Foundation raising in Norwalk CA - a steady house, with the cause found first
Doors sticking, floors sloping or cracks growing in the walls? We find out why the house moved, then lift it back to steady.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- We respond within 1 business day.
Does your house need foundation raising, or just a closer look?
Foundation raising lifts your house together with its foundation, sometimes with underpinning, new supports set under the old foundation, so existing cracks stop getting worse and some of them partly close. At T&M Norwalk Concrete Company we do this work for homeowners in Norwalk and across the cities around it in southeast Los Angeles County and north Orange County.
Most calls start with a door that won't latch, a crack running up from a window corner or a floor you can feel slope under your feet. The price mostly comes down to your foundation type, since a slab house costs more to level than one on piers and beams, plus how many piers the engineer calls for and how easy the work is to reach. The schedule turns on the engineer's report, any permit your city wants and that same pier count, and my written estimate puts your own numbers on all of it.
How we handle foundation raising
Before anyone lifts anything, I want to know why your house moved, because a house leveled properly on stable soil shouldn't need it again, and one that does usually had its cause missed, like drainage still soaking the ground or settling that needed piers and only got shims, thin wedges slid under a beam. So we work from an engineer's report, fix that cause as part of the plan, set the supports and bring the house up slowly to steady rather than forcing it flat. When the lift is done we fill in what we dug, clean up and make sure water runs away from the house. We're clear up front that drywall, trim and paint are outside our scope, so you can line that work up separately.
Some jobs need more than the lift. If piers have to go in through a slab or a porch, concrete cutting lets us open just the spot we need, and when a driveway cracked and sank along with the house, we can tear it out and handle the concrete driveway building once the house is steady.
Raised-floor houses on piers and beams
This suits a house with a crawlspace, where the floor sits on posts and beams we can reach from underneath. Re-leveling usually means adjusting or adding supports, but if the posts keep sinking, the answer is new footings, not another round of shims.
Slab houses that need piers
This suits a house poured right on the ground, where the only way to lift is from the outside edges. We dig along the perimeter, set piers below the soil that moved and lift the slab from them.
Helical piles where space is tight
One maker says helical piles screw into the ground instead of being driven, so they barely disturb the soil under the house and need smaller equipment. That can suit a narrow side yard or a house close to its neighbor, and we'll talk it through with your engineer.
Foundation raising in Norwalk and the state's earthquake zones
The state maps earthquake hazard zones for fault rupture, quake-triggered landslides and liquefaction, when soil briefly acts like quicksand and can't hold a house up, and a project inside one of those zones may have to study that hazard and deal with it as part of getting a local permit. Whether that touches your job isn't settled until we know your address, and you can type it into the state's EQ Zapp map to see whether it sits in a mapped zone or in an area that hasn't been evaluated yet. Before work starts we check whether your city or the county wants a permit for your address, and if one's needed we pull it and handle the paperwork for our part. The state geological survey also says significant remodels need a site-specific geologic study, which is one more reason we start from an engineer's report.
A lot of the houses we look at around here are older, and the trouble often started with water, like a downspout emptying at the foundation or a planter bed soaked right against the wall. We get the same calls in Downey and Bellflower, and the fix starts the same way, by sending that water somewhere else before we lift.
Why Norwalk homeowners call T&M Norwalk Concrete Company for foundation raising
I look at your house myself
I come out to see the job in person, and I'm on site with our crew when the lift happens. You talk to the person making the calls under your house, not someone who hands it off.
In business since 2021
I opened the business in 2021 after years on other people's crews, watching how ground and water move concrete. The jobs people still call us for are the odd ones where nobody's sure yet why the house moved.
Licensed and insured on every job
We're licensed and insured, and you're welcome to check before you sign anyone's estimate, ours included. That matters on a lift, because your house sits on temporary supports while we work.
Your address checked before pricing
I look your address up on the state's earthquake hazard map before I write the estimate. If the house sits in a mapped zone, you hear it from me up front, along with what it could mean for the job.
On a lift, the part that counts is knowing why the house moved before anyone touches a jack. Call (562) 307-9138 or send us a note and I'll come take a look.
Request a quoteGet a written foundation raising estimate
We reply within one business day to set a time for me to come out. The estimate is free, done on site and comes with no obligation. You get it in writing, with the plan, the price and what's included and what isn't.
What happens after you call about foundation raising
Call or send the form
Tell us what you're seeing, like sticking doors or new cracks, and we'll set a time for me to come out. If you already have an engineer's report, send it along.
I walk the house with you
I look inside and out, ask what you need from the job and send a written estimate with the plan and the price. Drywall, trim and paint usually aren't in a lift bid, so budget for them separately and check that the estimate says so in writing.
We fix the cause first
If you go ahead, we sort out any permit and deal with what the engineer found, like water draining toward the house. Then we get the supports in where the plan calls for them.
We lift and walk it together
We bring the house up slowly to steady, fill in what we dug and clean up. Then we walk the job with you so you can try the doors and check the floors yourself.
Frequently asked questions
How much does foundation raising cost near Norwalk?
Raising a house in the Los Angeles area usually costs about $4,000 to $13,000 per job. That's the going range around here, not our price, and where your house lands depends mostly on the foundation type and how many piers it needs. I'll give you your own number in a written estimate after I see the house.
Can I stay in my house during foundation raising?
Usually, yes, most owners stay home through the whole job. Slab work is loud, though, and there's digging around the outside of the house, so plan to keep kids and pets clear of the open trenches.
How long does foundation raising take?
A national leveling guide puts shimming a pier and beam house at about 1 to 3 days and underpinning a slab at about 3 to 7 days, depending on how many piers go in. The engineer's report and any permit come before that, and I'll walk you through what your job looks like at the estimate.
Will my house be perfectly level after foundation raising?
Probably not, and it shouldn't be pushed there. Most experienced crews steady the house and lift it partway, because lifting hard to reach dead flat cracks plaster, tile and plumbing somewhere else in the house.
Who is licensed to raise a house in California?
California's contractor license board says a building moving and demolition contractor is the one who raises, lowers, cribs and underpins houses and their foundations, cribbing being stacks of temporary supports. That license doesn't cover repairs to the parts of the house that stay put, which is why patching walls and floors afterward is usually separate work.
What is the best way to compare foundation raising bids?
Get the engineer's report first, then have contractors bid against it, so everyone is pricing the same plan. One cost guide suggests getting three bids that way. I'm glad to price from your report, so have it ready when you call.
Other concrete work that often comes with a lift
Concrete cutting
If piers have to go in through a slab, a patio or a walkway, clean saw cuts let us reach the ground without cracking the concrete around the opening.
Concrete driveway building
A driveway that dropped with the house often keeps sending water toward the foundation, so replacing it on a packed base with the right slope helps protect the lift.
Norwalk, CA
Get your foundation raising estimate started
Call (562) 307-9138 or use the form, and have your address, whether the house is on a slab or a raised floor, and any engineer's report handy so I can look into it before I come out.