With four generations and 100+ years of structural masonry heritage, DiBara Masonry repairs cracked, settling, and shifting foundations across Los Angeles, coordinating licensed structural engineers to underpin your home’s footing and stop movement before it spreads to walls, floors, and doors.
With more than 4,300 projects completed, we showcase a selection of our structural repair work, from crack injection to full underpinning, built with the expertise to diagnose the real cause before recommending a fix.
Each repair is engineered with care, precision, and durability in mind, serving homeowners across Eagle Rock, Highland Park, the San Fernando Valley, and surrounding Los Angeles neighborhoods.
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With more than 4,300 structural projects completed across Southern California, our crews repair foundation cracks, void-fill settled footings, and install underpinning systems for homes affected by expansive clay soil, drought cycles, and seismic movement.
We work on raised foundations in older Los Angeles neighborhoods like Eagle Rock and Highland Park, as well as slab foundations across the Valley, diagnosing the actual cause of movement before recommending a repair, not just patching the visible crack. On lots where a hillside slope adds lateral soil pressure against the foundation, we coordinate the repair with the same engineering standards we apply to our hillside retaining wall projects, since the two problems often share a root cause.
A cosmetic crack filler hides a crack; it does not stop the settlement causing it. DiBara Masonry, holding CSLB License #1002003 (C-29 Masonry classification) along with about 5 additional trade licenses, brings in a licensed structural engineer to identify whether a crack is cosmetic shrinkage or active settlement before recommending underpinning, void grouting, or a footing extension. You can verify any contractor’s license status yourself; our own guide on what a CSLB license actually verifies walks through what to check before hiring.
Every foundation repair is reviewed by a fourth-generation mason against current LADBS foundation and grading standards, so the fix addresses the soil and drainage conditions actually causing movement on your specific lot. That review step is the same one we apply on every structural project; see how our review process works for the full picture.
We start with a foundation and soil diagnostic, inspecting crack patterns, door and window alignment, and drainage around the foundation to determine whether movement is active or historic. Within 72 hours we deliver an engineering and repair proposal covering crack injection, void grouting, or underpinning with helical piers or spot footings, prepared in the format our engineer partners and LADBS reviewers require.
Once the scope is approved, our crews complete the structural repair and stabilization, installing the underpinning or crack repair and re-grading drainage away from the foundation to prevent the same movement from recurring. A project manager and on-site foreman stay on the job from groundbreaking to final sign-off.
Our scope covers foundation crack injection and sealing, void grouting under slabs, and helical pier or spot footing underpinning for footings that can no longer support the structure. We also handle raised foundation repair, including cripple wall and mudsill work common in older Los Angeles homes.
Because water is the most frequent cause of repeat cracking, every project includes drainage correction to prevent recurrence, coordinated with our drainage and sitework team where grading or site drainage needs a larger fix, and with our foundation waterproofing service where moisture is entering through the wall itself.
Diagonal or horizontal cracks, a stair-step crack pattern in block or stucco, doors and windows that stick or no longer latch, and gaps forming between walls and floors or ceilings are all signals that settlement is active rather than cosmetic. A sloping floor, cracked tile, or a chimney separating from the house are further signs worth a diagnostic visit.
None of these signs mean the same thing on every property, which is why we inspect the crack pattern, the drainage around the foundation, and the soil conditions together rather than reacting to a single visible crack. Catching active movement early is almost always less expensive than waiting for it to spread into the framing above.
Underpinning, footing extensions, and structural crack repair typically require an LADBS permit and, in many cases, a geotechnical soils report, since the work affects the load path of the structure. We handle the permit submittal and coordinate directly with the reviewing structural engineer as part of the project, rather than leaving that coordination to the homeowner.
On lots with an adjacent slope, the same seismic and soil-pressure calculations used on our retaining wall services apply to the foundation repair, since both are resisting lateral earth pressure from the same hillside. We size the underpinning and reinforcement to current California seismic requirements either way.
DiBara Masonry is a fourth-generation, family-owned contractor with over 100 years of family tradition, holding an active CSLB License #1002003 (C-29 Masonry classification) along with approximately 5 additional trade licenses. We’re rated 4.9 stars across 300+ verified reviews and BBB accredited, and we bring the same structural review standard to a foundation repair that we apply to any engineered wall. Learn more about our team and four generations of experience.
A foundation repair is only as good as the diagnosis behind it. We tell homeowners plainly when a crack is cosmetic and when it needs underpinning, and we back every structural repair with our craftsmanship and structural-integrity warranty.
Request a free foundation assessment to get a fixed-price repair plan for your home.
Thin, vertical hairline cracks under 1/8 inch are usually shrinkage and not urgent. Diagonal cracks, horizontal cracks, or any crack wider at one end, a stair-step pattern in block or stucco, point to active settlement or lateral pressure and should be evaluated before they widen further.
Patching seals the visible symptom, not the cause. If the soil beneath the footing is still expanding and contracting with seasonal moisture, or a footing was undersized for the load, the crack will reopen. We diagnose the underlying movement before recommending a repair.
Underpinning extends or reinforces a foundation’s footing, typically with helical piers or additional spot footings, when the existing footing can no longer support the structure due to settlement, soil erosion, or an addition adding load. It’s necessary when crack injection alone won’t stop ongoing movement.
Yes. Underpinning, footing extensions, and structural crack repair typically require an LADBS permit and, in many cases, a geotechnical soils report, since the work affects the load path of the structure.
Yes, it’s one of the most common causes we see. Water pooling against a foundation saturates the soil beneath it, which expands and then contracts as it dries, cycling the footing up and down and cracking it over time. Correcting grading and drainage is often part of a lasting repair, not an optional extra.
Crack injection typically takes 1 day. Helical pier underpinning for a section of foundation usually takes 3 to 7 days, depending on the number of piers and access to the crawlspace or perimeter.
Crack injection is the least expensive option, typically a fixed per-crack or per-linear-foot rate. Helical pier underpinning costs more per pier depending on depth and soil conditions. We give a fixed price only after the diagnostic visit, since the right repair and its cost depend on the actual cause.
Usually not, unless the damage stems from a covered peril like a burst pipe. Gradual settlement from soil movement is typically excluded, which is why catching and addressing early signs matters for your own budget, not just the structure.
Crack injection seals a stable, non-widening crack. If our diagnostic finds the crack is still active, or the footing itself has lost bearing capacity, injection alone won’t hold, and underpinning becomes the appropriate fix. We explain which applies to your situation before proposing a scope.
Yes. Raised foundations common in older LA neighborhoods often need cripple wall or mudsill repair and better crawlspace ventilation and drainage, while slab foundations typically need void grouting or underpinning at the perimeter or interior footings. Both start with the same diagnostic process.
Call (323) 313-0165 or request a free assessment online. We inspect your crack patterns, drainage, and soil conditions, then provide a fixed-price repair proposal, coordinating structural engineering where the project requires it.
Meet DiBara Masonry, the 4th generation masonry and concrete experts that have been restoring brick, stone, & concrete structures for over 100 years!
