Roofers in Tampa Bay area?

Question

Does anyone in the Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater/Brandon area know of a good, reliable roofer who they have used for a re-roofing before?  I have been extraordinarily frustrated by the roofers in this area.  I've called 12 companies, of which 7 never returned my call, 4 made an appointment for a bid but never showed up (including one company that outright lied to my face that they were there at the same time I was), and the 1 who showed up but bid twice my budget. I mean there has to be someone in this area interested in a paying job, right?

Gary Cook · Answer

I'm a contractor looking to build my company's name and business. I am willing to work for you if you're interested. James Cook Construction. I'm located in Georgia but looking to expand. Give me a call when you're ready.

Wes Eaves · Answer

One roofer that repaired a part of my roof before recommended that I call 4-5 roofers to come out at the same time for a bid, as some of them won't show up (like him) and you don't waste your time.  It seems that either you find good, quality roofers that pull permits, are licensed, etc. or you get cheap labor and have the issues @Robert Curls mentioned.

I've heard that All Star Roofing has a good reputation in the area.

Scott Le · Answer

Colleague request sent.  Thanks.

Jake Landry · Answer

If you want to check out a list of roofers in your area that have all been properly vetted and have proper insurance, licensing and reviews, go to GAF.COM and you can enter your zip code and a list of the nearest Master Elite Contractors in your area will pop up. This is thee easiest and safest way to find a roofer. I can also give you some names and numbers to roofing professionals in your area if you would like to PM me. Good luck.

Niki Lee · Answer

@Scott Le

You mentioned your RE mentor co-owns a subcontracting firm. What is the name of his company? How did you end up finding him (if you don't mind me asking)?

Mike T. · Answer

Make sure they have roofing permit.  In the state of Florida you must have Roofing license to pull permit.  Some investors use unlicensed crews which you can probably find for $55 a square.

Get one estimate and then you can call against that quote using your measurements and materials from the quote.

Good Luck

Robert Curls · Answer

Scott, you tend to get what you pay for.  He may have paid that in the past, my experience with cheep labor is it isn't always the best or the most reliable.  They may charge you 3K to do the roof but you're chasing them down for days / weeks, in the interim you have your roof exposed and then it poors 3 inches of rain.  Now you have a cheep roof and you need to replace all of the drywall in the ceiling (just a worst case scenario).

Always calculate the hassle factor, especially if you're working a full time job and rehabbing on the side.

Scott Le · Answer

Originally posted by @Mike T.:

Well first of all business is good in Tampa! I have a friend that owns a roofing company here in the local area, he replaced my roof in December.

Do you know what type of shingle and underlayment you are looking for?

What are you looking to pay per square?

I honestly don't know what type of material is on the roof. It's not shingles and it's not metal. They're these large 10x10 squares. I don't know what they are made of to be honest. There's about 21 of them.

My REI mentor (who owns 30 houses in the area and co-owns a subcontracting firm) firmly believes I shouldn't have to pay more than $4.5-5k for the whole roof. He's going to be doing a lot of the other projects on the house, but unfortunately he doesn't have a sub for roofing in-house.

Originally posted by @Robert Curls:

Scott,

I've used Duncan roofing in the past.  Their gimmick is that they get it done in one day.  Other roofing companies that I've heard have good reputations are:

Heaberlin Roofing

Done Right Roofing

Very much appreciated!  Calling all 3 now.

Patrick L. · Answer

Maybe your budget is way off.  Most roofers in the area are going to be around $300/square (100 square feet of roofing material, not square footage of the home) for a shingle roof with tear off.

Robert Curls · Answer

Scott,

I've used Duncan roofing in the past.  Their gimmick is that they get it done in one day.  Other roofing companies that I've heard have good reputations are:

Heaberlin Roofing

Done Right Roofing.

Roofers in Tampa Bay area?

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