How To Read Three Roofing Proposals That Don't Match

You did the sensible thing and got three proposals. Now you have three documents in three formats, with three prices that span a range wide enough to be confusing, and no obvious way to tell whether the cheapest one is a bargain or a trap.

The problem is that the proposals are not describing the same job. Until they are, the prices are not comparable. So the first task is not to compare prices. It is to make the jobs match.

Step one: build the grid

Take a sheet of paper, or a spreadsheet, and put the three companies across the top. Down the side, these rows. Fill every cell from the proposal in front of you, and write "not stated" where the proposal is silent - because silence is the finding.

The rows that decide the price

Tear-off. Full removal down to the deck, or a layover on top of what is there? This alone can explain a large gap. A layover is cheaper and it is a different job.

Deck work. Is the deck being re-nailed to current code? How many sheets of plywood are included? What is the per-sheet price beyond that? Three proposals will very often say three different things here, and one of them will say nothing.

Underlayment - by product name. Not "synthetic", not "peel and stick". The manufacturer and product. If one proposal names a two-layer system and another names one layer, that is a different roof with a different life, and the price should differ.

The covering - by product name. Same rule. Tile profile and manufacturer; shingle line and manufacturer; metal panel gauge and finish.

Flashing and metal. New drip edge, new valley metal, new wall flashing - or "reuse existing where possible"? Reuse is legitimate in some places and a corner cut in others, but it needs to be stated.

Penetrations and accessories. Pipe boots, vents, skylights, the gooseneck over the bathroom fan. Are they new, reused, or not mentioned?

The rows that decide the surprises

Permit and fees. Included, or passed through at cost, or not mentioned.

Disposal. Dumpster and haul-off included, or "by owner".

Unforeseen conditions. What happens when the crew finds rot the proposal did not anticipate? A proposal that answers this - allowance, unit price, change-order process - is a proposal from someone who has done this before.

Exclusions. Every proposal has them somewhere. Find the paragraph. It is usually near the bottom and it is usually the most important paragraph on the page.

Payment schedule. How much up front, how much at what stage. A large deposit before any material arrives is worth a question.

The rows that decide what happens afterwards

Workmanship warranty. Years, and what it covers, in writing.

Manufacturer warranty. Which one, and whether the system as proposed actually qualifies for it - some manufacturer warranties require specific underlayment and accessories from the same manufacturer, and a proposal that mixes brands may not qualify for the warranty it names.

Who is doing the work. Own crew or subcontractor.

Now compare

With the grid filled in, three things usually happen.

First, the cheapest proposal turns out to have the most "not stated" cells. That is not always disqualifying - some contractors just write short proposals - but every blank is a question you need answered in writing before you sign, and the price may move when it is.

Second, the middle proposal and the expensive one are often closer than they looked, once you account for what the expensive one included that the middle one left as an extra.

Third, and this is the one that matters: you can now ask each contractor a specific question - "your proposal doesn't state a plywood allowance; what is it?" - instead of the vague one, "why are you more expensive?" Specific questions get specific answers. Vague ones get sales.

One thing the grid cannot tell you

Whether the company will still exist when the warranty is needed. That is a different check - licence age and corporate registration, both public and free - and it belongs alongside the grid, not inside it.

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