When customers speak with roofers about their projects, one of the harder issues for them to understand is how the price works. Prices for jobs can land in a range of single-digit thousands of dollars to more than $50,000. Truthfully, putting a roof on a large house with a complex architecture has the potential to go way higher.
You have the right to know why a roofing contractor chooses to price a project in a particular way. Take a look at what factors influence the cost of roofing work the most.
Materials Choices
At the low end of the spectrum, installation work for cheaper asphalt shingles rings up at about $7,000 for an average house. On the high end, though, you'll find clay tile roofs that cost more than $50,000.
It's worth noting that price-to-performance matters a lot here. For example, shingles with a 50-year warranty may be nearly 50% more expensive than the cheapest options. Likewise, stone and clay products tend to be more expensive because they're harder to work with and provide more durability. Metal products usually represent the middle of the market.
The Nature of the Job
Installing a roof on a new house is quite a bit different from a job than handling extensive repairs. New roofing materials placed on fresh decking and felt go down easily, and a good crew can usually knock out such a project in a couple of days as long as the weather is good.
Conversely, repair work can require removing roofing materials, felt, and decking. In the worst cases, joists, trusses, and beams may have to be replaced. That all requires labor and equipment, and that makes those jobs more expensive.
Architectural Complexity
Some roofs are boring, and others are complex. Boring roofs are typically cheaper to work on.
Consider what happens with a sloped, shingled roof that includes dormers. The roofers have to cut down shingles to create straight lines that follow the edges of each of the dormers. Cutting materials leads to waste, and that incurs additional costs that are passed on to the customer. Other features that make roofing work more expensive include eaves, valleys, and peaks, particularly if there are several of them.
Slope
For a roofing contractor, the scariest thing about the job is the slope of the roof. To stay safe on aggressively sloped structures, roofers need additional equipment to provide platforms where they can work. That equals money.
For more information, contact a local roofer today.