Roofing Emergency - am I getting ripped off?

Question

Hi all, unsure of what to do here. Any advice is appreciated.

I own a building in Revere, MA that just got hit hard by extreme winds. The roof for the building is 2 layers: tar + gravel and rubber. Large sections of the rubber were peeling off last night due to winds catching under it and blowing it off. There were 60MPH winds in the area.

I had to hire an emergency contractor to stabilize the rest of the roof so it didnt blow off and hit another building / another person. My neighbor's rubber roof came straight off and blew into their yard. The contractor cost an arm and a leg, but I wasn't sure I had any options - who else could provide emergency services on a Monday night?

The contractor is offering me 2 options: get a new (15 square) roof for about $8k, or do a "roof tune up" for $3500. They say that my roof is salvageable and they would bring in some new materials and heavily reinforce the roof (secure each layer with 4 inch screws). It's backed by a 5 year guarantee and takes a day.

It's supposed to snow on Wedesday / Thursday in the area. I know nothing about roofs.... so it's unclear to me if the tar / gravel layer would do anything to stop water damage from the melting snow. Any input would be greatly appreciated as I need to make a decision fast. I doubt my insurance will cover the cost of a new roof. Haven't really dealt with anything of this scale before.

Am I panicking? A little bit haha.

Thomas S. · Answer

You first need to contact your insurance company. Panic decisions usually turn out to be more expensive. You will need estimates from several companies so my guess would be that it will be past Wensday before you get anything done. Snow is not a problem, the problem is melting so as long as it remains cold it is not a issue.

Account Closed · Answer

@Ryan Schumacher As a property claims adjuster I highly suggest getting as many photos and documentation of the damaged areas as possible before the contractor does any kind of permanent repairs. I could not tell you how often we show up for a claim and the contractor has repaired everything with no photographs or documentation... how do we write for damages when no one has proof of it being damaged?

This specific event should be covered by your insurance company, minus your deductible, as long as you have wind insurance.

Make sure the adjuster pays for both layers being removed, your roof metals, roof ventilation, etc.. Don’t let your contractor just start doing expensive repairs and/mitigation without documenting everything so you can provide that to your adjuster. If it was not damage directly caused by this wind storm (long term water damage to decking, fascia, etc..) it is not covered by insurance so don’t let the contractors talk you into thinking all of it is. I see this a lot as well.

Evan Hutchins · Answer

@Ryan Schumacher I am not super familiar with the area you are in but Im in Mid Coast Maine,  Im a Masonry and Roofing contractor,  as well as rental investor.  Those numbers dont seem outrageous,  just alot of money to front when you were not expecting to.  Is it more than if it were June and it was a planned job? Probably yes but it costs more to operate during the winter months.

As far a which option,  not sure which is better, depends on condition of the roof.  Again it sucks to get hit with the expense but it doesnt seem like an unreasonable quote.

Evan Hutchins · Answer

@Ryan Schumacher This winter the new england weather has been a total headache! Too much rain,  freeze, thaw freeze thaw.  I would rather have all snow until spring!

Account Closed · Answer

@Dutch Langley thank you. Their price for the new roof was fair, it's just now I don't know if I should go for the tune-up or the new roof. I am thinking the former and can hope to get 5-10 years out of it. The new roof expense is something I can handle for now but it definitely wouldn't be fun. Worth noting that the new roof would have to be done after the snowfall, so there could be damage from that to the top unit. Building is very old and just in average condition.

Account Closed · Answer

@Thomas S. thank you for the feedback, I have reached out to claims department already and am awaiting their appraiser (I think?) to call me back. New England weather is crazy, so I cannot count on it to stay cold. Recently we had several days in the 50s, for example.

@Evan Hutchins thank you so much for your insight! When I got an inspection done, the guy said the roof probably had 5-10 years left in it. We don't know when it was last redone.

Matthew Paul · Answer

Your insurance just may cover a new roof .

As far as being "ripped off "   When a storm hits prices go up . Emergency work always cost more . Contractors cant snap their fingers and make crews appear out of thin air .   We had the same wind here in Maryland . Lots of tree damage . Tree guys cant keep up

Dan Moore · Answer

Just my two cents of dealing with flat roofs on buildings for years. Get up there and look at the job with your contractor. Just like you would with a contractor walking through a property to do carpet, paint, kitchen, whatever. You wouldn't believe the people who won't go on a roof before, during, and after a job. Maybe they are afraid of heights, maybe they don't like being on top of the building, I don't know.

Roofing isn't rocket surgery, although there is some art to it. By walking the job, you wouldn't believe the things you'll note that they either are not fixing correctly (cutting corners) or that you'd have them do differently now that you are looking at it. I have two former roofers that work for me full time. They tell stories of the shortcuts or outright fraud they've seen happen when the customer doesn't inspect.

Also, walking the roof lets you see all the things you don't think about maintaining because you never go up there.

This is assuming of course that you are in town with the property. Even if you give the contractor the go ahead because of the time frame, get up there with them. If you don't know anything about roofing, then consider this your "stupid tax" and learn while you are spending the money. When else are you going to see all the layers of a flat roof, open for inspection, and have an expert attentively standing at your side ready to answer questions?

Devin Marshall · Answer

@Ryan Schumacher in Mass that is a find quote for 15 sq that works out to be around $533 a sq.  Does the company have a website?

Yes the gravel/ options is the way to go. It's either that or new rubber roof which will cost $800 +/- a sq so the rate is fine.

You can put in for a insurance claim that will help take care of some of the hit of cost to repair/ replace the roof.

They will first ask you to repair or stop the leak then they will come and inspect the roof and then give you a quote/ budget of how much they will cover for your new roof installation.

Do you know how much your deductible is?

David Miller · Answer

@Ryan Schumacher call insurance, get plastic put on the roof and get bids. Roofing should be $300-400 per sq. So 15 x400= 6000  they are asking $533.00 seems high to me.

Roofing Emergency - am I getting ripped off?

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