Foundation raising in Santa Ana CA - a home set on a foundation built to carry it
House sitting too low, or a foundation that needs replacing? We help you find out if a lift suits your home, then plan it.
Ask whether your house can be raised
Call (714) 439-5472 or send the form, because the planning and permit work comes before any lift, and that's the part worth starting early.
Can my house in Santa Ana be raised, and what does it take?
Foundation raising in Santa Ana means lifting your house off its old foundation so a new or extended one can be built underneath, then setting the house back down on it. It works best on homes built over a crawlspace, a basement or an open foundation of posts and piers.
Most people who call about a lift have a house that sits lower than they'd like or a foundation that's worn out, and the first thing to settle is whether the house suits a lift at all. The price and the schedule turn on the same few things, mainly your foundation type, how high the house goes, whether the old foundation can be extended or has to be rebuilt, what repairs turn up and how long the permit takes, with weather adding its share. I won't guess at a number before I've seen the house, and the written estimate I send afterward gives you the figure for yours.
Why Santa Ana homeowners call C&M Santa Ana Concrete Company about a lift
I look at your house myself
I come out to look at every job myself, and I'm on site for most of the forming and pouring our crew does. The person who planned your job is the one watching it go in.
Running our own crews since 2017
I learned concrete on my dad's jobs and started this business in Santa Ana in 2017. That's why I'll tell you straight when a house doesn't suit a lift, before you spend anything on plans.
Licensed, insured, questions answered first
We're licensed and insured, and our promise on every job is "Your satisfaction, guaranteed." I'd rather answer every question before we start, because concrete is hard to undo once it sets.
On a lift, what matters most is finding out early whether your house suits one at all. Set up a visit or call (714) 439-5472 and I'll come take a look.
How we handle foundation raising
Before anyone commits, I want a design professional to look at the house, because not every house suits a lift and slab homes are the hardest of all. With their read in hand, we go over whether your old foundation can be extended or has to be rebuilt. Then the house is separated from its foundation, raised on hydraulic jacks and held on temporary supports while our crew forms and pours the new foundation work underneath. Once that concrete has cured, which is the wait while it hardens enough to take weight, the house is set down on it.
A lift usually brings other concrete work with it. When pieces of the old foundation or an attached slab need to come out, we use concrete cutting to remove just what has to go. And once the house sits higher, the garage and front walk may no longer line up with the old approach, so some owners pair the job with concrete driveway building to finish it at the new height.
Extending the foundation you have
This suits a house whose old foundation is still in good shape and strong enough for the added load once the house sits higher. We build onto what's there instead of tearing it out.
Tearing out and rebuilding
This suits a foundation that's worn, cracked or too weak for the new load, because building on it just carries the problem up with the house. It's the bigger job, and it's the one I lean toward when there's real doubt.
How do you know your house may need raising?
Water near the floor
Water pooling in the crawlspace or creeping toward the floor after hard rain usually means the house sits too low for where the water goes. Every storm you wait adds soaked wood and cleanup.
Cracked or crumbling foundation
Wide cracks, crumbling edges or missing chunks along the foundation usually mean it's worn past patching. The longer it carries the house, the less of it is worth saving when you finally lift.
Floors that slope or sag
A floor that slopes, doors that stick or gaps opening at the trim often point to a foundation that has settled. Left alone, the framing above keeps shifting along with it.
Big plans over a tired foundation
If you're about to put money into the house and the foundation under it is old, that's the time to ask. Fixing it later means lifting finished rooms you just paid for.
What happens when you call us about a lift in Santa Ana?
Call and I come out
You call or send the form, and we set a time. I look at the house, talk through whether a lift suits it and send a written estimate.
Permit, prep, lift and pour
Once you say go, we sort out any permit, you empty the crawlspace or basement and every utility gets disconnected, while your furniture can stay. Then the house goes up and our crew pours underneath.
Set down and walk through
The house is lowered onto its new foundation, and we walk the finished work with you. That's the time for any question we haven't already answered.
Questions about raising a house
These are the questions I hear most from Santa Ana homeowners thinking about a lift. If yours isn't here, ask me about your own house when you call.
How much does it cost to raise a house in Santa Ana?
Across the US, raising a house usually costs about $10,000 to $100,000 per job, from the lift alone at the low end to a new foundation throughout at the high end. Those are national figures from cost guides, not our price, and where a house lands depends mostly on its foundation type and how much of it gets replaced. The written estimate I send after seeing your house is the figure to go by.
How long does it take to raise a house?
Nationally, the whole process averages 4 to 8 weeks, and the lift itself takes 2 to 7 days once the prep is done. Those are averages, so where your job falls comes down to the permit, the foundation work and the weather.
How do I know if my slab house can be raised?
You'll only know once a registered design professional, such as an engineer, has looked at it, because raising a slab home is technically hard and often not workable with the slab left intact. Slabs that rest right on the soil are often poured with little or no rebar, the steel that holds a slab together, so federal flood guidance says to have the slab evaluated before you choose a lift. If it's not a good candidate, I'll tell you.
What does Santa Ana require before a house can be raised?
Santa Ana requires a permit for each building before it's altered, moved or improved, so plan on one for a lift. Your plans go through the city's plan check, where several departments review them, and the permit issues once all of them approve. The city can also ask for plans and calculations from a state-licensed engineer or architect, even where state law wouldn't. We check with the city's building office early and can pull the permit as the licensed contractor.
Do I need anything extra if my Santa Ana home is historic or in a flood zone?
It can, for some homes. If your house is on the Santa Ana Register of Historic Properties or counts toward a historic district, the work needs a Certificate of Appropriateness and has to meet the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, which the city's historic preservation page explains. Parts of the city also sit in FEMA flood zones A and AE, so if your lot is one of them, tell me when I come out.
What license does a contractor need to raise a house in California?
Lifting a house falls under the state licensing board's building moving class, which covers raising, lowering, underpinning and moving structures along with their foundations. That class leaves out altering, repairing or rehabilitating the parts of the house that stay, so ask who will handle each part of the job.
Get a straight answer on raising your house
Send your address, foundation type and whether it's on a historic list, and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I come out for a free on-site look, no obligation, and send a written estimate.
Examples of foundation work
Work that often goes with a lift
Concrete cutting
When sections of an old foundation or slab have to come out cleanly, saw cutting lets new concrete tie in without cracking the parts that stay.
Learn moreConcrete driveway building
A house that sits higher can leave the old driveway meeting the garage at an awkward step, and a new pour brings the two back together.
Learn more