Foundation raising in Duarte CA - a house that rises level, corner to corner
Sloping floors, sticking doors or cracked plaster? We find out whether you need a lift or a repair, so you pay for the right job.
- Service
- Foundation raising
- Call
- (626) 416-2143
What tells you a house has started to settle?
Floors that slope
A marble rolls to one side of the room, or the floor feels soft near one wall. That usually means part of the house has dropped more than the rest, and the longer it goes, the more the frame twists to follow it.
Doors and windows that stick
A door that used to close fine now catches at the top, or a window won't slide. The frame has gone out of square because the foundation under it moved, and waiting tends to spread the problem to the next opening over.
Cracks in plaster and tile
Diagonal cracks run off the corners of doors and windows, or a row of floor tile pops loose. You can patch them, but they'll come back, because the plaster was never the problem.
What does raising a house in Duarte involve?
Foundation raising in Duarte means lifting a house, often along with its foundation, so it can be raised, lowered, set on new support or moved. Done right, it puts the floors, doors and walls back where they belong instead of chasing cracks one patch at a time.
Most people call because the house has started to feel off, and they want to know how big the problem is before spending money on it. The price moves with how high the house has to go, what kind of foundation it sits on and how much repair comes along with the lift. The schedule turns less on the lift itself than on the permit, any repairs and the weather, and since Duarte requires a building permit to move or alter a house, the paperwork is part of the plan from the start. Your own figure comes from the estimate I write after I've seen the house.
Details to note before an estimate
- Wood frame, brick or stone walls
- Slab, crawlspace or basement underneath
- Rooms where floors slope or doors stick
- Cracks in walls, tile or foundation
How we handle foundation raising
I start by working out whether you need a lift or a foundation repair, because those are different jobs with very different price tags. One pile maker says helical piles, steel shafts turned down into firm ground, can support or replace a foundation that has settled unevenly, cracked or heaved, so if the house above is sound, that repair is worth weighing before a full lift. If lifting is the answer, you empty the crawlspace or basement, every utility gets disconnected, gas and power down to phone and internet, and your plumber takes out any pipes or ductwork below the floor joists. The city's building permit doesn't cover plumbing, sewer, electrical, mechanical, drainage or grading work, so each of those needs its own permit. Once the house starts to rise, keeping it level is what I watch most closely. An equipment maker calls unified jacking, where every jack rises together, the standard for lifting a whole house because it keeps one corner from getting ahead, and a corner that runs ahead is what cracks plaster, drywall and tile.
A lift often means cutting concrete that's tied to the house, like a porch slab or a walk, and our concrete cutting work gives a clean line so the rest stays in one piece. Once the house sits at its new height, the driveway often doesn't meet the garage the way it used to, which is where concrete driveway building comes in, starting with a base that's dug out and packed so the new slab doesn't settle with the dirt.
Concrete work that often comes with a lift
Concrete cutting
When a slab, step or walk is poured against the house, a clean saw cut lets the house rise without dragging cracked concrete up with it.
Concrete driveway building
A house that sits higher needs a driveway that climbs to meet it, poured on a packed base so it doesn't settle with the dirt.
What happens after you call about raising your house
Call or send a message
I still answer the phone myself, so the person you talk to is the one who comes out to look. We set a time that works for you.
Walk the house, get estimate
I look at the floors, the foundation and what's underneath, ask a lot of questions and tell you whether this is a lift or a repair. You get a written estimate that spells out what the job covers, so the price isn't a guess.
Sort out the permit first
Before anything is scheduled, we find out whether your address is the city's or the county's and what that office needs, then tell you who is handling each piece. Duarte takes plans in person at the Community Development counter, not online or by email, and the first plan check usually takes one or two weeks.
Do the work, walk through
Our crew does the prep and the concrete work, and I'm on site checking it as the job goes. When it's finished, I walk the house with you.
Common questions about foundation raising
How much does it cost to raise a house in Duarte?
Across the US, lifting the house structure alone usually runs about $10,000 to $40,000 per job. That's a national figure for the lift by itself, not our price, and foundation work or repairs come on top of it. Your own number comes from the estimate after I've seen the house.
How long does it take to raise a house?
On average across the US, the whole process takes 4 to 8 weeks, and the lift itself takes 2 to 7 days once the prep is done. Most of that time is permits, repairs and inspections, not jacking, so plan around the weeks and not the lift days.
Who issues building permits for my Duarte address?
For most homes it's the city's Community Development Department, but some houses with a Duarte mailing address sit inside L.A. County, generally west of Mountain Avenue and south of Duarte Road. Owners in that area call the L.A. County Department of Building and Safety at 626-574-0941 about their property. We work on both sides of that line and in the cities around Duarte too.
Can I stay in my house while it's being raised?
No, staying in the house during the lift isn't recommended, so plan somewhere else to sleep for those days. Your furniture and belongings can stay in place.
Can a brick house be lifted?
Yes, solid brick, stone and other masonry houses can be lifted, but they need more support points, careful load planning and often bracing inside. Masonry cracks easily when one part moves ahead of another, so expect a more involved job than a wood-frame house.
How do I know a contractor is licensed to raise a house in California?
Ask which license covers which part of your job, because the state license board has a separate class for contractors who raise, lower, underpin and move houses and their foundations. That class doesn't cover repairing or remodeling the parts of the house that stay, and in Duarte a building permit can also go to a general building contractor with a Class B license. We're fully licensed and insured, and I'll go over who handles what at the estimate.
Get a written estimate for raising your house
We reply within 1 business day. I come out, look at the house and what's under it, and write up a free estimate with no obligation to book anything. Every job is backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
Explore our services and areas
Services
- Concrete driveway building
- Concrete patio construction
- Stamped concrete services
- Concrete sidewalk building
- Garage floor concrete
- Decorative concrete
- Concrete retaining walls
- Concrete floor installation
- Concrete pool decks
- Concrete steps construction
- Slab foundation building
- Foundation installation
- Concrete parking lot building
- Concrete footings
- Concrete cutting
Find out if your house needs lifting
Have your address, house type and a few photos of the cracks ready when you call (626) 416-2143 or use the form, so I know which office covers you and what to look at first at your free on-site estimate.