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I can add one to this list.

"Hello, can you tell me about how much you would charge to clean a tile roof? It is 2400 sq ft. How do you go about cleaning it?"

If I say "Just give me the address and I will take a look at it and give you a firm price quote"

If they reply "I really just want a ballpark price for now"

Then I say "Are you planning to do it yourself? Or are you new in business, looking for help at pricing a job"

I have been amazed that when put on the spot, they admit to one or the other.

Usually, a guy wanting to know how much to charge, who is new in business.

Just nailed one a few days ago.

I told him "I don't price jobs for competitors. You will have to learn on your own to compete with me.

Then he was real nice and apologetic and I spilled the beans on how to "Pressure Wash" a tile roof.

Nobody is told how to soft-wash them by me.

After about 6 hours pressure washing that roof, he will probably go back to work at Burger King!

Of course, the "I'm getting 4 or 5 bids" come in too.

If they are nearby, I price them out.

If far away, I use Google Earth and Zillow to get the sq ft including garage and over price it, just in case and forget them.

If they are getting 4-5 bids, they want C~H~E~A~P

and I ain't. Expert workmanship and cheap, don't go together and I shoot for perfection on each job-not for cheap.

Roof Cleaning New Jersey wrote:

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Im not so sharp yet when people pick my brain for reasons of doing it themself or starting a business. I usually figure it out about an hour later and I feel violated. And Im getting close to calling someone out when they pull the wife card. Just wish they had the ballz to just say they wanna think about it. I can respect someone for thinking a minute about a $500-$1000 decision

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If they won't give you an address, that's often why.

They either want to know how much they can save by doing it themselves-but want to know how.

Or, they want to know how much you would charge, so they can charge less, when new in business.

My problem with new competition, is not competition itself. It's that they always start out cheap, to get some jobs under their belt and to try to survive the first year or more.

Those cut rate prices spoil the thinking of neighborhoods as to how much they should actually be paying.

Then when I bid jobs nearby, I get the "$450.00 !!! My neighbor down the street had his done for $275.00"

I say "Why don't you hire that person?"

They say "He went out of business"

I say, I have been in business here since 1989.

By pricing roofs properly, I have not gone out of business and I plan to keep it that way"

"You have my price. Call me if you want your roof cleaned professionally, by a licensed, insured, Certified Roof Cleaner, who will not be out of business next year"

I also hand them my photo album, as I walk around their house to look the work over and give them a quote on a proposal, that has my website and some quotes from roofing manufacturers, saying "DO NOT PRESSURE WASH ROOFING"