The day I interview Patrick Stemmler, the founder of United Restoration, he’s standing up to his insurance company over his damaged truck.
“It's a mind game,” Patrick says. “The adjuster was trying to steer me to a TPA (third-party administrator). TPAs do the absolute minimum they can. I said, ’I’m not taking my truck to your TPAs. I’m taking it over here, they’re going to give me a quote and you’re going to pay for it.’”
Patrick learned how to outwit corporations after his time in the Marine Corps, working for a company similar to United Restoration. He has little patience for big corporations, who, he informs me, own most of his so-called ‘local’ roofing competitors.
“A lot of companies, the majority of the profits go somewhere else, not Michigan," says Patrick. “There’s a lot of shady stuff that goes on. I have fun outsmarting the big guys.. I believe in building a brand and letting Michigan people prosper from it."
Patrick means what he says: He's setting up United Restoration to be employee-owned.
“With so many companies, the profits go to one person," Patrick shares. "I’m not going that route. I’m a 100 percent disabled veteran, so I’m not in it for the money. I was homeless twice after my service, so I always try to get people ahead. It’s just a different way of thinking.”
Though his company specializes in roofing, Patrick loves remodels of all kinds.
"I like doing whole houses," Patrick admits. "I like the satisfaction of seeing what something turns into."
I’ve been interviewing people for over two decades. Patrick is perhaps the straightest shooter I’ve ever sat down with. Case in point: his pricing.
“West Bloomfield is a more expensive area than, say, Livonia. So remodeling companies charge more in those areas. I don’t play those games. I do fair market value pricing, using the same system most insurance companies use. So it doesn’t matter where you live or who you are: the pricing is the same. And that’s the price I charge.”
Patrick’s prices aren’t always the lowest. But that’s because he quotes a job done right.
“Often when you get a low price on a roof, it’s a layover: shingles on top of shingles," Patrick explains. "When you do that, you lose half the roof's life. I gave a quote to a woman that was way more than another quote she got. Well, the company she hired put in three power vents that aren't even hooked up. They just put three shells up there. So yeah, other people can give you a lower price—and they’ll just cut corners.”
Our house will need a roof soon, and I’m not handy, so for me, Patrick’s education is gold. Patrick shares another tip: the warranty that matters is the manufacturer’s warranty.
“I'm GAF Master Elite, so I try to do most of my houses Golden Pledge. That way it doesn't matter if I'm here or not—it’s covered by the manufacturer."
(A GAF Golden Pledge warranty covers 100% of material defects for 50 years and installation labor costs for the life of the roof. Patrick is among only 2% of roofers nationwide that are GAF Master Elite.)
"Also," Patrick adds, "even though we do a five-year workmanship warranty, if we did your roof six, seven years ago, if it's something small, I’ll just fix it.”
My environmentally-conscious wife wants our next roof to be solar. Patrick has more sage advice.
“GAF has a solar roof that goes panel, panel, and then a shingle—it’s part of the roofing system. Don’t let a solar company do it, because they’ll drill into your truss. As soon as they put a bolt through your roof, you’ve created an entry point and your warranty’s void. So if those bolts come loose, your leaky roof suddenly isn’t covered—and you’ll have to pay the solar company thousands to get the panels off and back on.
“So we’ll sell you a solar roof, but it’s an actual product that has a warranty.”
Patrick also says for anyone who’s into the aesthetics of cedar wood shake roofs, think twice.
“I’ve got a customer, they’ve got a $250,000 cedar shake roof, and he doesn’t want cedar shake anymore, because he knows every two years, he has to pay close to $40,000 just to treat it. The GAF Glenwood shingles look like shake, you can get them in a couple of different colors, and there’s no maintenance.”
My roofing education has left me wiser and savvier. I tell Patrick I appreciate his candor.
“I can tell somebody a bunch of bull just to get a sale,” Patrick responds, “but I’d be lying, and I don’t lie. I just tell people how it is."
To contact Patrick and United Restoration, visit unitedrds.com or call (844) 210-5193.