Roofing is the paperwork trade. The estimate isn’t just a price — it’s the document a homeowner compares against two competitors, an insurance adjuster measures against a Xactimate scope, and a supplier turns into an order. Write it once, correctly, and all three of those conversations get easier.
Measure like you’ll be audited
Everything downstream depends on the square count. State it explicitly — “22 squares, 6/12 pitch, single story” — and then state your waste factor separately. A straightforward gable roof might carry 10% waste; cut-up hips and valleys can justify 15% or more. Adjusters argue waste constantly; an estimate that shows its math (“22 SQ measured + 12% waste = 24.6 SQ ordered”) is an estimate that wins those arguments.
Itemize the layers, not just the shingles
A tear-off and re-roof is eight or nine distinct scopes. List them:
- Tear-off and disposal (dumpster included — say so)
- Underlayment, ice & water shield at eaves/valleys where code requires
- Drip edge, starter strip, field shingles by name and line (“architectural, 30-yr”)
- Ridge cap and ridge vent
- Pipe boots, step and counter flashing
- Decking allowance — see below
- Cleanup: magnetic sweep for nails, gutters cleared
Each line is a small proof that you saw the whole roof. The one-line “$14,500 — roof replacement” competitor can’t explain his number; yours explains itself.
The decking allowance: the most important paragraph on the page
You cannot see rot until tear-off. Handle it in writing, before it becomes a driveway argument: “Price includes replacement of up to 2 sheets of decking. Additional decking replaced at $X per sheet, documented with photos before install.” That sentence protects your margin, and the photo clause protects your credibility.
Photos are half the estimate
For retail jobs, photos justify the price to a homeowner who will never climb the roof. For storm work, they justify the claim to an adjuster who wasn’t there. Shoot the same set every time: overview from each slope, close-ups of hail bruising or wind creases with something for scale, flashing condition, and every penetration. A captioned photo report attached to the estimate reads like evidence, because it is — tools built for roofing can assemble one from your phone shots in a couple of minutes.
Write scope language the adjuster already speaks
When insurance is involved, mirror the structure adjusters use: quantities by squares and linear feet, named components, code items called out as code items (“drip edge required per local code”). When the first scope comes in short — it often does — your supplement letter is easier to write because your estimate already reads like one. Document what the adjuster missed, cite the photo, state the quantity, and ask for the line. Polite, specific, and in writing beats loud every time.
Close the sale in the same document
- Deposit terms: what schedules the job, what’s due at completion.
- Timeline: “1–2 days on site, weather permitting.”
- Workmanship warranty stated separately from the manufacturer’s.
- A signature line — storm season is a race, and the signed estimate is the finish line.
The roofer who sends this document from the driveway — measured, itemized, photographed, signable — doesn’t just look more professional than the napkin-number guy. On insurance work, that piece of paper routinely recovers thousands of dollars the first scope left out. In this trade, the paperwork is the profit.