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Serving Corte Madera, CA and surrounding areas. (628) 212-4120
Your deck, addition, or retaining wall is only as good as what is underneath it. We pour footings sized for Marin clay soils and California seismic standards, with permits handled and inspections scheduled.
Concrete footings in Corte Madera are the underground base that holds up everything built on top of them - a deck, fence, addition, or retaining wall - poured into excavated forms with steel reinforcement sized for local soil and seismic conditions. Most residential footing jobs involve one to three days of active work plus a permit review period of a few days to a few weeks.
Most homeowners in Corte Madera reach out when they are planning a deck or addition and need the footings done as the first step, or when posts or fence panels have started leaning after a wet winter. Marin County's expansive clay soils are the main reason footings fail here - they swell and shrink with every wet-dry cycle, and footings that were not sized or reinforced for that movement slowly lose their grip. For projects that pair footings with a larger structural base, our foundation installation service handles the broader scope of work when more than individual footings are needed.
We pull the building permit from the Town of Corte Madera and schedule the required pre-pour inspection as standard procedure on every footing job. That inspection - where a town inspector checks depth and reinforcement before any concrete is poured - is what gives you documentation that the work was done correctly and protects you when you sell.
If a post that used to stand straight is now visibly tilted, or if a fence section has started to pull away from its neighbors, the footing underneath may have failed or never been adequate. In Corte Madera's clay soils, this often happens after a wet winter when the ground swells and then dries unevenly. A contractor can dig down to inspect the existing footing and tell you whether it needs to be replaced or reinforced.
Any new structure attached to your home - or a freestanding one like a shed, pergola, or detached garage - will require new footings before the Town of Corte Madera will issue a building permit. This is not optional: the permit process will specifically ask how the structure is being supported. Getting footings done right from the start means you will not have to tear out work later.
Diagonal cracks running from the corners of door frames or windows are one of the most reliable signs that part of your home's foundation or a supported structure is settling unevenly. In older Corte Madera homes - many built in the 1950s and 1960s - original footings may not have been designed for today's soil movement standards. If you are seeing this pattern, it is worth having a contractor or structural engineer take a look.
Corte Madera's wet winters can saturate the ground around structural posts, and if water is consistently sitting against a post base, it can erode or undermine the footing over time. You might notice soft or sunken ground near a post, or see that a structure has started to tilt slightly after a rainy season. Addressing drainage and footing integrity together is usually the right move.
Every footing job starts with a site visit to confirm the required depth, width, and reinforcement for your specific structure and soil conditions. We call 811 to locate underground utilities before any digging starts, excavate to the required depth, set forms, place rebar, and schedule the pre-pour inspection with the Town of Corte Madera before any concrete goes in. The inspector confirms that depth and reinforcement are correct - then we pour.
For projects where the footing work is the first step toward a larger structural scope - such as a retaining wall that also needs an engineered base - our concrete retaining walls service can be coordinated with the footing work so the excavation happens in a single mobilization. This saves time and reduces the number of times your yard is disrupted.
The American Concrete Institute sets the standards for how footings are designed and poured - including reinforcement placement and curing requirements. We follow those standards on every project and can walk you through what each step looks like before it happens.
Best for homeowners adding a new deck, pergola, or covered patio who need permitted, inspected footings to support the structure and satisfy the town's building department.
Best for homeowners building a home addition or accessory dwelling unit who need footings engineered for the load of a new occupied structure on Marin County clay soil.
Best for homeowners whose fence posts have started to lean or who are installing a new fence and want posts set in properly sized concrete rather than packed gravel.
Best for homeowners on Corte Madera's sloped lots who need footings poured at varying depths to follow the terrain and reach stable soil below the clay layer.
Corte Madera has two characteristics that make footing design more demanding than average. The first is clay-heavy soil throughout much of the town, particularly in the flatter areas near the bay. Clay expands when it absorbs water and shrinks when it dries - and that seasonal cycle puts stress on footings from the sides and below. Footings designed for more stable soil types can fail within a few years when placed in Marin County clay without accounting for that movement.
The second factor is seismic exposure. Corte Madera sits close to both the San Andreas and Hayward fault systems. The California Geological Survey maps this area as a seismic hazard zone, and state building code requires footings here to include reinforcement and connection hardware designed to handle ground movement. The pre-pour inspection from the town's building department confirms that those requirements are met before any concrete is placed.
We work on footing projects throughout Corte Madera and the surrounding communities. Property owners in Mill Valley, San Anselmo, and Tiburon face the same Marin clay and seismic conditions, and we design footings with those local factors in mind on every project.
We visit your property to assess the site, check soil conditions, and confirm how many footings the project needs and how deep they must go. Footing work in Corte Madera varies too much by site conditions to quote accurately without seeing the location. Expect a reply within one business day.
We submit the permit application to the Town of Corte Madera and call 811 to mark underground utilities before any digging starts. Permit review typically takes a few business days to a couple of weeks depending on project scope.
We dig the holes or trenches to the required depth, set forms, and place rebar reinforcement. Then we schedule the pre-pour inspection - the town inspector checks depth and steel before giving clearance to pour. This is a required step, not optional.
Once the inspector approves, we pour the concrete and allow several days for curing before removing forms. After the final inspection, the permit is closed out and you receive documentation confirming the work passed. The next phase of your project can then begin.
We handle the permit, schedule the inspection, and pour to California seismic standards. Call us or request an estimate online.
(628) 212-4120We size and reinforce every footing for the specific soil conditions at your address. Corte Madera's expansive clay is not treated the same way as stable valley soil - footings here need to be wider and better reinforced to stay put through wet winters and dry summers.
California's building code requires specific reinforcement and connection hardware for footings in seismically active areas - and Corte Madera qualifies. We include those requirements in every footing design without treating them as upgrades. The pre-pour inspection confirms that compliance before anything is covered up.
We have pulled permits and passed inspections through the Town of Corte Madera and neighboring building departments on more than 150 structural concrete projects since 2021. That experience means we know the timeline, the documentation, and the inspection checklist - and we manage all of it so you do not have to.
Sloped lots in Corte Madera require stepped footings, longer excavation times, and sometimes hand-digging where equipment cannot reach. We do not charge a penalty for difficult terrain - we build to the same standard on every site, regardless of slope or access constraints.
When a footing is permitted and inspected, you have official documentation that the work was done to code. That record matters when you sell, when you file an insurance claim, and when the building next to it needs repair or expansion. It is not just paperwork - it is protection.
Full foundation installation for new structures, additions, and ADUs where individual footings are not enough to support the load.
Learn moreRetaining walls built on properly engineered footings to hold back Corte Madera's clay soils through every rainy season.
Learn morePermit review takes time and construction windows fill up. Call now to get your project on the calendar before the rainy season returns.