About Us
The model for the Cert-A-Roof® concept began taking shape over 25 years ago while our founder, Les Watrous, was running his own independent contracting business. As an entrepreneur and third-generation builder, Watrous had extensive experience in all aspects of contracting, including sales, marketing, home inspections and insurance restoration work. He also had an entrepreneurial drive to innovate, combined with a deeply rooted moral imperative to do things right. He envisioned a niche that would set his business apart while improving the roofing experience for the customer. Les didn’t have to look very far for the roofing industry at that time lacked uniform standards and policies. In fact, it was in disarray, with no unity, and no track record for following “best practices” on either the customer or operations side.
His intimate understanding of the inner workings of insurance companies as they relate to insurance claims and the importance of risk management provided Les his unique niche. He was now well positioned to implement an exciting new service of roof certifications, the “key” for gaining entry into a rich referral base, to meet the needs of roofing professionals, property owners and everyone else involved in real estate transactions. Combining the tried and true with the new and innovative, he created a Patent-pending process of inspecting and certifying roofs and a trademarked proprietary roof certification program designed to bring peace of mind to property owners and the real estate community as well as profitability to contractors. This converged with his desire to raise the bar for the roofing industry, improve overall standards and to “do things right.” The turnkey, national roofing franchise network of Cert-A-Roof® was born. The Opportunity
The reason is simple. A sound roof free of leaks protects a building from structural and interior water damage. A roof in poor condition doesn’t. Indeed, few features are as important to the overall integrity of a structure as a leak-free roof.
Each year, Americans invest roughly $11.8 billion for services to inspect, certify, repair or replace a roof. At any given moment, over 70 million buildings across the country are susceptible to damage to ceilings, walls, beams, draperies and furniture because the roof has flaws, is wearing out, has suffered damaged or has leaks requiring immediate attention.
Since few property owners or real estate agents have the knowledge to accurately evaluate a roof’s condition, most choose to rely on certification by third party property inspectors. Because of the liability exposure, however, few third party property inspectors, feel competent enough to risk assuming the responsibility for the roof. Most sidestep this critical component by insisting that a qualified roofing specialist be called in for a comprehensive inspection of the roof.
No member of the real estate community escapes the need for some type of roofing service for the smooth execution of a property transaction to keep the American “dream” from becoming a nightmarish experience. Highlights of the Cert-A-Roof Franchise
• A growing national service business franchise with virtually no competition
• Constant demand for products and services, compounding growth with certification renewals
• Easily expandable to multiple territories - quickly build your own mini-empire
• A simple, quality-of-life type business that is easy to run and operate
• No experience necessary - we teach you what you need to know, the business of roofing
• Intranet-based operations network (OpNet) web-based business management system offering training, lead management, job tracking, closing rations, cash flow monitoring, automatic billing and customer care
• Nationally promoted website, toll-free 888 number and call center that route customers to your franchised area
• Marketing and business materials, ready-to-use, printed directly from your laptop
• Comprehensive personal and on-line training for business development, marketing, a
nd operations, with on-going support
• Cert-A-Roof support provides minimized overhead and physical space requirements allowing franchisees to work out of their home
Training and Support
We offer a weeklong intensive training course covering. All of our training modules are also accessible on line at our OpNet. Also we offer on-going training on a regular basis.
Introduction to the Cert-A-Roof System (Getting Started in Business)
The Cert-A-Roof Web Site and use of the OpNet (Hands on experience)
Review of Roofing Basics (this is a good primer for non-roofing people)
Marketing & Sales Training and a 13-Week Plan of Action
Performing Inspections & Certifications (includes half day in the field)
General Business Operations & Accounting (QuickBooks On-Line)
Legal Requirements (contracts and regulations)
Financial
Cash Investment: $20,000 (We will finance up to 50% of the initial franchise fee, based OAC)
Total Investment: $51,000 to $89,000
Minimum Net Worth: $150,000 or more
FINANCE AVAILABLE
We often include opportunities that are above your selected amount of capital as up to 70% borrowings are usually available from banks for those considering investing in a franchise opportunity.
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