Hey guys(excluding grumpy)… I’ve worked with wind damage quite a bit but we had a hail storm come through a little while back and now storm chasers are coming to my area… So I’m going to try to get a couple of these before the out of towners get them… And I have myself a couple appts tomorrow in this Neighborhood to meet with the homeowners to see what type of damage they have. Does anyone have any tips for me? I know to take pictures of everything… Damages etc… Is there a rule of thumb you hail guys use that would constitute a full roof replacement. Here in FL, building code requires that if greater than 25% of the roof gets replaced then you have to do the entire roof. So basically on a hip roof I need to have one or two sides with some substantial damage to do the whole roof. I would appreciate any help you guys can offer…
So,what do you have against Grumpy??? :shock:
If 100% of the damage is storm related then a replacement is justified.Either damage exists or not.
Take pix of your findings.Sign as many contingencies as possible.Spike the entire area with your yard signs.
Go door to door and bang them doors.
Where in Florida are you?
The thing about Florida is,since such strict guidelines with permits,inspections (Decking,Dry in,Final) is the work has to be right or actions will be taken against the contractor by the building department or state.
Fly by nighters pretty much stay away from codes,inspections,statutes and felonies.(Yes,some stormers actions result in felonies but Florida as well as other states classify contracting without a license an automatic felony.)
Florida is not a state you can just run to to make some quick coin.
Right… Im in jacksonville…Permits, inspections, completely renailing decking is what I’m used to… And I’m usually against all the Government regulation such as EPA, OSHA and such… But I’m actually thankful for the state requirements here as far as roofing… It prevents people from waking up one day and starting a roofing business. I guess they could but like you said, it’s a felony here and you’ll get locked up quick. But believe it or not there is still plenty of contractors doing work here right at below my costs for a job.
B.G Roofer,that underbidding is to be expected.You will lose contracts to other companies.
You can provide 100% manufacture spec roofs,not leave a speck of debris,straight as an arrow ridge,stand behind your work and kiss the homeowners ass on Saturday and twice on Sunday and Jonny low blow will still get the job.
In the areas I was in while in Florida I can say that most were into and were comfortable for paying what your worth.But alot has changed with the economy.
Most of those guys try to work on volume not so much as maintaining a certain percentage of profitability.Its not right but the approach has been used for eternity.
In the past storms (within 2 years) I thought it was greedy to go for the wealthy areas.I thought it was a better idea while the other guys were banging doors there I would dominate the middle class areas.WRONG!!!
The middle class is now the lower class (so to speak).Don’t get me wrong the measure of ones worth exceeds far more than what he possesses.
That approach worked while I was clouded by bliss for my new fangled idea.A couple years ago middle class cared for the most part about looks,workmanship and having the job performed correctly.Anymore as long as nothing is popping up,it don’t leak and the colors somewhat match then shoot me the lowest price.
If you notice most of the people who ask for tips on these repair forums seem to include they only plan on living in the home for a short time.It is like they just want to bandage the house up and pass the dying horse onto the next guy.
They want the most for the least amount of input but expect the most when it comes time to sell.
In order to get the most money, you need to work with the insurance companies. Get the home owner to allow you to represent them. Work up an estimate for the work and then get a meeting with the adjuster. Use the same soft ware as the adjuster, probably Xactimate. Just google it. If you live in Florida you need to hook up to this method of getting more for your effort. You should take the time to learn the system. Loads of money out there, up to 20% more than a reroof bid. It is part of the contract that the home owner has with the insurance carrier, read their policy. Most policies allow for overhead and profit beyond the basic costs. Do not simply give your bid to the owner, they will turn it into the insurance adjuster and that is all you will get. You need to work up the allowed items through Xactimate. If you are serious in staying in business you should look into it. Big money after hurricanes. You will not find a single contractor who has gone this route and then returned to the old way when it comes to storm damage. Getting your general license will allow you to gain on the paint, windows, decking, ect… You sub it out and keep the o&p 20%. Watch over the jobs and you can keep what the subs leave on the table as well. All legal, though the insurance companies would rather you didn’t know.
It is becoming more common, in some states, that there are efforts to bring legislation into play that will prevent a contractor from representing a homeowner when it comes to getting adjustments to the claim. You may want to align yourself with a public adjuster of you need those negotiations.
In our experience, we find that a VERY well documented and explained claim in the adjusters language goes a long way.
We recommend to our customers that they merely get a contract signed that would essentially tell the insurance company that you are the contractor of choice. No need to put any numbers.
The best results, we found, were when we wrote a supplement after the initial adjuster estimate came back. Many of our clients won’t start the work until the 1st supplement is approved from the adjuster. Most of the things are taken care of at that point, short of decking issues that you can’t see yet, and that isn’t too tough to get covered.
Good luck!