Ironset Boston Concrete Construction
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Foundation raising in Boston MA - a steady lift and a sound base under your house

Old foundation crumbling or settling under your house? We lift the house in small, even steps so what's underneath can be repaired or built new.

Request an estimate(617) 226-2081
Concrete driveway with pale panels and red brick borders leads to a white house, with a golf cart beside a picket fence.
  • Licensed and fully insured.
  • Free estimates at your property.
  • We respond within 1 business day.

The foundation raising work we take on

  • Lifting for a new foundation

    When the old foundation is too far gone to patch, we raise the house and rest it on stacked timber cribbing while a new one goes in underneath.

  • Lifting for foundation repair

    When the walls underneath are cracked or settled in places, raising the house takes the weight off them so our crew can repair or rebuild the bad sections.

What does raising a house in Boston involve?

Foundation raising in Boston means lifting your house off its foundation and holding it steady so the foundation underneath can be repaired, changed or built new, and at Ironset Boston Concrete Construction we plan each lift around how your house is built.

Most people call us when the foundation under an older house is cracking, crumbling or settling and the house above it is still worth keeping. The price mostly follows how the house is built, how big it is and what the foundation needs, and some of that I can only see once the house is up. The schedule turns on the paperwork, because the plans and the permit come before any lift, and your estimate spells out what goes into your job.

Foundation raising and the work under the house

I start with how your house is built, because a wood frame and a brick house call for very different lifts, and that decides how many jacks, supports and braces the job needs.

  • Clearing the way

    We dig out around the foundation and use concrete cutting where an old slab or wall blocks the way in.

  • Lifting in small steps

    Jacks go under the carrying beams and the house comes up a short distance at a time, resting on stacked timber cribbing after each step.

  • Work under the house

    With the house held up, our crew forms, pours and finishes the foundation work the engineer's plans call for.

  • Setting the house down

    We lower the house onto its finished foundation and can pour a new concrete driveway if the old one came up for access.

Why Boston owners call Ironset for lifts

I did upkeep on rental buildings around Boston for years and got hooked on why their steps and slabs kept breaking. I still start with the parts nobody sees, and I'd rather explain a tricky problem plainly than hand you a quick number. Call (617) 226-2081 and I'll come take a look.

Request an estimate

  • The estimate comes from me

    I come out, look at the house and write the estimate myself, then work alongside our crew on the forming, pouring and finishing, so the person who planned the job is there.

  • In business since 2023

    I started this business in 2023 to build concrete work that doesn't need constant patching, and we're best known for the awkward jobs that keep failing until someone asks why.

  • Licensed and fully insured on every job

    We're licensed and fully insured, which matters on a job where your whole house sits on jacks and cribbing while the work goes on underneath it.

What happens when you call about raising your house?

Every lift is planned around how your house is built and what the city needs to see first, so the early steps are about looking, asking questions and getting the paperwork in order before anything moves.

Request an estimate

or call (617) 226-2081

  1. Call or send the form

    Call (617) 226-2081 or fill in the form and tell us what's going on with the foundation and why you want the house raised.

  2. I come out and look

    I look over the house and its foundation and ask what's gone wrong there before, because that history usually tells me what the lift has to work around.

  3. You get a written quote

    The written quote shows what goes under the house as well as what you'll see, and we line up any permits before our crew starts work.

Stamped concrete walkway and steps lead to a home entrance, bordered by a raised stone-look planter wall.

Get a foundation raising estimate for your Boston house

Send your address, what kind of house it is and any plot plan you have, and we'll reply within one business day. I'll set up a free estimate at your property, with no pressure to book.

(617) 226-2081

Questions about raising a house in Boston

Can a brick house be lifted in Boston?

Yes, most houses can be lifted, though a brick or stone house takes a more involved lift than a wood-framed one, which lifts well. Masonry cracks easily when it moves unevenly, so it needs more support points, careful planning of the load and often bracing inside the walls. I'll tell you which kind of lift your house needs when I come out.

How much does it cost to raise a house in Boston?

There's no single price, because the cost comes from your house and what's under it. A brick house costs more to lift than a wood-framed one, and the size of the house, how far it has to come up, what the foundation needs and whether the house sits in the flood district all move the number. Your written quote breaks those parts out for your house.

How do I get plans to raise my house in Boston?

You hire a Massachusetts registered engineer or architect to draw and stamp the design plans, and you'll also need a certified plot plan showing your property lines and where the house sits. The city asks for both with the permit application, so bring the engineer or architect in early, since the permit can't move without those plans.

Who is allowed to oversee foundation work on a house in Massachusetts?

On a one- or two-family home, the work has to be overseen by a licensed construction supervisor or a registered design professional, though the state does have a homeowner exemption. A contractor working on an existing home you live in, with one to four units, also has to be registered as a Home Improvement Contractor.

Does the flood district change a house raising project in Boston?

It can, if your house sits inside the city's Flood Hazard District. There, if the repair or improvement costs more than 50 percent of the building's market value, the city requires the whole building to meet current flood standards, and a large raising job can reach that point. Inside the district, a basement can't have its floor below ground on all sides, and any crawlspace or garage below the city's flood elevation has to be wet floodproofed, built so floodwater can get in and drain back out.

How do I prove my house was raised to Boston's flood code?

For work in the flood district, the city requires an Elevation Certificate for every residential building, filled out by a licensed surveyor with photos of the finished construction. It shows the house went up the way the approved plans and the flood code called for.

Foundation raising in Boston and the city's rules

Raising a house in Boston needs a foundation permit from Boston Inspectional Services, and you apply for it as a long-form permit, which you can start online, though you still have to come into the city's office. If work starts before the permit is issued, the city can charge double the permit cost or write a building code violation, so we set the lift date only after the permit is in hand. We help line it up before work starts and walk you through which office is involved, and if something isn't clear, I check with the city instead of guessing.

Some parts of the city are mapped into districts that add steps for the houses inside them. Boston's groundwater district covers sections where old wood pile foundations could be damaged if groundwater drops, and the flood district has its own rules, so I check where your house sits before we plan anything. We see a lot of older wood-frame and brick houses here, and the same mix on jobs in Somerville and Cambridge. We're based in Boston and work across the city and the cities around it, so if yours isn't listed, just ask.