Post and Pier Foundation Concrete Blocks Sagging

House Repair Talk

Help Support House Repair Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

HouseOur

Member
Joined
Oct 4, 2015
Messages
7
Reaction score
3
Hi, I'm buying my first home. I have been looking at many house but only a few have caught my eye. I really like this house but the foundation seems to be sagging. The realtor said that in the bedroom where the foundation has an issue the floor looks to be sagging. The concrete blocks around the rest of the house look fine. I would really appreciate opinions and if you think its a costly serious repair. The house was built in 1930, there is no basement and its in western Washington state. Thank you

1 - Copy.jpg

2 - Copy.jpg

3 - Copy.jpg

7 - Copy.jpg

9 - Copy.jpg

11 - Copy.jpg

12 - Copy.jpg
 
Yes it could be a very serious repair. If you want to know how bad hire a foundation contractor to do an inspection and quote the repair costs.
then you can make an offer based on what he says or walk away. It could possibly even be an unpermitted addition.

DO NOT trust the real estate broker. All they want do is sell the house.
 
Yes it could be a very serious repair. If you want to know how bad hire a foundation contractor to do an inspection and quote the repair costs.
then you can make an offer based on what he says or walk away. It could possibly even be an unpermitted addition.

DO NOT trust the real estate broker. All they want do is sell the house.

Thank you Joe. I'm having a hard time getting someone out to look at it that specializes in foundation work. Do you think it looks like a $3000.00 repair or a $10000.00 repair? Thank you.
 
Without someone looking under there it would be impossible to tell. Make your offer subject to engineers report, it will be worth the $400 to $500 that might cost with the fact he will also tell you how to fix it.
the bottom of the footing should be at least 18" below grade if it is the same as here and yours looks more like an old side walk that someone added to. The picture leaves more questions that answers.
 
I could not hazard a guess as to cost. Until you look under the house and see what else might be going on you don't know.
I could see this repair easily costing $10,000 or more.
 
Without someone looking under there it would be impossible to tell. Make your offer subject to engineers report, it will be worth the $400 to $500 that might cost with the fact he will also tell you how to fix it.
the bottom of the footing should be at least 18" below grade if it is the same as here and yours looks more like an old side walk that someone added to. The picture leaves more questions that answers.

I could not hazard a guess as to cost. Until you look under the house and see what else might be going on you don't know.
I could see this repair easily costing $10,000 or more.


Thanks guys.
 
Here is an approach I used on a house for a client in Washington DC ....

1. Get an inspection which can quantify the damage and problem. Use an inspector who has engineering expertise, not some fly by night.
2. Armed with the inspection report, get three competitive bids on fixing the problem.
3. At closing, the seller's must rebate the cost of the repairs from the best estimated cost.
4. Then get the work done.
 
If the room in question is that depicted in the last photo, the cause is obvious.

The foundation vents are below grade and have allowed water intrusion to the extent it has caused the soil to become unstable, allowing the piers to settle.

Were it me. Just looking at the poor quality workmanship displayed in the foundation, I'd walk away.
 
The last couple of pictures actually look distorted, or is the damage that bad?
 
The new addition to the old house certainly does not have an adequate foundation, especially the strip "footing" (if that is what it is).

The grading of the lot and the two downspouts that feed water to the low are makes the "footing" too weak to handle the poor soil, so it cracks and settles.

If you buy it, you will be facing jacking up the addition, supporting it while a new footing and block walls are built. - Definitely not an easy repair/rebuilding and will be well over $10,000 in the end. Once you get into it, you will problems to the original structure caused by the movement and the necessity to get rid of the roof drainage that will have to be way and out from the house that will necessitate some excavation, landscaping.

Walking is putting it mildly and running would be better.

Dick
 
Is just that section of the house is sinking and the other half is level?

Well, jacking up the house and having the foundation excavated and new rebar and concrete would be the way to go if its in your budget. Does anyone know how much gravel, gravel size and dept needs to be placed on the ground before the foundation is pored?

The other thing, once that section of the house is lifted, it may crack the sheetrock where it joins the house. The gutters may kink and buckle at the joined section. Also, the roof at the peak may distort unless some one here can think what may happen.

I would be safe and look for other homes to live in if you cannot digest the 10-18k for a foundation repair.
 
Is just that section of the house is sinking and the other half is level?

Well, jacking up the house and having the foundation excavated and new rebar and concrete would be the way to go if its in your budget. Does anyone know how much gravel, gravel size and dept needs to be placed on the ground before the foundation is pored?

The other thing, once that section of the house is lifted, it may crack the sheetrock where it joins the house. The gutters may kink and buckle at the joined section. Also, the roof at the peak may distort unless some one here can think what may happen.

I would be safe and look for other homes to live in if you cannot digest the 10-18k for a foundation repair.

The rest of the house looks fine.
 
The last couple of pictures actually look distorted, or is the damage that bad?

Those last pictures are from 3 years ago from Google Street View. The other photos are from a couple weeks ago.
 
I think it was Spanaway Washington where I looked at a similar house no foundation and in foreclosure. From my understanding, a loan company will not provide a loan on the house unless the foundation is fixed first. I would look into that before making a offer. If the offer is made, make it subject to getting a loan based on the a structural engineers report.
 
The rest of the house looks fine.

If you are set on this dwelling you'll need to have someone go under that room with three 5 ton jacks, jack the girder up level, and replace the posts above the piers.
 
Wanted to give an update. We had the inspector come out to look at the house. He showed us that on the other part of the home, the main section, the windows were actually on an angle and the garage door, when closed, had almost two inch gaps on each end.

The area that I posted pics of, he said that it had been made so that it wasn't resting on those concrete blocks in front anymore.

The home search continues. Thank you all so much for your help!
 

Latest posts

Back
Top