Former roofer’s platform connects homeowners directly with subcontractors

You’ve heard of bringing your own beer. But what about being your own roofer? 

What’s happening: A former Texas roofing contractor has started a website to connect homeowners directly with qualified subcontractors. It’s sparked responses from the wider roofing community. 

The backstory: TJ Ware has had just about every job in the business: He’s owned a company, runs a public adjuster firm, and even started Name That Shingle, which analyzes roofing materials for contractors.

• At the height of his roofing company, Ware employed 24 sales reps and was dealing with insurance companies every day. 
• “It was a f**king nightmare. We were supplementing everything. The job cycles would take months back and forth… eventually, you don’t make any damn money because you’ve got all of this overhead… trying to squeeze every penny out of the insurance company,” Ware told Homepros in an interview.

Zoom in: Be Your Own Roofer (BYOR) removes lots of overhead from the equation. Homeowners serve as the general contractor, “where permitted by state and local law,” according to its website. Homeowners upload photos and estimates to receive quotes from subcontractors — local roofing companies who complete the work — in seconds. Ware said it’s meant to reduce long insurance timelines and hefty commissions.

• The website is meant for “cash-only” jobs, according to Ware. Stripe, the payment processor, holds the money after a homeowner pays, and the contractor receives it only after both parties agree that the work has been completed.
• The platform just launched, and Ware said he has 12 contractors on board in his home base of Fort Worth, Texas.

Between the lines: While the site advertises “insured subcontractors,” Ware said that homeowners are not really partnering with subcontractor crews or stand-alone installers.

• “These guys are imagining Jose in a truck building roofs here for $250 a square, and that’s not at all what the platform is intended to do,” Ware said. He calls BYOR a “turnkey service,” where the contractor buys the materials and supervises the job, just without the salespeople.
• He compared it to contractors who partner with an insurance company through managed repair programs (MRP). “They actually have steady work, and [are] able to provide more stability instead of having a company that grows 500 times in size every time there’s a storm.”

Yes, but: BYOR hopes to expand to 42 states, according to its website, but provides a caveat: “Homeowners who manage their own projects are responsible for confirming all licensing, registration, permit, inspection, insurance, contract, lien, and code requirements with the state and local authorities having jurisdiction.” 

• In Texas, where the company was founded, the process is relatively simple. The state does not require a roofing license, and the homeowner can act as a general contractor whether they’re getting a roof replacement or a new deck. 
• However, in many other places, the law isn’t that simple. Ware is operating in a grey area that states like Nevada don’t allow. There, the general contractor is responsible for directly supervising the work, which not all homeowners can do. 

What they’re saying: “Why give homeowners installer pricing?” asked James Austin, who owns Georgia-based Exquisite Roofing, in a Facebook comment. 

• “This is setting them up for all kinds of accountability issues. Unless I’m mistaken, this is the same as a homeowner wanting to see material costs breakdown as well as line item estimates. Seems like this would be great for homeowners but terrible for roofing companies,” he said.
• “Homeowners don’t understand why I need a 40-50 percent margin. All [they] see is that number,” he added.

What we’re watching: BYOR is targeting a specific type of customer: One who can’t pay their deductible and would potentially choose a leaky roof over a huge hit to their bank account. But Ware doesn’t mind being a bit “disruptive” when it comes to his marketing.

• It’s working: His announcement post on Facebook garnered over 100 comments from fellow contractors.
• “We’re getting attacked, and I’m loving it,” Ware said, adding that someone has been vandalizing his signs around Dallas. “I’m absolutely loving it because I realize how threatened they are. Controversy is usually the only damn thing that catches on on social media these days.”