How to Choose a Roofing Company in Saskatoon

A real Saskatoon roofer has a local address, a history in the city, and jobs nearby they can point to. Ask how long they have worked in the area and whether they can show you a roof they finished on a street you know.

A big star number on its own does not tell you much. What tells you a lot is a steady stream of recent, local reviews that describe real situations: how the crew handled a storm claim, whether they showed up when they said they would, and what the cleanup was like at the end.

Look for reviews from people in your own area, in Saskatoon or out in Warman or Martensville, with the same kind of job you need. One detailed review from a neighbour who had hail damage repaired is worth more than a page of one-line ratings.

Roofing has two separate warranties, and you want both. The manufacturer warranty covers the shingles themselves, from a maker like GAF.

The workmanship warranty comes from the roofer and covers the installation, and it is the one that protects you, because a great shingle installed badly still leaks.

Ask how long each one lasts and who honours it. We back our installs with a ten-year workmanship warranty and install as a GAF Certified contractor, so both sides are covered.

The crews that follow storms into town tend to share a few tells: heavy pressure to sign today, a large deposit before any work, no verifiable local address, and a vague estimate that leaves the details fuzzy. Take any of those as a reason to slow down and check Saskatchewan's door-to-door rules below.

Saskatchewan has its own rules for door-to-door sales, and home renovation work like roofing falls under them. The Financial and Consumer Affairs Authority (FCAA) sets them out on its page about buying from a door-to-door salesperson. In plain terms, that page says:

• The contract has to be in writing, and you get a copy of it.
• It must include a statement of your right to cancel.
• You have 10 days to cancel, and you do not need a reason. Send the notice in a way you can prove, such as registered mail or hand delivery.
• A door-to-door seller of home renovation work cannot require more than 15 per cent of the total contract price before that 10-day window ends, unless the work is already fully done.
• If you cancel, the seller has 15 days to give your money back.

The FCAA also flags seasonal, unlicensed door-to-door sellers who focus on home renovations. If someone at your door will not leave a written contract, or wants a big payment today, you can call the FCAA Consumer Protection Division toll free at 1-877-880-5550 and ask about them.

Whoever you end up hiring, ask how cancelling and deposits work on their contract. Get that answer on paper too.

A verbal quote is not a contract. Before work starts, get the scope, the materials and shingle colour, the timeline, how the site will be cleaned up, the payment schedule, and the warranty terms down on paper. Good roofers expect this, and for a contract signed at your door the FCAA rules above require it in writing anyway.

This is also what makes two quotes actually comparable. When everything is written down, you are comparing the same job instead of two sales pitches.

Two roofers rarely use the same words for the same things. Before you look at the bottom line, go down each quote and check that both cover the same work.

1. Tear-off. Does it take the old roof down to the deck, and how many layers of shingles are they expecting to find?
2. Decking. If soft or rotten boards turn up once the shingles are off, how are they replaced and how is that charged?
3. Shingles. A named product and colour, like GAF Timberline HDZ in a colour you picked, tells you more than a line that just says architectural shingles.
4. Underlayment and ice and water protection. Ask where each one goes. The eaves and valleys are the spots to check.
5. Flashing and vents. Are the chimney, wall and vent flashings new or reused? Is attic ventilation part of the job at all?
6. Eavestroughs. Staying put, reset, or replaced.
7. Cleanup. Who hauls the old roof away, and do they sweep the yard and driveway for nails before they leave?
8. Warranty and payment schedule. Both written out, with lengths and amounts, not just mentioned on the phone.

When one quote comes in well below the others, it is often missing something from this list. Our guide to roof replacement cost in Saskatoon goes through why one roof costs more than another.

Often you do not. The City of Saskatoon building permits page lists replacing or repairing roofing with exactly the same roofing material, above the decking, as work that does not need a permit. It goes by the most recent approved building plans, where those exist.

A different material is not covered by that line, so switching from asphalt shingles to metal is a question for the City. The same page also lists construction that increases roof top loading as work that does need a permit. The City's Building Standards office takes questions at 306-975-2645, and your contract should say who checks and who pulls a permit if one is needed. Our metal roofing page explains how we handle that switch.

Storm work adds your insurance company to the job. The adjuster decides what your policy covers, and the roofer's part is finding the damage and showing it clearly.

That is why we do storm inspections as a HAAG Certified contractor and document what we find with photos and video, so the adjuster is looking at the same damage we saw. More on how that works is on our storm and hail damage restoration page. Whoever you talk to, these questions are fair to ask:

• Will you come back out and meet the adjuster at the house if I ask you to?
• Is your estimate based on what you found on my roof?
• What happens to the price and the claim if you find more damage once the old roof is off?

Call your insurer early, ideally before you sign a full contract with anyone. Our page on roof insurance claims in Saskatoon covers how a claim runs here and what we document for your adjuster.

Take ten minutes with your phone before any work starts. If there is ever a question about damage to the house or yard, dated photos settle it quickly, and they help with an insurance claim as well.

• Each side of the house from the ground, with the roof in the frame.
• The attic. Look for stains on the underside of the roof boards and get those close up.
• Any water marks on your upstairs ceilings.
• Eavestroughs, siding and windows near the roof line.
• The driveway, deck, flower beds, and anything else under a roof edge.

The roofer should be taking pictures as well. We send photo and video updates through the job and finish with a final inspection of the roof, and it is fair to ask any roofer what record you will get from them.

The age of the house changes what you should ask. An older Saskatoon home may have more than one layer of shingles, board decking instead of sheets, or attic vents that were never updated, so ask the roofer how each of those is handled and priced if they find it.

On a newer home, dig out your new home warranty paperwork before anyone starts, then have the roofer put in writing exactly what they are changing.

Whatever the age, ask how they check attic ventilation. Poor airflow in the attic is one of the causes of ice dams in a Saskatoon winter, and a roof replacement is the easy time to sort it out.

What a roofing call looks like in Saskatoon depends a lot on the time of year.

• After a summer hail storm: phones get busy and the door-knockers arrive. This is when the door-to-door rules above are most useful, so slow down and get everything in writing.
• Spring and fall: a calmer time to get an inspection done and a replacement booked without a storm pushing you.
• Winter: most calls are leaks and emergency repairs. If someone quotes a full replacement in the cold, ask how they handle installing shingles at that time of year.

A few questions sort most roofers quickly. Are you HAAG Certified for storm and insurance work? Are you a GAF Certified contractor?

Can I see recent jobs here in the Saskatoon area? Who actually does the work, your own crew or subcontractors, and what does your workmanship warranty cover, and for how long?

You are not being difficult by asking, since you are hiring someone to protect the single biggest thing over your head, and the right roofer will be glad you did. When you are ready, our reviews and roof replacement pages are a good place to see how we work, and financing through Financeit is there if you need it.