Engineered foundations for Santa Clara homeowners and builders

In almost all cases, yes — foundation design for new construction, additions and ADUs typically requires a licensed structural engineer's stamped plans before a building department will permit it. We build to those stamped plans; if you don't have an engineer yet, we can point you to ones we work with regularly.

It depends on project size and foundation type — a straightforward ADU slab in Santa Clara moves much faster than a full custom home foundation with extensive grading. We'll give you a realistic timeline once we've reviewed your specific plans and site.

Most single-family lots qualify for at least one ADU under state law, subject to local setback, height and lot-coverage rules that vary by city and zoning district. We confirm what your parcel supports as part of the foundation design process, working alongside your ADU plans.

Both. Some clients come to us directly, often before they've hired a general contractor; others are referred by a GC or architect who wants a foundation sub they can hand a stamped plan set to and trust.

Much of Santa Clara sits on expansive clay, which moves seasonally as it absorbs and loses moisture. It's manageable with the right foundation design — proper reinforcement, drainage and, where called for, a raised foundation instead of a slab — but it does need to be accounted for rather than ignored. We confirm your parcel's soil conditions against your soil report before we finalize a design.

New construction is our primary focus, but we do take on foundation repair and seismic retrofit work for existing homes as a secondary service — see our Foundation Repair & Retrofit page for details.