Choosing a Roofing Contractor in the West Metro: Questions to Ask Before You Sign

Hiring a roofer is uncomfortable because most homeowners do it once or twice in a lifetime. You're comparing documents in an unfamiliar trade, often on a deadline, sometimes right after a storm. The good news: a handful of specific questions will tell you almost everything you need to know.

Questions about the company

• Are you licensed to do residential building work in Minnesota, and can I see the license number?
• Do you carry general liability and workers' compensation coverage, and can I get a certificate of insurance?
• Where is your office, and how long have you worked in the west metro?
• Who will be my point of contact once work starts?

Insurance is the one you can't skip. If an uninsured worker is hurt on your roof, that can become your problem. Ask for the certificate to be sent directly from the insurer.

Questions about the crew

Ask plainly whether the crew is in-house or subcontracted, and whether the same crew will be on your roof from tear-off to cleanup. Subcontracting isn't automatically bad — vagueness about it is.

• Will someone on site speak with me directly about issues as they come up?
• Who inspects the finished work, and do I get photos?
• How do you protect landscaping, siding, and driveways during tear-off?
• How is the site cleaned, and do you run a magnet sweep for nails?

Questions about the scope

This is where bids that look similar turn out not to be. Get every one of these in writing.

• Full tear-off or layover?
• Which underlayment, and how much ice-and-water membrane, and where?
• Is all flashing being replaced, or reused?
• What happens if you find bad decking, and what's the per-sheet price?
• What ventilation changes are included?
• Are new pipe boots, drip edge, and ridge cap included?
• Who pulls the permit?

Questions about warranties

There are two: the manufacturer's material warranty and the contractor's workmanship warranty. The second one matters more, because most problems in the first years are installation-related.

• How long is your workmanship warranty, and what does it cover?
• Is it transferable if I sell the house?
• What's the process if I find a leak in year two?
• Does anything I choose void the manufacturer's coverage?

Questions about payment

A reasonable structure is a modest deposit with the balance due at completion. Be cautious about large upfront payments, cash-only requests, or pressure to sign before you've read the contract.

Red flags in the west metro

• Door-knocking crews with out-of-state plates and today-only pricing.
• Any offer to waive, absorb, or 'work around' your insurance deductible.
• Contracts that assign your claim rights to the contractor.
• No physical local address and no verifiable local references.
• A bid that's dramatically cheaper with no explanation of what was removed from the scope.
• Unwillingness to put verbal promises into the written contract.

How we answer these

We inspect before we quote, document the roof with photos you actually get to see, put the full scope in writing, and tell you when a repair will hold instead of selling a replacement you don't need. Every job is backed by our satisfaction guarantee, and we're local — we're still here after storm season ends.

If you're gathering bids in Minnetonka, Wayzata, Orono, or anywhere in the west metro, ask us these questions too. Call 952.649.6449 or request a fast quote and see how the answers compare.