Log Each Dollar That Moves From Estimate to Final Bill

Most St. Louis roof jobs do not end at the number on the first estimate. The number moves for reasons that are often fair: the crew finds soft decking once the old shingles come off, a supplier changes the bundle count, or the homeowner picks a different ridge cap after seeing samples. The trouble is rarely that the price moved. The trouble is that nobody wrote down when it moved, why, or by how much, so the final bill looks like a surprise. A simple running record fixes that. It takes about ten minutes to set up and a few minutes each time a new document arrives.

Start with the first written estimate

The first written estimate is your baseline, so save it as a file with the date in its name. Record the total, every line item, the square count if one is listed, the shingle product and color, the tear-off method, and any expiration date. If the number reached you only in an email body or a text message, ask for the proposal document itself before you go further. You can call Keys Roofing at (314) 220-2333 and ask for the written proposal to be sent to you. A figure without its line items cannot be checked later, which is the whole point of keeping a record.

The documents that belong in the record

Most roof jobs produce the same handful of documents. Keep all of them in one folder, in date order:

• The first written estimate, and any revised estimate issued after the roof was measured
• The material order confirmation, showing the product, the bundle count and the delivery date
• The deposit receipt and the date it was paid
• Each change order, signed or confirmed in writing
• Any permit fee receipt, if the permit was paid by you or added to the contract
• Dated notes from the crew lead or the office about anything that changed on the roof
• The final invoice

A text message that says the decking will cost a bit more is not a change order. Ask for the change as a written document that carries the same line structure as the original estimate. That way the change sits next to the line it modifies, and you can read both at once.

What to write for each change

Each time the total moves, add one row to your record with six fields. Keep the wording plain, because you will read it months later when the details have faded:

• The date the change was proposed, and the date you approved it
• The document that carries the change, by name and date
• What changed on the roof, in one sentence, such as "six sheets of decking replaced at the low corner over the garage"
• The line on the original estimate that the change touches, or a note that it is a new line
• The dollar change, positive or negative
• The running total after the change

The running total is the number that matters. Start it at the original estimate, add each approved change, and check that the result equals the total on the latest document. If the two numbers differ, one of the documents is wrong, and you have found it before the final payment rather than after.

Check each change against the unit it uses

Roof prices are built from units, and a change order should name the unit it uses. Decking is usually priced per sheet or per square foot of replaced deck. Dumpster overage is usually priced per load. Ice and water shield is usually priced per roll or per square. A change order that says "additional decking, 6 sheets at the quoted rate" is checkable, because you can look up the rate on the original estimate and multiply. A change order that says "additional decking, 1,800 dollars" is not checkable, because it hides the sheet count and the rate. Ask for the sheet count and the rate in the same message, and compare the rate to the one in your first estimate.

St. Louis winters make this more than a formality. Freeze and thaw cycles can soften the edges of decking near valleys and at the eave, and a tear-off done in January or February can expose wet sheathing that was not visible from the ladder. Hail season and the start of summer heat change the material picture too, because a supplier may substitute a product or a color when the first choice is delayed. Each of those events should show up in your record as a dated entry with a unit and a rate, not as a single round figure added to the bottom of an invoice.

A worked example of the running total

Suppose the first written estimate reads 14,200 dollars. Two weeks later the revised estimate after measurement comes in at 14,650 dollars, because the roof has two more squares than the first measurement assumed. Your record shows the original total, the change, the date of approval and the new running total of 14,650 dollars. Then the tear-off uncovers four damaged sheets at a valley. A change order adds 620 dollars at the rate in the original estimate. The running total becomes 15,270 dollars. If the final invoice says 15,270 dollars, the record and the bill agree, and you can see exactly which two events produced the difference. If the final invoice says 15,900 dollars, you know the gap of 630 dollars came from an unlogged item, and you can ask about it with the documents in hand.

The numbers here are an example to show the method, not a quote for any particular roof. What matters is that each movement has a date, a document, a unit and a total that can be added up.

Questions to put in writing when the number moves

When a new figure appears, send one written reply that asks for the answers below. A written reply gives you a date and a record, and a verbal answer gives you neither:

1. Which line on the original estimate does this change replace or add to?
2. What is the unit, and how many units are involved?
3. What is the rate per unit, and where did that rate come from?
4. Does the new total include or exclude sales tax?
5. Does the change move the completion date, and if so, by how many working days?
6. Will you send a revised full proposal, so the new total sits in one document?

Keep the replies in the same folder as the rest of the record. If the roofer answers only part of the list, note which parts are still open, and do not approve the change until they are answered.

What the record does and does not do

The record does not replace the signed contract. The contract sets the terms, and the record shows how the work and the price moved within those terms. A well-kept record makes it easy to see whether a change order was approved before the work was done, whether a unit rate matched the original, and whether the final invoice matches the running total. It also makes a later conversation shorter, because you can point to a date and a line instead of trying to remember what was said on the roof.

Start the record on the day you receive the first written estimate, even if you have not decided to hire anyone yet. A single estimate has no history, and a folder of dated documents does. Whichever roofer you choose, the same habit will tell you within a few minutes whether a new number is a fair change or an unexplained addition.