Foundation Repair Cost in New Braunfels

The short answer

Most slab foundation repairs around New Braunfels land between $4,000 and $15,000. Pier and beam work usually runs $1,500 to $10,000. A small job, like a few piers under one settled corner, can come in under $3,000. A whole-house job on deep east-side clay with interior piers can pass $20,000.

Those numbers are wide on purpose. Foundation work is priced by what the elevation survey finds, not by the size of the house. Two identical houses on the same street can need very different repairs if one has a leaking drain line under the slab and the other does not.

Price per pier

On a slab, the repair is priced through the piers. The method matters more than anything else on the estimate.

• Pressed concrete piers: roughly $400 to $800 each. Stacked concrete cylinders hydraulically pressed until they refuse. The most common method in Central Texas.
• Steel piers: roughly $1,200 to $3,000 each. Steel pipe driven much deeper, often to limestone. Better on deep clay and heavier homes.
• Interior piers: add a few hundred dollars each for breaking and patching the slab, plus flooring removal you may pay someone else to replace.
• Most houses that need repair need 8 to 15 piers. A single settled corner may need 4 to 6.

Why east-side homes often cost more

East of I-35, New Braunfels sits on Blackland Prairie clay that can stay active 10 feet down or more. Piers have to go past that zone to hold, so they go deeper and take longer to install. West of the Balcones Escarpment, limestone sits closer to the surface. Piers hit refusal sooner, and the usual problem is a pocket of poorly compacted fill under one part of the house, which tends to mean fewer piers.

That is one reason a price you saw for a house in Canyon Lake or Spring Branch does not transfer cleanly to a house off FM 725 or in the Meadows.

Pier and beam costs

Older homes near downtown and in Gruene are often pier and beam. These jobs are priced by what is under the floor. A re-shim and level with no rotted wood can run $1,500 to $4,000. New concrete pads, replacement posts, sistered beams and a vapor barrier push it toward $6,000 to $10,000.

Line items that show up on real estimates

These are the charges homeowners are most often surprised by. Ask about each one before work starts.

• Plumbing test: a hydrostatic test of the sewer lines under the slab, usually a few hundred dollars. Worth it on any slab with cracks, because a leak can be what moved the house.
• Engineer's report: usually $350 to $700. Lenders and buyers often require one. Paid separately, ideally to an engineer you hire directly.
• Permit: some cities require one for foundation work. Ask whether it is included.
• Drainage work: gutters, grading or a French drain, typically $1,500 to $5,000. Often what keeps the repair from moving again.
• Cosmetic repair: drywall, brick and tile after the lift. The foundation contractor usually does not do this.

How to compare two estimates

Put the estimates side by side and check four things: the pier method, the pier count and locations on a drawing, the warranty in writing, and whether the warranty transfers to the next owner. An estimate with fewer piers is not cheaper if it leaves the settled section unsupported.

A lifetime warranty is only as good as the company behind it. Ask how long the company has been working locally and whether the warranty covers re-adjustment or just the piers themselves.