So you either have a foundation inspection scheduled or you are looking into getting one scheduled but want to know what is involved and what to expect. Anytime someone is coming to look at your house, you wonder, “Do I need to do anything to get ready for this? What should I expect from this foundation repair appointment?”
Well instead of leaving you wondering, we’re just going to tell you all about it. Don’t waste another minute imagining what will happen. I mean, if you’re going to spend time imagining things, let’s not let it be about foundation inspections!
At Anchor Foundation Repair, we call these inspections “In-Home Assessments” and we have done tens of thousands of them since starting this Brazos Valley business in 1985. We can tell you just what will happen during these visits. Anchor is ready to inspect your foundation for true foundation problems and make a plan for foundation repair if needed.
This article will go over your most important questions about the In-Home Assessment process. While these will be answered specifically about our process at Anchor, most of this information is general and can easily apply to a foundation inspection from any foundation repair contractor.
- How long will it take?
- Who should be there?
- Where will you look and what are you looking for?
- Do I need to do anything to prepare?
- How much does it cost?
- What do I get in the end?
Let’s get started so you can feel prepared for this important step in getting your foundation inspected by Anchor Foundation Repair.
1. How long will a home foundation inspection take?
You should allow about 2 hours for a thorough In-Home Assessment from Anchor Foundation Repair. We will be reviewing and confirming your concerns and viewing the problem areas. We can discuss any questions you have if we haven’t already talked about them prior to the appointment.
Before the visit, we want you to read this article that covers many of the frequently asked questions that come up during an inspection. Here it is: “Anchor Foundation Repair Common Questions: Timing, Impact, Payment.”
Reading this article before we come out will save everyone time and could shorten the length of the visit by heading off common questions in advance. Everyone wants to save a little time, don’t they?
2. Who should attend the home foundation inspection visit?
We strongly recommend that all key decision-makers be present for the visit. Having every important person there during that time will prevent repeating questions and misinterpretations through secondhand information. Everyone will hear the same conversation and hear the same questions and answers.
Do whatever it takes to make sure that whoever contributes to making big financial decisions for the household is there. This is an important time saver and a miscommunication saver for you.
3. Where and what will you be looking for during a home foundation inspection?
We will need to have access to your entire home, both inside and outside, in order to do the inspection. If a room can’t be accessed, we would have to make assessments based on adjacent rooms and may miss something. It’s best to make sure that everything is open and accessible to view.
We will be looking for confirmation of true signs of foundation issues in your home. We want to see in person all the cracks in walls, sticking doors, and trim separations that you shared over the phone or via video before the visit.
We are looking for those specific visual cues to tell us exactly where the problem is with your home and allow us to design a repair plan to overcome your foundation issues. This is where we are putting together the full picture of what foundation settlement is happening in your home, as well as if and how it should be repaired.
Before the visit, we just have some of the puzzle pieces to go by. But the In-Home Assessment is key to putting the whole puzzle together and seeing your complete home situation for our best recommendations.
What we WON’T be looking at during your foundation inspection . . .
We won’t be looking at your stuff, or your furniture, or your decor choices, or your clutter. Don’t worry about how your home looks. We are not coming for a dinner party dressed in fine clothing. Please don’t worry about the appearance of your home, we are not coming to give you more work to do or stress you out with cleaning.
4. Do I need to do any preparation for the foundation inspection?
So we have already said, don’t do any cleaning to prepare for the inspection. But you also don’t need to move anything or rearrange your home for the visit either. If extra space is needed to properly evaluate a door, trim, or wall problem, it should be an easy adjustment that we can do on-site at the time of the inspection. No advance site preparation is needed.
Now one thing you can do to prepare for your In-Home Assessment with Anchor Foundation Repair is to write down any questions you may have that were not answered in the advance reading materials. Once the inspector arrives, it’s easy to forget what questions you thought about asking if you didn’t write them down.
We are all about being efficient with your time and having a few notes will make sure that you get your questions answered without the need for another communication. Can you take the time to prepare a few questions you want to be sure get answered?
5. How much does a foundation inspection cost with Anchor?
We charge between $225 to $275 for our In-Home Assessment. The total cost depends on your location and driving distance. Homes outside of the BCS area will cost a bit more than the base in-town price.
Please know that the cost of an In-Home Assessment with Anchor would be applied to your approved repair contract. So if you end up having your foundation repair completed with us, then it doesn’t cost you anything beyond the final project cost.
6. What do I get for the cost of the foundation inspection?
If there is a confirmed problem that is repairable, you will have two important pieces of information by the end of the In-Home Assessment:
- A written repair plan
- The total cost for the repair project
Here’s a deeper explanation of the value of these items, making your In-Home Assessment worth the price.
What does the repair plan tell you?
The repair plan diagrams a to-scale drawing of your home showing where all piers need to be placed to properly raise and support the settled portion of your home. It will show how many piers are needed around the perimeter of your home.
The plan also shows if you need to have any interior pier work done to support the inside areas of your home. We typically include pictures of the problem areas and a descriptive video that explains the nature of your foundation issue and how Anchor plans to correct it.
The plan does not include an elevation assessment. Elevation information can be misleading and we do not use that kind of data to formulate a repair plan. Elevation measurements are left to structural engineers. Most homes and homeowners do not need that level of detail to determine if foundation repairs are needed.
What about the cost of the foundation repair?
The other important piece of information you gain from a foundation inspection is the contracted price to complete the project. This is the main result homeowners want in getting a bid or quote from a repair contractor – the price!
Hearing the cost for the repairs is what you are really waiting to find out. You will have that number before the foundation repair inspector leaves your home.
We leave you with the repair plan and the price and then you have time to decide what to do next. You might decide to get started on foundation repairs right away. You might want to wait a little while to do the repairs or seek bids from other foundation repair companies.
Cost Estimates Also Help You Prepare for Foundation Inspections
With all this talk about getting a cost proposal at the end of your inspection, you might begin to wonder what price range to even expect. Like what is the ballpark or average cost of foundation repair with Anchor?
Knowing what to expect as far as cost is concerned is a good idea. Sticker shock is a real thing. The best way to prepare you for hearing a price at your inspection is to give you some average project pricing and review what contributes to the cost of repairs.
Anchor Foundation Repair has been inspecting and repairing foundations in the Bryan, College Station, and Brazos Valley areas for the past 35+ years and counting. While we are in the business of repairing foundations, we don’t want to fix foundations that don’t need fixing. We want to provide 100% transparency about the condition of your foundation and about the cost too.
Check out the “Cost of Foundation Repair with Bell-Bottom Piers: 6 Factors,” for a deeper understanding of how we arrive at these numbers.