I’m curious about the cost of having my roof done. I should do it myself but it’s fairly steep, 2 stories on one side and I am usually working there alone. A fall might hurt for a long time (not many visitors). Here’s all the info:
25 squares, 1 layer of old asphalt to remove, 9/12 pitch, 2 valleys, 3 dog house dormers, 2 plumbing vents, 1 metal duct chimney, Ice and water shield 2 courses on the bottom, 70′ ridge venting, 40 yr landmark shingle. I have a dumpster on site already.
I’m trying very hard to justify hiring this one out. Snow is coming soon here in MI.
What can I expect to pay. What would you charge?
Thanks,
Jim
Replies
$10,000 to $12,000
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Including materials? Or just labor?
I hate to respond to open ended Qs like this without knowing if you have a local estimate already and if not, why not?
See, Mike's estimate is valid if you bring the house to him...but in the right ballpark as a rough guide.
Is this at the end of a long four wheel drive kind of road and one a steep hillside where it is impossible to setup staging?
Are you taking care of the cost of disposal?
Is there any rotted wood? What about venting?
How is the view?
I am concerned that you could be boobytrapping yourself and the local contrators. They may show up and see a good reason for a higher bid and you now have it in your mind that it can be donme for ten grand. Anytihng above that and you are apt to be thihnking that they are ripping you off, based on something somebody offered you online.
Excellence is its own reward!
Piffin,
no rot, fairly easy access, staging shouldn't be a problem, i'm taking care of disposal.
I'm just trying to get a "ballpark figure" without having a few roofers come out and possible waste their time. I've seen how threads go here about that topic. If anyone reading this wanted to reply or give an opinion, then I felt I wasn't wasting their time. Even though it would be an "online estimate", I thought it would be a place to start and possibly end.
Jim
Thanks for fleshing that out. Never can tell how an est is going o be used.
As you can see, you have heard pricing that is all over the map. Has it helped your thinking any? In another roofing thread, someone pointed out that it is hard to find good competitive pricing at this time of year, because everyone in the world who planned on roofing it themselves is calling the roofing companies trying to get under cover at last minute before the snow flies..
Excellence is its own reward!
Hey Piffen not to change the thread but I got someone that I used to work with is tring to do almost the same,here's a couple of email pics give me a price.I think its all about keeping the contact to himself,if you get what I mean.Is Pejka1 really looking for a price or making sure his price is right?I am in Michigan too and have seen two layer 8 sq tearoffs with gaf shingles going back go for $1300 and lets see dumpster $275 shingles$375 labor?
So I would say 9/12 the going price in Grosse Pointe is around $675 to $875 per sq on jack jobs
I don't know what the tearoff might cost you. My new construction roof is about the same as your situation. It was roofed as part of my framing and enclosure package, with me supplying the materials. The roofer guy and his helper did the job in two long days, and got $65/sq for their trouble.
7/12 pitch, 23 sq, IKO Chateau architectural shingle, 2 layers ice and water all eaves and valleys, dripedge all around, one dormer, two valleys, 72 lf ridgevent, one chimney opening, two plumbing vents.
My material costs were about $1975, plus tax.
Would you like to hire a limo and driver to get Andy and his bud out to Michigan?
Around here it is running about 250$-300$/square for tear off and re-roof.
FOR A SIMPLE ROOF!
this means:
NO valleys, a couple of vents, a simple chimney, a solid roof deck, good access for staging and cleanup,20 year 3-tab shingles.
And we are in one of the lowest labor markets in the US.
There are a boatload of details that will raise this figure.
And none that will lower it except maybe Charity or substandard workmanship.
Mr T
Do not try this at home!
I am an Experienced Professional!
I had a 36 Sq reroof in October. Hired it out...smart enough now to know I couldn't handle it by myself and keep it all dry and be able to get out of bed all the next week.
Spec on the job...similar to yours, but with two layers and all 2 story/5/12 pitch.
Contractor was done in 2-1/2 days......$110/sq for remove and replace w/ flashings
.......plus dump fees....$620
.......plus labor on rot repairs
Sub Total.....$4500
I covered the materials...................$3500
Total Cost $8000
..............Iron Helix
how about 200.00$ a square?
thats reasonable
roofer from maine
Chello,
Hello,
Haven't seen you here before. That sounds cheap to me. Is that labor only? Did you get the part about tearing off and steep pitch with valleys?
If you include the price of all materials for archi type you are only figuring maybe 120/sq for labor. You would have to tear off, clean up, and reinstall at least three squares a day just to make wages. Doable for sure, but not a good way to make a living. To make profit after paying for insurances, you would need to do five or six squares a day.
Guys in the Midcoast are charging $120 labor just to apply on a new walk-on. You up north?.
Excellence is its own reward!
hey piffin. way up north. try canada and my company does 15 squares a day with no guns. thats a rip off job. my men work hard and fast in this weather
how many men on the crew though? or - How many squares per day, per man, counting set up staging and clean up trash?.
Excellence is its own reward!
you wouldn't believe me if i told you, but there is only three of us and the master roffer is 66 years young. the other 2 of us do all the lugging and clean up at the end of the day
So that makes five per man per day which is in range o what I was saying you would need to just get by OK on the good weather days.
You are talking to a guy who used to average fifteen or sixteen squares a day of three tab shingles on walkons. Now, I've started to lrearn to be a bit of a businessman too so I can actually make a bit and not have to be doing it still when I'm 66. last time I walked on one, I laid up eleven squares that day. Did up a shed roof too laying five squares in three hours. Not bad for an old fart..
Excellence is its own reward!
hello again pif, but i really hate to disapoint you again. there is really only three of us and i'm not the boss, i'm 37 and the other guy is 43 but works like 80. dont get me wrong he is a good roofer but he is the bosses son. he'll be the boss next year. the real boss hates to retire but his she boss said. time to bring the man to bed.
I gotta jump but only because I know it will turn Piffs stomache to be reminded of how rotten roofing wages are in my neck of the woods. With the materials included, roofers here would line up to do that roof for 6K.
"The child is grown / The dream is gone / And I have become / Comfortably numb " lyrics by Roger Waters
did one about a month ago that was 25 sq, 9/12 pitch with 3 layers of asphalt and one wood tear off and resheet for $5,500. cant say i would do it again for that price but im sure someone would.
Not sure where you are in Michigan but here in Ann Arbor most of the re-roofing jobs seem to be in the $10,000-$12,000 range. The local newspaper publishes permit applications. However, as others have noted, a lot of factors could push those figures up or down.
Chip
If I understand correctly, you are in Michigan. I'm in Cleveland, Ohio and can give you an actual quote I received at $10,645.00. Tear off of 2 layers, 30# roof felt, 35 ft step flashing, 48 ft counter flashing, 127 ft drip edge and 272 ft rake edge. 133ft ridge vent, 85 ft aluminum W pan valley. flashing 2 chimneys and 1 soil pipe. 214 ft of ice shield. This was a GAF Timberline Diam 30 year roof. Clean and haul debri was included. I shopped the price with 2 other roofers and got it done for $7550.00. They are still working on it as I write. This is their 4th day.
Don't hesitate to "waste their time" or you will waste your money.
Don't hesitate to "waste their time" or you will waste your money.
What a rotten attitude. I think (or hope) I know what you meant when you said that, but you still won't make many friends around here coming off like that. When you refer to the majority of people here (trade professionals) in the third person and imply that our time is meaningless.....well you've just insulted just about everyone here who could be a potential asset to you and your home.
How many sq is your roof? Does your price include the materials, or is it for labor only?
The quote was because Pejka1 said he did not want to waste anyone's time coming out to bid a job. I don't like to do it either unless I'm really serious about actually contracting the job very soon.
I mentioned once that I hate to shop price because these guys have to take time to look over the job and it seems so unproductive for them if they don't get the work. It was then pointed out that they wouldn't get any work if they didn't get a chance to bid on a job. Made sense to me.
I am a single woman who needs to have all major jobs done on this money pit by other people. I always spec out the job on paper before I call anyone so an accurate comparison can be done. I also do a lot of research beforehand so I know how the job needs to be done. I have learned a lot from the very knowledgeable people I have dealt with and have a very high regard for the jobs they perform. No one appreciates a trades person more than me. I'm sorry you took this the wrong way.
AcCable,
Well I appreciate your taking the time to explain. I think I understand your point of view now. However, taken out of context, it was an ugly comment.
Maybe you did get a really good deal...they are out there. However, my experience with roofers and roofing is much different. I sub out 10 to 12 roofs a year and do alot of roofing myself. From my point of view there aren't any bargains out there with roofing.
I'm in MA, just outside of Boston. I will make an educated guess based on my experience alone and say that in our area maybe 1 out of 5 (on average) of the roofers I've dealt with in the past, say, 5 years have actually carried the proper insurance. Insurance alone can make a roof jump from $45/sq to $95/sq in the blink of an eye. Now let's talk about taxes and those who actually report them....probably about 1 in 5 again. And probably adds another $25/sq to the total number.
Bottom line..... I could probably get a roof done (new construction, not tear-offs) for about $45 a sq. I usually pay anywhere from $65 (for up and over) to $115 for cut up roofs on steep pitches.
Pretty tough to get any warranty work out of a non-existing company. A business card and truck doesn't make someone a trustworthy contractor.
What does this mean to me? Well, if I hire the guy with no insurance who doesn't pay taxes... well let's just say I'm taking a big gamble that no one gets hurt. Not to mention I'm hurting myself by patronizing someone who doesn't pay taxes. Also, a contractor who doesn't pay taxes or carry insurance obviously could care less about his employees and their well being. Not to mention, when my worker's comp provider decides to audit me (and they do every year) I will be paying a premium for hiring a sub who doesn't carry insurance....that's IF they don't cancel me. In MA NOBODY works without insurance....if you're not paying for it, I am paying for yours and mine.
What does this mean to you....well, let's hope one of his boys doesn't take a fall on your property.
Good for you for doing the research, and not blindly trusting anyone with a hammer and truck. Seriously....there is an awful lot of unscrupulous scam artists just waiting for a single Mom to come along to steal her money.
BUT please, please please ask for insurance certificates from EVERYONE you hire to work on your house. Also, CONTRACTors should offer you a CONTRACT. Get those things and a written warranty and you are in business.
Thank you for the advice. It is much appreciated. Yes, I did get his worker's comp certificate and his written warranty. I believe I met a very good person and not just because I got a great deal. If he had come with a bid of more money, I still think I would have hired him. Now if I could only meet someone like that to do my kitchen and bathroom. Of course, only time will tell if this was a good decision.
Unless your just talking labor?
Im sorry mamm but Im with desil pig. the roof you have described cant be done for that price! no way not if he is a leagal roofing contractor! something is realy fishy here
This guy is the actual roofer, not a contractor, if that makes any difference.
So roofers can only be roofers, not "contractors." I know some roofing contractors that might take offense.
I failed to take offense at any of your comments so far, and I think I understand this one too.
The reason i stopped in here again is that in all this exchange, I haven't seen where you said how big your roof is. Maybe I missed it, but you mention prices ranging fom 7500 to ten grand with a lot of the lineal dimensions but not total squares. I am trying to peg a price per square for installed materials and labor for comparison. The others here range from 200 to 400 or so.
So your size is?????????.
Excellence is its own reward!
Actually, I did not get a price per square from any of the companies. I wonder if that is because that is the accepted bidding basis and they don't want you to cost compare? I really have no idea. The roofer will be here tomorrow (raining cats and dogs toaday) and I will ask him.
I just thought that you left something out when you provided that detailed list of all that was inclyuded in the ten grand job. I thought it was strange that they would detail x number of linear feet of this and that but not the number of shingles.
Don't ask the guy his price per square yet. He might think you are setting him up or something. Just wait 'till he's done and you have apid and ask "Out of curiousity, how many squares did my roof take?" or say that an acquaintance in another part of the country was wanting to know....
Excellence is its own reward!
One more thing, thanks for not taking offense at what I have written. I absolutely do not mean to offend any profession or person. I only try to understand how the process works, what the norm is and to research what is quoted to me so that I understand what and how something is being done.
you get what you pay for
I agree, Teconail. and have never had a job done because it was the cheapest price. I had previously received a bid for $7800.00 and was doing a comparison when the second guy came in at over $10,000.00. I thought this was too big of a spread and was going to call for a third bid from someone else. My neighbor was having his roof done at the time and I got a chance to have a few beers with the neighbor and roofer when he was done. We discussed options such as ridge vents, exhaust fans, 30 year or 50 year roofs. He was really informative and helpful in helping me choose between them. I told him to give me a price if he was interested. He happened to be the lowest and, most of all, great to deal with. Of course, time will tell, after the first big rainstorm. :)
With demo, dumping, ply, felt and shingles about $200 a square.
Regards,
Boris
"Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
are you from maine also? but i was raised in worcester and my father was born a roofer and passed on to me. the going rate in mass. is 300.00$/square.(shingle over) let me know if it gets any worse
roofer from maine
I'm 20 minutes outside of Boston and have a choice of two fully insured, tax paying roofing outfits to choose from that will do up and over re-roofs (w/ tear off and clean-up, my dumpster) for $205/sq all day long.
Why would your roofers charge much more than new construction for a non-tear off re-roof? Or do you pay $300sq for new construction too? Can't imagine paying much more than $70 a sq just outside of Boston for the roof you describe. Cut-up roofs and accessibility figure in as well of course.
Maybe I missed something, are you including materials?
In my area, UP in MI. If a roofer was charging 250/sq. Tear off and recover, his phone would never stop ringing. Personally, I try to only roof what I build, but have done lots of those in the past. Sounds like about 325/ sq based on your info, could be more. Oh, yeah it's snowing now, $375 :)
Hey, Piff. 9/12 isn't steep ! Don't you live in the land of 12/12 cape
Brudoggie
if it ain't a walk-on, it is steep.
12/12 is actually easier than 9/12.
Excellence is its own reward!
Gotta agree with you there...at least the work is in front of your face and chest, not that awkward "a foot in front of your knees" angle that 7/12-9/12 or even 10/12 roofs throw at you! Oh my aching back!
when is the last time you walked a 12 12
I couldn't figure what you are taking about until I read my last post.
I meant that shingling a 12/12 is easier than a 9/12, not walking it. Sorry.
Excellence is its own reward!