Everything else in your home rests on the foundation.
Soil moves with the weather, and where it moves a lot, foundations are the first place it shows. Understanding yours early keeps a small settling issue from becoming a structural one.
Free to check. No calls unless you ask.
Property report. No calls unless you ask.
Why it matters
Foundation repair is expensive and hard to undo. Catching movement early, and knowing what is normal for the ground your house sits on, protects the value of everything above it.
The standard policy form excludes “settling, shrinking, bulging or expansion, including resultant cracking, of bulkheads, pavements, patios, footings, foundations, walls, floors, roofs or ceilings”. In plain terms: the cracks are yours.
ISO Homeowners 3 Special Form HO 00 03 10 00 (2000), Section I Exclusions 2.c.(6)(f)
Separately, the same form excludes earth movement: earthquake, landslide, mudslide, subsidence, sinkhole, and any other earth sinking, rising or shifting. Earthquake cover is a different policy.
ISO Homeowners 3 Special Form HO 00 03 10 00 (2000), Section I Exclusions A.2
How long the termite barrier put in at construction is expected to last, assuming nothing disturbed it. Most houses are older than that.
National Association of Home Builders, Study of Life Expectancy of Home Components, 2007
Movement, cracking and whether the floors are still level are measured at the house, and the early signs are the cheap ones to act on.
What to understand
A few things worth knowing before you decide.
The ground matters more than the house
Soil movement and drainage can affect a foundation. Site conditions need to be assessed locally before choosing a repair.
Early signs
Doors that stick, hairline cracks and floors that are no longer level usually appear well before anything serious.
Water is the lever
Consistent drainage and steady moisture around the house prevents most of the problems people pay to fix.
Start with your property.
Enter your address and see what we can tell you about your foundation, and the rest of your home.