I own a townhouse in SW Houston that has foundation problems. I'm looking to turn the townhouse around soon and therefore I do not want to spend too much towards repairs. Any suggestions on a good foundation repair company that's affordable (relatively). Thanks.
FYI, foundations generally have a longer warranty than the rest of your house, so see how old the house is before you hire someone. Other than that, I really can't say who would be good.
Most houses have a 10 year structural warranty. After that, you are SOL. Get a couple of opinions about the severity of the issue (or whether is actually a foundation problem at all). Most foundation repair places play on people's fears about the structural integrity of their houses and often due unnecessary or overpriced work when it could be fixed easier, or didn't require anything at all. Also, remember that many home inspectors can only look for symptoms of POSSIBLE foundation issues. They can not actually diagnose a real issue or not in many cases.
Well this townhome is 35 years old, so it's well past warranty I guess my only question is that it's connected to other houses. Can my foundation really be that bad and not my neighbors'? Moreover, I assume that we all share a common foundation (or something along those lines). If I repair mine and my neighbors don't, how good would my foundation repair be? This townhome is rented to a guy who is paying peanuts for rent (I break even every month). I don't think he is going anywhere anytime soon. I don't know how financially sound it would be for me to fork over $5,000 to fix the foundation of a house worth so little.
Get one or two structural engineering companies that don't do repairs to do an inspection of the foundation. For a 2000-3000 sq. ft. home you can expect to spend about $300-$450 for this service. Then go from there. FYI : many foundation repairs don't do squat or make things worse. Even if you spend the money on doing the repairs, you have to disclose the issues when you sell. So I don't know what good it does you to fork over thousands on a property not worth much according to you when you'll scare half the people away anyway when they hear "foundation issues" - well, unless they're desperate. The only company I remember in Houston is Olshan. I'm not recommending them, I just remember their commercials.
