Roofing Contractor Software in Iowa

Iowa registers roofers rather than licensing them. Any contractor doing construction work in the state, and the law names roofing and siding specifically, has to register with the Division of Labor once the business earns $2,000 a year. There is no exam and the fee is $50. The rule with teeth is for companies based somewhere else. An out-of-state contractor has to post a $25,000 bond to register, having an office in Iowa does not get around it, and an out-of-state sub is not covered by the general contractor's bond. After a big storm that is the difference between the local companies and the trucks that show up from three states away.

Iowa's storm law is one of the strictest in the country. A contract to repair hail, wind, tornado, or flood damage is void, and the homeowner owes nothing, if the contractor offers to rebate any part of the insurance deductible or offers to negotiate with the insurance company on the homeowner's behalf. That second part catches roofers who are used to handling the claim for the customer. The homeowner can also cancel within five business days of getting written notice from the insurer that the claim is not covered or will not pay enough, and the contractor has to give written notice of those rights before the contract is signed.

The storms are real. The August 2020 derecho crossed the state with winds over 100 miles an hour and put tens of thousands of roofs in Cedar Rapids and the surrounding counties on the phone at once, and hail comes through the Des Moines metro most summers. The northern half of the state adds snow load and ice dams. The season runs from April to November.

The growth is west and north of Des Moines. Ankeny, Waukee, and West Des Moines are some of the fastest-growing suburbs in the Midwest, and the first waves of houses there have builder-grade shingles aging out. Cedar Rapids, the Quad Cities, and Sioux City are older stock with layers to tear off.