Why does it matter that your roofer is local?  A big reason is that a roofer from hours and hours away is not going to come back for a leak.  They are not going to stand behind their work and come back for a problem that should be addressed under warranty.  Why do those non-local roofers push so hard for you to sign a contract?  Because they are near unbreakable and without a time-frame to complete the project.  If you drive through a city that has had enormous hail, you will see new roofs but boarded over windows and holes in the siding for the next decade.  Those homeowners can’t even bring in another contractor to finish the work – that would ‘break their contract’.  Big city roofing companies also love to “meet with the adjuster”.  The adjuster does NOT need their help – they know how to do their job.  This is a high-pressure sales tactic so that the roofer can look like a hero “getting insurance to cover repairs”.  The insurance adjuster is going to pay for the exact same damage whether a roofer is there on-site or not.  There is no reason to immediately take an adversarial role against the adjuster.  Pick the contractor that you like, but pick LOCAL.