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That Time We “Hopped A Fence” To Do The Right Thing

April 19, 2023
Case Study

That Time We “Hopped A Fence” To Do
The Right Thing, Even Though…

We Came Face-To-Face With
A Disgruntled Neighbor

Okay… we didn’t actually hop a fence (even though we wanted to) because that would have angered any neighbor. But we did politely knock in an attempt to enter their property to clean up some roofing debris that came from our roof replacement.

We know what you might be thinking – it’s bad to have had debris fall into the neighbor’s property in the first place. Well—yes and no.

Yes – if you hire a contractor with no core values, standards, or attention to detail.

No – if you work with a roofer who’s guided by strong core values, has an excellent reputation, and has especially amazing project managers assigned to ALL of their roof replacements.

Because the former is a one-way ticket to “make your neighbor(s) angry” land. Whereas with Houston Roofing & Construction, it’s easy, routine work for our PMs to check in on neighboring properties after every roof replacement.

Why?

Because we know that 110% satisfaction wouldn’t be possible if your neighbors are upset with you. So we properly train for, plan for, and deal with any potential issues like this for you.

And despite our difficulties with this particular Houston roof replacement, we still made an effort despite being turned down by the neighbor.

A Roof Replacement Set To
Difficulty Level “Extreme”

There’s no way around it – roof replacements are a disruptive process. Brute effort can get messy – especially when you’re talking about a couple of thousand pounds of raw roofing material.

But we’re not into making excuses. No matter how many obstacles we face.

Obstacles like:

  • A three-story townhome – There was plenty of altitude for debris to travel far and wide before making landfall on the ground.
  • A zero-lot property line – There was very little, if any, space between the townhome property we were redecking and replacing and the neighbor’s property.
  • An entire redeck – We were replacing the entire roofing system, meaning we had to pull off a lot of material and have temporary tarps in place when not working.
  • A steep pitch – This will make any roof replacement more difficult, as it’s harder to maneuver safely while performing all tasks.

Despite these difficulties, we still managed to pull off the roof replacement to near perfection… with one minor hitch. And it didn’t involve the customer… per se.


A Tough Effort For A Tough Neighbor

Let’s face it – very few roofing projects exist in isolation from other homes.

So our project managers make it their duty to ensure that your home and the neighboring properties are well taken care of before, during, and after your roof replacement.

While we take every precaution in the “Clean Roofing” book, small debris falling into a neighbor’s property can’t always be avoided. A tough truth not many other roofers will admit, especially with such a tough job as this one was.

And if we leave you happy but your neighborhood annoyed… that will land on you in the end. A fact many (even good) roofers can overlook.

But we don’t mind talking about this fact because our PM’s always trying their best to do something about it.

In this instance, our PM’s friendly knock produced a disgruntled neighbor who refused to let us on his property. Even so, we still insisted on cleaning the debris – for our customer’s sake.

In the end, the neighbor won because we decided it would be best to let him handle it, given his disposition. But the point is – we were transparent in letting him know and didn’t cower from the face-to-face contact needed to make things right.

If you have a challenging roof replacement job in Houston and want it done with professional oversight from start to finish, contact Houston Roofing & Construction for a free roof inspection and estimate today.

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