor Licensed and Insured?

Replacing the roof of your home is a job that’s often too complex to be done by yourself, unless you have a background in roofing. That is precisely why most homeowners hire a roofing company to do the job. However, even after you make the decision to hire a specific contractor, it’s essential that you make sure they have the proper insurance. You also want to ensure they up-to-date licensing and permits before you sign on the dotted line.

It doesnt matter how good a contractor’s work is. If they don’t have the proper licensing and permits, it could result in the work on your house being shut down or delayed for a significant length of time if the violation is discovered and the local government acts accordingly. Also, not having the proper insurance could be highly damaging to your wallet if anything bad happensduring the work. If a worker gets injured on the job and the contractor doesn’t have the proper insurance, there might be issues. It’s possible the worker could sue both their employer and you, the homeowner, in order to try to get restitution.

Similarly, if there’s damage to your property while the work is being completed, the proper insurance will ensure you’re not left financially responsible once the workers move on. Whatever you do, never put yourself in a position where there’s any chance whatsoever that you could be held personally liable for damage or a roofing worker’s injury.

Will They Give You Everything in Writing?

No matter who you select to replace your roofing, get the details of the work to be done in writing. The agreed-upon price should be in writing too. This is critical to protecting you against dishonest contractors that promise things they cannot deliver or try to ask for additional money even after having agreed to do the job for a specific price. Having everything that has been agreed upon explained clearly and concisely in writing gives you the means to take legal action against that contractor if the need arises.