A homeowner in New Berlin called me — not through a platform, but because her neighbor had referred me. She'd already hired a contractor. The crew had signed her before she'd called her adjuster. Six months later: a leak at the chimney, flashing never replaced, permit never pulled, company's phone disconnected. The problem isn't just bad contractors. It's that homeowners have no reliable way to tell the difference.
My name is Ioannis Karampetsos. I've worked in the Milwaukee-area remodeling industry for over a decade — roofing, siding, and general contracting across Waukesha County and the surrounding communities. I've pulled permits in Brookfield, New Berlin, Menomonee Falls, and Wauwatosa. I've worked on 1940s bungalows in West Allis and 1970s ranch homes in Greenfield. I've filed insurance supplements, argued with adjusters over deck board replacement, and had the conversation with homeowners about what it actually costs to do a roof right versus what it costs to do a roof fast.
I am not a software founder. I'm not a marketer who discovered the roofing industry. I hold a Wisconsin DSPS contractor certification. I know what a Dwelling Contractor Qualifier is and why it matters. I know the difference between a GAF Timberline HDZ and a builder-grade shingle. I know what ice-and-water shield is supposed to look like at an eave in Wisconsin Climate Zone 6 — and I know what it looks like when a crew skipped it.
That background is why FindMeARoofer exists. It's also why everything on this site — every article, every contractor in our network — goes through the same standard I'd apply if it were my own house.
Let me be direct about what the major lead platforms actually do, because most homeowners don't understand the model.
When you fill out a form on HomeAdvisor or Angi asking for a roofing estimate, your information is sold as a "lead" — typically to 3 to 5 contractors simultaneously. Every one of them paid to receive your contact information. The platform's business model is selling leads, not ensuring quality. A contractor can have disciplinary actions on their Wisconsin DSPS license and still appear in those results. An out-of-state crew with no Wisconsin license at all can show up in your search.
"The star ratings and 'Top Pro' badges on those platforms are driven by reviews and advertising spend — not by verified licensing or work quality."
I'm not saying every contractor on those platforms is bad. Many legitimate, licensed Wisconsin roofers use them to fill their calendars. What I'm saying is that the platform itself cannot tell you whether the person showing up at your door holds a current Wisconsin DSPS Dwelling Contractor Qualifier (DCQ) certification. That verification doesn't happen at the platform level. You have to do it yourself — and most homeowners don't know it exists.
Wisconsin hail season runs May through September. Waukesha County, where I've done most of my work, averages 6–8 significant hail events per year — more than any other county in the state.
Within 24 hours of a major hail event, the same thing happens every time. Out-of-state crews — I've seen plates from Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Florida — converge on the affected area. They knock on doors. They offer to "work with your insurance." Some offer to waive deductibles, which is illegal in Wisconsin under Statute §628.34(12). They get signatures before homeowners have had a chance to think.
The work that follows is frequently not permitted, not flashed properly, and not backed by any meaningful warranty because the company doesn't have a Wisconsin address or a Wisconsin license. Two Wisconsin winters of freeze-thaw cycles later — the Milwaukee area averages 68 per year — the homeowner has ice dams and a leak and no one to call.
"I've walked through the aftermath on homes in Greenfield, Wauwatosa, and New Berlin. The pattern is consistent enough that I can identify a storm-chaser job from the attic before I even get on the roof — by the way the ice-and-water shield is installed at the eaves, or isn't. The homeowner in every one of those situations did nothing wrong. They answered the door, they trusted someone who presented confidently, and they didn't know what questions to ask. That's not negligence. That's an information gap — and that's exactly what FindMeARoofer is designed to close."
The premise is simple: we only match homeowners with roofing contractors who hold a current Wisconsin DSPS Dwelling Contractor Qualifier (DCQ) certification. That's the legal requirement for roofing on 1–2 family owner-occupied homes in Wisconsin. Before any contractor appears in our network, we verify their certification against the DSPS license database. We re-verify periodically. A contractor with a lapsed or disciplinary license comes out of the network.
We don't sell leads. We don't rank contractors by advertising spend. The match a homeowner gets from FindMeARoofer is based on verified licensing, service area, and availability — not on who paid the most to appear first.
Every contractor in the FindMeARoofer network is verified against the DSPS license database at dsps.wi.gov before their first match. We check for current Dwelling Contractor Qualifier (DCQ) status and any disciplinary history. Contractors with lapsed certifications or open disciplinary actions are removed. This is the same check any homeowner can run themselves — we just do it before you ever see a name.
That's a more limited model than a national platform in some ways. But every contractor in our network is there because they met the standard — not because they paid for placement.
Whether you use FindMeARoofer or not, here's what I'd tell anyone in Wisconsin before signing a roofing contract:
Go to dsps.wi.gov → License Lookup. Takes two minutes. Search by company or person name. Confirm a current Dwelling Contractor Qualifier (DCQ) and check for disciplinary history.
If a contractor can't give you their license number on the spot, end the conversation.
Every full roof replacement in Wisconsin requires a building permit. The permit is pulled by the contractor before work begins and triggers a final inspection by a municipal building official.
Ask for the permit number before work starts. If they can't produce it, stop the job.
On Waukesha County homes from the 1960s–1980s, deck board replacement is a real possibility. You want a contractor who can explain the supplement process clearly. "We'll figure it out" is not an answer.
Budget a 10–15% contingency above your approved claim on older homes.
Get an independent inspection from a licensed roofer, then have your adjuster visit — do not let any contractor on the roof before your adjuster sees the undisturbed damage.
And if someone offers to waive your deductible: close the door. It's illegal in Wisconsin under Statute §628.34(12). It's also a leading indicator of how they do the work.
The roofing industry in Wisconsin has a real licensing infrastructure that works. The DSPS DCQ system exists. The permit system exists. The Wisconsin OCI exists to protect homeowners in insurance disputes. The gap isn't regulation — it's that most homeowners don't know these tools exist until they need them most. FindMeARoofer is my attempt to close that gap.
— Ioannis Karampetsos, Founder, FindMeARoofer
No. FindMeARoofer does not sell homeowner contact information to contractors. The model works in the opposite direction: we verify contractors against the Wisconsin DSPS license database first, then match verified contractors to homeowners based on service area, availability, and licensing status. Contractors are not ranked by advertising spend or lead purchase volume.
The Dwelling Contractor Qualifier (DCQ) is the Wisconsin DSPS credential required for roofing work on 1–2 family owner-occupied homes under Wisconsin Statute §101.654. At least one person in a roofing company must hold this certification, which requires passing an examination and maintaining continuing education. You can verify any contractor's DCQ status at dsps.wi.gov → License Lookup in under two minutes.
Yes. FindMeARoofer serves both Wisconsin and Illinois. Illinois does not have a statewide roofing license — licensing is handled at the municipal level, with the City of Chicago requiring a BACP roofing contractor license. In Illinois collar counties (DuPage, Lake, Kane, Will, McHenry), enforcement is through municipal permit offices. We verify Illinois contractors against the applicable local licensing requirements for their service area.
Go to dsps.wi.gov → Credential Lookup → search by company name or individual name. Confirm the credential type shows Dwelling Contractor Qualifier (DCQ) and the status is current. Check the disciplinary history tab — any actions against the license appear here. This search takes under two minutes and should be completed before any contractor steps onto your roof.
Under Wisconsin Statute §628.34(12), a contractor offering to waive or absorb a homeowner's insurance deductible is committing insurance fraud. In practice, contractors who make this offer are either inflating the claim scope to cover the deductible (which the insurer may later pursue) or simply cutting corners to absorb the cost. Both scenarios end badly for the homeowner. If a contractor makes this offer, end the conversation and report it to the Wisconsin OCI at oci.wi.gov.
Every contractor in our network holds a current Wisconsin DSPS DCQ certification. Verified before the first match. No storm chasers. No lead selling.