ROOFING JOBS LOOK PROFITABLE. THE BALANCE SHEET IS STILL THIN.
Roofing subcontractors have no cash left for reasons specific to how the work is built and billed, on jobs that are making money. The three that cost the most in this trade are below, taken from roofing contractor research. Most are at 75 to 90 days from finishing work to holding the money, and 45 days is achievable.
Cash and profit are measured on different clocks. Your profit and loss records revenue when you invoice and costs when you incur them, while the bank account only knows what cleared. Labour goes out weekly and collects 45 to 90 days later, minus retention. That distance is what a growing, profitable roofing company funds out of pocket, and it widens as you grow. The specific things that widen it in this trade are what the rest of this page is about.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS.
You can bill as much as you want as often as you want, but if you're not getting paid, it doesn't matter.
Brian, RoofersCoffeeShop podcast, 2026
Checks that have been mailed out just never show up.
Brian, RoofersCoffeeShop podcast, 2026 (same source)
WHERE IT LEAKS OUT.
Storm restoration pays in pieces. The first check covers actual cash value. The recoverable depreciation is held until the job is complete and documented. Supplements wait in an adjuster's queue for weeks. You front labor and materials on a payment schedule the carrier controls.
Roofing is material-intensive. Shingles, underlayment, flashing, and membrane get paid at or before delivery. Crews get paid weekly. Commercial pay apps come back net-60 to net-90 with retainage on top. The supplier bill and the payroll both clear before the first receivable does.
Billing volume means nothing if you don't collect. Mailed checks get lost, approvals get stuck, and you have less pull the day the roof is dried in.
Demand peaks in fair weather, and northern winters go quiet. Trucks, insurance, the shop and salaried staff cost money all 12 months. If you spend storm-season cash like the phone will always ring, you reach January with full overhead and no draws.
WHAT MOVES MARGIN IN THIS TRADE.
The Carrier's Calendar
Storm work pays on the insurance company's schedule. ACV comes first, depreciation is held to completion, and supplements wait for weeks. You pay for the gap on every claim.
Material-First, Paid-Last
Suppliers get paid at delivery and crews get paid Friday. Commercial receivables come in at net-60 to net-90 with retainage. Your cash cycle is backward from day one.
The Thin Cushion
At 7 percent net before taxes for a $1M to $5M roofer, one delayed claim or one unmeasured indirect labor line wipes out the quarter. Margin this thin has no room for untracked cost.
DAYS SALES OUTSTANDING.
Ninety days is weak, 45 is the target, 30 is strong. Nothing else moves cash faster.
| Position | Days | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Weak | 90 days | Roughly three months of work funded out of your own pocket. |
| Target | 45 days | You can get here on the days you control. Bill on time, send complete paperwork, and follow up in week two. |
| Strong | 30 days | Takes work every month. It's the cheapest money you can get. |
Moving from 90 days to 45 frees roughly annual revenue divided by 365, times 45 days. At $4M that's about $493,000. At $8M it's about $986,000. That money costs no interest and needs no bank. So we fix billing and collections before we talk about financing.
ROOFING BENCHMARKS.
Roofing subcontractors at $1M to $5M net 7 percent, against the CFOS net profit target, set at your trade's net profit average at your revenue plus 3.5 points, never below 10 percent, before taxes. The working capital target is 13 percent of annual revenue, and the monthly close should finish by day 10 so the numbers can still change a decision.
FREQUENTLY ASKED.
