Bear Roofing & Exteriors

Very nice to work with and excellent work. Also I asked him to try to match the new shingle color and type with the house - it looks very nice. Thank you for the new roof Greg.

Greg and his team at Bear Roofing did a great job on our roof replacement. The quote process was painless, the bid competitive and the actual replacement went as scheduled. The crew completed the work in the time frame indicated and did a nice job cleaning up after themselves - no excess nails that I have found after other companies have done roof work. Greg was easy to work with and his expertise was evident when he suggested a different shingle color. He was right -the finished product looks fabulous. I have already recommended their services to family and friends.

They did a great job at negotiating with our insurance company which only wanted to replace half of the roof. They came out twice and worked with the insurance adjuster and were able to come to an agreement. The men did a great job and removed all nails from the property. It looks great.

They were outstanding. They cleaned up great-not one nail in the yard. I can't say enough about them.

.The quality of Bear Roofing and Exterior's work is good so far, it's all held us really well. They were very staffed and the workers were really good that he used, they were all really nice.

They were very knowledgable, prompt, professional, and did very good work. We were walked through all our options and provided with very good feedback. I have used them several times and recommend to family and friends all the time and they are highly regarded. They even came back at a moment's notice to help us after a storm hit to repair work that was someone else's. A+++++++

I built a large home in Lake Elmo and contracted Bear Roofing for the Roof, Fascia, Siding and Gutters. They were wonderful to work with! They did exactly what I had asked for, their crew completed the work ahead of schedule and they were the first roofing company I have ever worked with that left the job site cleaner than when they arrived! Greg and Brett were very professional and made me feel comfortable every time I met with either of them. Hardy Plank siding is the best.

The crew arrived at 7:00 and got right to work. There were plenty of workers so they finished the tear-off in about two hours. Part of the crew then worked on the roof while others cleaned up the yard and packed the dump trailer. They did a great job of moving furniture and planters out of the way and covering the deck. Everything was put back in place when they were done. They did a great job of cleaning up (we've only found one nail since they left). The roof looks great. We've had comments on how nice and straight the line of vents is., and one of my neighbors stopped yesterday to comment on the good work and one day completion. The people on the crew I spoke with were pleasant and helpful. The work was completed and the crew gone by mid-afternoon. Greg, the person I dealt with for the quote and the final inspection, was great to work with. He was helpful and knowledgeable.

Needed to replace roof shingles after water damage from ice dams over the winter. Wanted to replace sagging gutters that overflowed and caused a a problem with damp in the basement. Greg was prompt, listened to our problems, made helpful suggestions and gave the best price. The roof quote matched other companies, but his price for the gutters was the best. He also had the best ideas for fixing the gutters. He gave us referrals of other jobs that we could visit. We had to wait weeks for a break in the weather. The crew worked like crazy on an unbearably hot day. They tore off the shingles, gutters, replaced half of the roof boards (because of mold) and replaced the shingles in one day - just in time as it rained the next day. The gutter crew put up new gutters 3 days later. Greg was quick to change a gutter that was not hung right and repair a soffit and finish up. We were very happy with his work.

We are very pleased with the work and service. I see the other lower ratings...but this was not our experience. We would use them again.

When speaking to Greg before we hired Bear Roofing (admittedly, a mistake), it was an all-too-typical contractor conversation: in other words, "I already have in mind the job I'm going to do, and I'm not terribly interested to know what you would like from me." I told him that I would like the rotted wood (if any) behind the window wrap and fascia replaced, and that we would pay for it out of pocket if the Insurer didn't cover it. Greg hemmed and hawed, and tried to say that since the new wrap/fascia will be watertight it won't really matter. After I kept bringing it up he agreed to do it. To be fair, I can't be entirely certain about this, but I'm pretty certain that after a while they stopped replacing any rotted wood so they could just get the job done. Also, when I tried to discuss any options I might have for gutters, they pretty much just said "there's one kind--don't worry about it." There were a few specific things that left a bad taste in my mouth; here are a couple: Bear started the job on a Saturday, and for some reason the guys felt it necessary to work first on the two living room windows (which we had open) that were right next to where we were sitting. So, they created a huge racket three feet away from us and allowed all the dirt, dust, etc. to blow in the open window. Second, after the guys worked on the garage, I happened to find several nails right near/behind the rear wheel of my car, which is parked next to the garage. Finally, we got a hold of Bear Roofing out of our concern that there is always a pool of water on the flat roof they replaced. Greg said he'd come and take a look at it, but we have yet to hear anything back. Overall, a pretty crappy experience. 8/2/12: Greg did eventually respond that "According to my flat roofer it can not be pitched more do to door leading onto the flat portion." Which makes no sense since there is over 3" between the door & the roof. Water still pools on the roof & it takes 48 hours for it to completely dry. A lot of the stucco was damaged around the windows when then they replaced the window wrap, as much as 1-2" in places. Greg did have some guys come & "fix" the stucco. The "stucco" they used to repair has now cracked. There is still a lot of missing stucco around the windows & upper level door.

Worked on Roof, Fascia, Soffits. Still waiting on the final results. I have many photos of the the before, and the After is so bad that we have to have them correct it. The work to date is certainly NOT a home improvement. I am posting this now because I don't want anyone else to go through what we are going through. An updated review will come when everything has been corrected to industry standards. 10/27/2011 I just read the other "F" review below, and can say that the experience is really similar. Today is the day we meet with yet another inspector to inspect the work, though this time it is the insurance inspector. I had also caught a review who stated that Greg provided an estimate that was "what ever the insurance would cover". When he saw what insurance was going to pay, he voiced his surprise and said "unbelieveable". Could this be why our new estimate had a higher, inflated price? Finding out soon.

What a nightmare! I first got estimates from this company early in the spring of 2011. They were very competitive in price with the other companies. When Greg Fry came out to give me estimates, he gave me an estimate on the overhang over my front door, and an estimate for the roof for the house and garage. The gutter and gutter covers were added later on into the estimates. It was interesting because, at first, any time I had a question, Greg called me back almost immediately. I thought 'WOW', this is good! But then, once I signed the contract for them to do the overhang and the roof, the return phone calls all but stopped. I had a very difficult time getting them to set a date to do the work. Finally, several months after signing the contract, they were ready to set a date to do the work. They of course wanted to do the roof first, and said they'd do the overhang later on. I say, 'no', it was more important for me to do th overhang first, because I knew it was all rotten inside. So, they did the work for the overhang. They pulled off the existing roof that was on the overhang, which was like a sheet of metal. Once they pulled that off, they said the entire inside was rotten, so they had to replace all the boards all the way back into the house. So, they replaced the boards, put the same metal roof back on, and then basically rebuilt the rest of it with some James Hardy product, and wood. Then, mid-July, they finally came back to do the roofs on the house and garage. At first, I was very surprised because, there were several things that just seemed like 'kind of shotty work'. All I had to do was look out my bathroom window on the 2nd story and see the caulking around the flashing, well....they had missed some spots. Also, just the way they put flashing over some of the roof in some areas just looked 'odd' - like it didn't belong there. Aesthetically, it did not look right. Then, in the front of my house, I walked out on my front porch, and I could see more areas where the caulking around the flashing had like, 'holes' in it. Just a really bad job on the caulking. Then, the flashing at one of the peaks did not go up all the way! Also, the new roof was put on in such a way that it left wood exposed all along the length of the gutter. There were just SO many things that seemed like a 'shotty' job. I must say, in all fairness, every time I called Greg, he did take care of these issues. It did still bother me that they even happened in the first place -I don't feel a homeowner should have to go over someone's work with a fine tooth comb, just to make sure they did a good job. Then, I had also requested to purchase the additional Lifetime Warranty. When I got the Warranty info in the mail, and I read it, it did not seem right. So, I called Greg and he told me, yes, that I received the wrong one, and that he needed to contact the shingle company himself and order me the Lifetime Warranty. I called him at least once a week for a month afterwards to find out when it was coming. He would not return my phone calls. Then several week later he finally called me and said, that he needed to contact the shingle company himself and order me the Lifetime Warranty. Wasn't that what he told me a month earlier? So, I had not paid the bill up til this point. So I just decided to pay the bill minus the amount for the Lifetime Warranty. Then, I had a different contractor at my house one day for an estimate on something else. When we walked outside, we were shocked to notice water marks on my new overhang! He said, 'it's leaking'. I said, 'what do you mean it's leaking? I just got that fixed. The entire thing had just been rebuilt.' He pointed out to me that, when they put the metal roofing back on, they did not put any flashing at the house, and also, when they re-fit the metal roofing over the new structure, (this is kind of hard to explain), but all the way around the entire structure, the metal roofing, where it connects to the new structure, the edges were 'snipped' to fit to the new structure. That's where all the water is going. When I called Greg, I left a message with his answering service on a Monday. By Wednesday, I had heard nothing back, even though in my message Monday I told them that my roof was leaking. So when I called Wednesday and threatened to notify Angie's List if they don't call me back, I heard back within the hour. What surprised me was, when I spoke with Greg on the phone, he was really defensive, and said, 'we didn't fix any of that for you. That was just your old roof we put back on. That's not anything new there.' I said, ' what do you mean, it's not new. Yes, the outershell is the original sheet of metal, but the entire inside and sides are new, and there was no flashing put around it, and where they fit the old piece on to the new piece, they cut little snippets of the roof so that it would fit over the new James Hardy product they put in.' I tried to explain to him that, that's where it is leaking. He said, 'well, I'll go out and take a look at it'. I have never heard from him again since. I paid them over 9 thousand dollars, and they do not stand by their work. I have had soooo many problems with them, I hope I can spare anyone else the expense I have been through. Now, I have to pay someone else to fix their mess. Should I as the homeowner have had to tell them to put flashing in so it doesn't leak? Should I as the homeowner have told them that, when you re-build the new structure, you need to slope the sides, so the water has somewhere to go? They are supposed to be the experts. Not me. Not only would I not recommend this company to anyone, but I would recommend you NOT use them.

The overall experience was excellent. I had a leaky roof on my shed. I called and got two estimates. The bids were identical. Bear roofing got the job with a better shingle, and a response of " I can do it Saturday" versus, "It is a small job, and we'll do it when we can fit it in." I was not too picky when I asked that the shed looked "kind of" like the house, but they did a great job of picking out shingles that do look very good. I compared the bids, and called back accepting the bid over the phone within 10 minutes. I concurrently called the office, who asked me to send back a copy of the bid. A few days later, having procrastinated on sending the bid back (due to other commitments), my wife called me and told me the roofing crew was there, but asked if they could come back later due to the storm. I thought "D***!, this guy trusted my word over the phone." I told my wife I would be back in an hour or so, and to let them proceed if they got there before I did. The crew was awesome, they descended on my roof like a cloud of locusts. They tore off the old roof, replaced rotted OSB, and finished the roof in a few short hours. The roof looks great, the job was done better than the original contractor, and the area was cleaner than when the job started. The crew was awesome, very polite and courteous. Due to the very hot weather, I provided water, soda, and lemonade; by their gratitude, you would have thought I had offered champagne. I am very pleased, the roof looks great and has not leaked.

All of the work was performed. It just took 18 months from start to finish. A lot of that had to do with the insurance company being difficult in approving the repairs.

It went extremely well. Their representative was immensely helpful in dealing with my insurance company (hail damage) and I'm sure he saved me money. He kept me well informed throughout the entire process and always followed through as promised. Quality of workmanship was first class.

They did an excellent job. Attentive to every detail with high quality workmanship. They got the job done on time as promised (it was a 4-day job, start to finish). Interestingly, the other 2 bidders said the job would take up to 2 weeks to complete. Bear was also the lowest bidder, by far. I was particularly impressed with how well their representative kept in touch with me--from the time I initially called about getting a bid, to a few weeks after completion of the job just to check if everything was still satisfactory. I could not be more pleased with their work.

I had 5 bids from contractors. Greg Fry from Bear Roofing arrived for the bid on time and was very nice to work with. I selected Bear Roofing because of their low price and the flexible selection of shingle brands offered. The other bidders proposed a specific shingle brand, i.e., GAF, Certainteed or Dow Corning. I selected Dow Corning's Duration 30 year architectural shingle which provides a 110 MPH wind protection, higher than the others. I chose to add the Dow special underlayment in place of the traditional 15 pound felt. The crew arrived on time at 7 AM and completed the job by 8 PM. Most other contractors bid a two day job. The roof looks great and the crew did a great job of cleaning up the old shingle fragments and nails. I would recommend Bear Roofing to anyone. It was a great experience on a job that is costly and is critical to my homes structural safety!

The worker was informative, though the estimate was quite high. I chose to work with another company.

From what I can tell, they did an acceptable job.

They did the work very well and their quality was great. They charged me about $7000 for the job. I will use them again in the future.

They said the quote would be whatever our insurance would pay. They were friendly and the experience was good. We decided not to have the work done.

They were here at 7:15 am and gone by 5:00 pm, having everything completely finished in one day. They were accommodating as far as scheduling and were able to come on a Saturday, which worked well for us. They were very professional and I would highly recommend them.

They were responsive in getting back and giving us the quote. The estimate was within the 21-25 range. So far everything has been very professional and good. It was a pleasant experience with them.

New roof recently installed by Bear Roofing and Exteriors. Greg Fry came out for the estimate and was down to earth, very knowledgeable about his job and offered a ten year warranty on workmanship. That shows confidence in his workers. His estimate turned out considerably lower than 5 previous estimates I had. The crew arrived on schedule, removed the old shingles and put on a new roof, 8 vents, new stacks, damper vents, flashing and drip edges in less than a day. I was impressed with the work ethic of the roofers. They got right down to business and were very polite and responsive to any questions. They also replaced two skylights (tinted,nice touch) and several bad pieces of plywood. The roof turned out beautiful. It was tested several days later by heavy rains and even a snow covering. Not a leak to be found. Two of my neighbors, one a retired carpenter, remarked how quickly the job was done and the good looking results. Care was taken to cover all shrubs and my deck in the back. Every thing was cleaned up to the last nail and if I had been at work all day and came home later I would not have known anyone was there, except that the roofing job had been completed. The cost was as stated in the estimate except for the plywood replacement put on at reasonable rates. I have no complaints and the 30 year architectural shingles add a nice finish to my home.