What a roof replacement costs in north Jersey
Two quotes on the same north Jersey house can differ by thousands without either being dishonest. They are covering different work, and on this region’s housing the difference is usually in three places nobody can see from the driveway: how many layers are up there, what the deck is like underneath, and what happens where the roof meets a wall.
The lines that move the number here
The layer count first, because it is the biggest single swing. This state tolerated a second covering laid over the first for a long time, and a great many houses took it — so a bid priced on one layer that meets two carries roughly double the labour and double the disposal on the day. The quote should state what it assumes and what a third layer would cost.
Then the deck. On pre-war housing the sheathing is often planks with gaps between them rather than continuous panels, and a modern covering needs a continuous nailable surface — which can mean sheeting over the whole roof before anything else goes down. On post-war housing the panels are usually fine, but soft spots around old leaks are priced per sheet, and the count is unknown until the tear-off. Finally the ventilation, which on the Capes and split-levels that fill this region is not a line item but the main event.
Two things specific to this market
Flashing counts. Split-levels, dormered Capes and the porch roofs of older boroughs all produce roof-to-wall junctions, and each one needs step flashing replaced and layered into the courses rather than a strip sealed over the top. A quote that treats flashing as incidental on a house with three wall junctions has not priced the part most likely to leak.
And the calendar. The working season runs roughly April to November; asphalt shingles need warmth to seal themselves, so a covering laid late may not bond until spring. Schedules fill from late summer as owners try to get ahead of the freeze-thaw months, which means quotes gathered in spring buy both a better slot and more attention than quotes requested in October.
Make every bidder answer these
- How many layers does the quote assume, and what if there is another?
- This is the largest unknown on a north Jersey roof and the easiest to settle in advance. A stated assumption plus a stated price for the extra layer turns a potential mid-job surprise into a number you already agreed to.
- How is decking priced, and how many sheets are assumed?
- Nobody knows the deck until the old roof is off. A price per sheet with an assumed count bounds the risk; silence on decking means the number can move on the day with nothing to compare it against.
- On plank sheathing, is new nailable sheeting included?
- Older houses here often have gapped plank decking that modern coverings cannot be fastened to properly. Sheeting over it is real material and real labour, and it belongs in the quote rather than in a conversation on the second morning.
- Is step flashing being replaced at every wall junction, or reused?
- Reusing flashing and sealing over it is faster and cheaper on the day, and it is the most common reason a two-year-old roof stains a ceiling. On split-levels and dormered houses there may be several junctions, and each one matters.
- What is the ventilation plan, given the attic this house actually has?
- A finished Cape or a split-level has no ordinary attic to ventilate — it has knee-wall pockets and insulated rafter bays. Ask how intake and exhaust will be achieved in that geometry; "we reinstall the existing vents" is not an answer for these houses.
- Who is registered, and can I see it?
- Home improvement contractors working in New Jersey are required to register with the state and to carry liability insurance. Asking for the registration number and the certificate is routine, and any established contractor produces both without hesitation.
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