What to bring to the conversation
- Property, dimensions or quantities you know
- Existing condition and items to retain
- Access, occupancy and scheduling constraints
FIND HELP. COMPARE OFFERS. YOU CHOOSE.
Settlement assessment
Tell us what you need. Pros can review your request and send you offers. You decide who to hire.
Provide dates, photos and prior work.
Start my requestFree to request. No need to hire anyone.
What information helps?
Share what you know. You do not need to know every detail.
- The problem or the result you want
- Where you need the service
- When you would like help
- Your budget, if you have one
Do not guess measurements or costs. You can ask a pro to check them.
Want to learn more before you start?
Open the guide for costs, useful questions and planning tools. You can start your request without reading it all.
Home · THE PROJECT GUIDE
Settlement assessment.
Get the details right.
Provide dates, photos and prior work.
Start with documented observations and an appropriate assessment. Compare the reason for each proposed repair, affected areas and monitoring or closeout requirements.
Explore freely · Compare thoughtfully · You choose the professional
THE WORK BEHIND THE WORDS
Make this particular service clear.
Start with the distinction below, then define the deliverables and boundaries. If something is unknown, ask the provider to assess it.
Settlement assessment · the key conversation
Provide dates, photos and prior work.
What to ask for in return
A written description of settlement assessment, the assumptions behind the price and which items need further assessment. Ask the provider to explain assessment findings, repair design, access and excavation, monitoring and closeout in the context of your request.
| Detail | Get this in writing | Keep the comparison fair |
|---|---|---|
| Observations, history & measurement | Map the symptoms, dates, prior repairs, additions, openings, materials, cracks, displacement, floor or wall measurements, moisture, drainage, site grading and inaccessible areas. | Give each assessor the same history, plans, photographs and measurement points. |
| Assessment, cause & design responsibility | Define the inspection, survey, monitoring, structural or geotechnical work; report author; assumptions; calculations or drawings; repair basis; permits; and professional responsibility. | Compare the same decision and evidence, not unlike inspection and construction packages. |
| Installation, access & site protection | List repair locations and quantities, system or materials, utilities, excavation, temporary support, load transfer or lifting limits, sequencing, drainage, backfill, dust control, finishes and changes. | Compare the same access, safety, installation and restoration boundaries. |
| Monitoring, closeout & warranty | Specify baseline and final measurements, installation logs, inspections, photographs, as-builts, monitoring method and period, unresolved conditions, maintenance, exclusions and warranty terms. | Compare the evidence and obligations that remain after crews leave. |
UNDERSTAND THE PRICE
See the parts. Then compare the total.
A useful budget explains what the money covers. Keep these cost areas visible rather than relying on a package name or headline figure.
Preparation and investigation
Products and installation
Access, disposal and reinstatement
Approvals, testing and handover
What changes the scope?
Start with documented observations and an appropriate assessment. Compare the reason for each proposed repair, affected areas and monitoring or closeout requirements.
Ask providers to explain how assessment findings and repair design affect their assumptions. Separate confirmed information from items still awaiting assessment.
What does the chart show?
The planning tool compares amounts you enter over the same period. Fixed charges, rate × quantity, monthly charges and extras stay separate. Its cumulative-cost graph makes different upfront and recurring arrangements easier to understand.
Published references, where available below, show their own units, source and period. They remain separate from your calculator inputs. Employee wages and producer-price indexes are context, not the price a provider will charge. Ask for current proposals for your actual scope.
YOUR PLANNING DESK
A clearer brief. A better starting point.
Build your request, compare entered costs and download a branded planning pack. Your selections stay here until you choose to continue.
Start with the details that matter.
No account needed to plan. Keep private documents, account numbers, credentials and sensitive case details out of this brief.
Also consider: Access, occupancy and scheduling constraints. Leave unknown details for the provider to assess.
Review your starting brief
Review before continuing. You can edit the wording below. Manual edits stay in place until you choose to regenerate from your answers.
367 characters
Next, review the request in PickYourPro.ai. An account is required to complete it. This step does not send invitations or commit you to a provider. Service availability and provider participation vary.
Opt-in saves form answers only. Manual brief edits, comparison values and checklist selections are not saved. Download a copy to keep them; avoid saving on shared devices.
FROM FIRST QUESTION TO HANDOVER
Know what happens next.
- 1
Define
Describe the outcome and current condition. Mark unknown measurements rather than guessing.
- 2
Assess
Agree any visit or diagnostic fee. Ask what must be checked before the price can be final.
- 3
Compare
Use the same drawings, selections and boundaries for each proposal.
- 4
Complete
Approve changes in writing and collect the agreed completion records.
A planning sequence, not a promised duration. Actual timing depends on the service, the information available and the provider's agreed scope.
WHEN YOU WANT THE DEEPER VIEW
The details worth resolving early.
Foundation work should begin with observed conditions and a defined decision, not a named repair system. Map cracks, floor or wall movement, sticking openings, moisture, drainage, additions, prior work and event dates. Separate inspection and monitoring from engineering, installation and finish restoration so each proposal states the finding it is meant to address and who owns the design.
For this particular project
Build a timeline with dated crack, door, window and floor changes; prior work; storms, drought, leaks or nearby excavation; occupancy or load changes; and photographs. Map the building and site, including drainage, grading, vegetation, slopes, additions, utilities, groundwater or known soil information. Ask for repeatable benchmarks, an elevation grid or other stated measurement method, instrument and conditions, raw readings, reference point, expected uncertainty and any monitoring interval. Require the assessor to distinguish building movement from broader ground movement, explain alternative causes and unknowns, and identify when structural engineering, geotechnical investigation or another qualified specialty is needed before a repair is selected.
Use these questions to write my brief ↗- 01Gather history, records & a dated condition map
- 02Inspect, measure & identify uncertainties
- 03Define the cause hypothesis, design & approvals
- 04Protect, excavate, install or repair & record
- 05Verify, monitor, restore & retain the file
What is observed, and what is only inferred?
Create a dated condition map for cracks, displacement, floor variation, out-of-plumb walls, sticking doors or windows, water and exterior drainage. Record material, location, orientation, width, reference point, photographs, prior repairs and whether a condition is new, changing, seasonal or of unknown history. A crack pattern can have more than one cause, so do not let a label or photograph substitute for inspection, measurement and stated uncertainty.
What assessment and design are you purchasing?
Distinguish a visual inspection, elevation survey or monitoring visit from structural evaluation, geotechnical investigation and repair design. Name the report author, qualifications, methods, reference criteria, assumptions, inaccessible areas, calculations or drawings, and responsibility for permits and inspections. A sales visit from an installer may provide useful observations, but it is not automatically an independent design or a complete evaluation.
What condition is the proposed repair intended to change?
Require the proposal to connect each repair location to a documented finding and to address relevant soil movement, subsidence, drainage, groundwater, footing, wall, slab, support connection, deterioration, loading or prior alteration. Define excavation, utilities, temporary support, repair material or system, locations and quantities, design load or endpoint where applicable, load transfer or lifting limits, sequencing, backfill, drainage, monitoring and exclusions. Do not accept a product name as the cause analysis.
How will completion and remaining uncertainty be documented?
Set a prework baseline and require installation records, approved changes, inspections and final measurements. Depending on the system, records may include as-built locations, depths, torque, pressure, load, grout or concrete information, anchors, fasteners, drainage checks and photographs. State the monitoring period and method, restoration limits, maintenance, warranty conditions and conditions not covered. Avoid promises that a structure will become level or movement will stop permanently unless the responsible design specifically supports them.
What changes with location and conditions?
- Contractor and engineer licensing, required reports, permits, plan review, inspections, utility locating, excavation rules, repair disclosures and warranty law vary by state, tribe, county and municipality. Confirm the responsible local authority and qualified design roles before treating a national reference or product detail as a local approval.
- Expansive soil, fill, land subsidence, soluble rock and sinkhole potential, groundwater, slope, frost, earthquakes, flooding, drainage, nearby excavation, vegetation, additions and historic construction can change both the investigation and the repair. USGS material explains these regional mechanisms but does not diagnose an individual property.
- Excavation collapse, undermined adjacent structures, buried utilities, temporary support or lifting, silica from concrete or masonry work, powered equipment, electrical hazards and restricted crawlspaces require site-specific controls. The employer and responsible qualified professionals should select the applicable protections; homeowner planning notes are not a safety plan.
Documents to collect at completion
- Dated condition map, photographs, floor plan, symptom and event history, prior repair records, crack descriptions, elevation or plumb reference and raw readings, drainage and moisture observations, inaccessible areas and stated measurement limitations
- Signed assessment and repair package identifying the author and qualifications, methods, findings, cause hypothesis and alternatives, assumptions, calculations or drawings, design criteria, repair locations, permits and inspections, design responsibility and approved changes
- Installation and as-built file with exact locations, quantities, depths or endpoints, loads, torque or pressure, lift observations, grout, concrete or product batches, anchors, connections and welds where applicable, excavation, utility, backfill, drainage, site protection and restoration records
- Final measurements and photographs, inspection signoffs, testing or drainage checks included in scope, monitoring plan and data, unresolved or residual movement, finish exceptions, owner maintenance, manuals, service contacts and written warranty terms and exclusions
Compare these promised records before choosing a provider. Keep the originals alongside your planning pack.
PICKYOURPRO.AI · YOUR NEXT STEP
Explain it once.
Compare with more clarity.
Turn what you have learned into a focused request. Give providers the same starting information, review their responses and ask questions about differences in scope, timing and fees.
- 1
Build a clear brief
Describe the service, your priorities and what needs assessment.
- 2
Review responses
Compare what each provider proposes and clarify open questions.
- 3
Choose your provider
Consider relevant experience, scope and terms—not just the lowest number.
Requesting and comparing proposals is free for clients. Provider participation, availability and response times vary. Confirm any separate consultation or inspection charge. Review project unlock terms for later project stages.
GOOD QUESTIONS, CLEARER CHOICES
Before you choose.
What should I include in a settlement assessment request?
Provide dates, photos and prior work. Include assessment findings, repair design, access and excavation, monitoring and closeout where known. Leave unknowns for the professional to assess.
Can I compare prices before an assessment?
You can compare the stated assumptions, scope and fee basis. Ask what must be checked before an offer is final and whether a consultation, inspection or diagnostic visit has a separate charge. For this service, start by clarifying assessment findings.
How should I handle a lower price?
Ask which tasks, deliverables and terms differ. Use the cost tool to compare the same period and quantities, then review exclusions and professional fit. The smallest calculated number is not a recommendation.
Does the planning pack create an agreement?
No. It records your brief and entered scenarios. You still need to review and agree the provider’s actual proposal and terms. Keep original documents and approvals.
What happens after I continue to my request?
Your reviewed brief enters the existing PickYourPro.ai request process. You will need an account and can confirm the remaining details before completing the request. Provider participation and availability vary.
Are these live market prices?
The planning calculator uses your entered figures. Published references elsewhere on the page are separate, dated observations with their own sources and limitations. Neither is a live provider quote. Employee wages are not billable labor rates, and a producer-price index is not an installed project price.
TRANSPARENT BY DESIGN
Sources and editorial notes.
Prepared by PickYourPro.ai with AI assistance · Framework published October 7, 2026. Expanded research review: Sources checked October 9, 2026. These service-planning questions have not been independently reviewed by a licensed specialist. Local requirements and professional suitability need individual verification.
- FTC: hiring a contractor ↗
Background on written estimates and checking a contractor. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
- USGS: Land Subsidence ↗
Federal earth-science background updated September 17, 2026, on groundwater-related compaction and other subsidence mechanisms; it does not determine the cause or repair for an individual structure. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
- USGS: Landslides Glossary ↗
Federal definitions explaining that expansive soils shrink or swell with moisture change and can damage structures; this is regional context, not a site soil report or foundation diagnosis. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
- NPS: Common Problems with Brick Masonry ↗
Federal preservation guidance describing multiple possible causes of masonry cracking and the value of monitoring; its historic-masonry context is not a universal structural diagnosis or repair specification. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
- NPS Preservation Brief 15: Historic Concrete ↗
Federal historic-concrete guidance distinguishing repair considerations for moving and non-moving cracks; use it as material context, not as a design for a particular foundation. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
- OSHA 1926.651: Excavation Requirements ↗
Federal worker-safety requirements addressing underground installations, water, adjacent structures, foundation excavation and inspections; the employer must determine all applicable OSHA or State Plan obligations. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
- OSHA: Crystalline Silica in Construction ↗
Federal worker-safety overview for construction tasks that disturb silica-containing concrete, brick, block, stone or rock; it does not replace the employer's exposure assessment and compliant control plan. This resource does not endorse PickYourPro.ai. See any price-reference chart for the exact unit, scope and observation date.
Methodology and updates
Scope questions are organized by service and buying process. The planning calculator uses only entered values. Separately labelled reference charts use public source observations; no private PickYourPro project history is used. A permanent page address does not make a dated reference permanently current. Substantive changes should update the editorial record.
October 7, 2026: initial guide, service-specific scope, planning worksheet and cost-comparison tools published.
Sources checked October 9, 2026: expanded option comparisons, project-specific buying questions, regional considerations and completion records.
KEEP EXPLORING
More foundation repair guides.
Foundation inspections
Ask what the written assessment covers.
Explore ↗Slab issues
Separate investigation from the proposed intervention.
Explore ↗Crawlspace supports
Clarify support locations and underlying conditions.
Explore ↗Foundation crack evaluation
Ask what the observations mean before choosing a treatment.
Explore ↗