Best Roofing Contractor in Southlake
If you are looking for a good company for a roofing job, you will probably want the best roofing contractor in Southlake. Finding the best contractor can be a little bit like a first date when everybody is on their best behaviour and go out of the way to create a favourable impression. However, much like a divorce, and end to the relationship with the wrong contractor can be messy and highly expensive. Here are some tips on how to go about the process and what you should do.
The first point is regarding references. Most contractor can willingly providea standard list of selected customers who they know will be all praise for them. This can't be completely avoided but you can set certain criteria to filter the responses. You can set a minimum length of time that the contractor and the customer have been working together. The longer the list of references with a long history, the better the chance that this particular roofing contractor is good. You should also ask for references of roofing projects similar to yours and get profiles of projects from the contractor if these are larger projects. Finally, call up these customers because the reference is not going to be of any use if you can't actually talk to customers.
The next thing to do is to contact the manufacturers of roofing material. With a little luck you may be able to shortlist your list of roofing contractors. Ask for an approved list of roofing contractors in your area and ask the roofing manufacturer whether the company keeps information on the contractors such as the total number of roof installations and the final inspection results as well as the length of time for which the contractor has been on the approved list. You will find that in many cases, using manufacturers provides a quick and convenient way of weeding out your potential roofing contractors.
Schedule a sitdown meeting with the few contractors on your shortlist. This should be done face to face and not on the phone or by e-mail because you will get a much better opportunity to find out more about the roofing contractors and to get a gut feel. You should be able to figure out whether the person with whom you are meeting is knowledgeable and that you are not just being fed a standard sales pitch. You can review the scope of your work including the scope of work received from a
competitor but ensure that names and pricing are removed to preserve confidentiality and give you a stronger bargaining position.
Finally, ask to review the work that they have completed so far because this gives you a good opportunity to judge the standards of workmanship. You could ask to see one or two projects in the area and how the competing proposals compared to one another. Now you are in a position to compare apples with apples and pay particular attention to price because somebody who is cheap upfront may turn out to be much more expensive down the road.
The first point is regarding references. Most contractor can willingly providea standard list of selected customers who they know will be all praise for them. This can't be completely avoided but you can set certain criteria to filter the responses. You can set a minimum length of time that the contractor and the customer have been working together. The longer the list of references with a long history, the better the chance that this particular roofing contractor is good. You should also ask for references of roofing projects similar to yours and get profiles of projects from the contractor if these are larger projects. Finally, call up these customers because the reference is not going to be of any use if you can't actually talk to customers.
The next thing to do is to contact the manufacturers of roofing material. With a little luck you may be able to shortlist your list of roofing contractors. Ask for an approved list of roofing contractors in your area and ask the roofing manufacturer whether the company keeps information on the contractors such as the total number of roof installations and the final inspection results as well as the length of time for which the contractor has been on the approved list. You will find that in many cases, using manufacturers provides a quick and convenient way of weeding out your potential roofing contractors.
Schedule a sitdown meeting with the few contractors on your shortlist. This should be done face to face and not on the phone or by e-mail because you will get a much better opportunity to find out more about the roofing contractors and to get a gut feel. You should be able to figure out whether the person with whom you are meeting is knowledgeable and that you are not just being fed a standard sales pitch. You can review the scope of your work including the scope of work received from a
competitor but ensure that names and pricing are removed to preserve confidentiality and give you a stronger bargaining position.
Finally, ask to review the work that they have completed so far because this gives you a good opportunity to judge the standards of workmanship. You could ask to see one or two projects in the area and how the competing proposals compared to one another. Now you are in a position to compare apples with apples and pay particular attention to price because somebody who is cheap upfront may turn out to be much more expensive down the road.