On Friday, April 20, 2012 11:53:27 AM UTC-7, DerbyDad03 wrote:
In my on-going search for a roofing contractor, I ran into a neighbor
(who I know to be pretty anal about her house) and she told me whom
she had choosen. "He's not the cheapest, but he's not the most
expensive." The price she told me seemed about right based on what she
said she needed. (She's got leaks, rotten wood, etc.)

Now, the three contractors that I already got estimates from said that
I'm looking at 2 - 4 weeks for them to get started.

So I called this other guy today to set up an estimate and he asked me
when I was looking to have the job done. I asked him what his schedule
looked like and he said that he was trying to fill a few days *next
week*.

Now, I know that there can be cancellations etc. but when someone is
that readily available, alarms go off. My gut tells me that I want my
contractor to be reasonably busy.

Obviously, I'll put more weight towards what he says when he talks to
me about what I need and how he'll do it, but the fact that he's ready
to start climbing ladders next week has me a little concerned.

Should I be?

It may be that he doesn’t like to take on too many or too big jobs because he can’t find workers that he trusts. That’s what I have had to do.