The city's requirements, item by item
From the Development Services page on residential remodels and repairs, which lists foundation repair with interior remodeling.
- An engineered plan
- The city's wording is that foundation repair requires an engineered sealed foundation plan for repairs. Sealed means stamped by a Texas-licensed professional engineer.
- An application
- The residential building permit application, with the scope of work to be performed.
- Where to apply
- Applications are filed on the web, in what Development Services calls its Dynamic Portal. New users register an account first.
- Who to ask
- Development Services, 2406 Leopard Street, (361) 826-3240.
The department's residential remodels and repairs page has the current forms and the portal link.
Who applies, and what you should see
In practice the repair company applies, because it has the engineer's plan and knows the portal. That is fine, but the permit is tied to your property, so obtain its number early and, when the crew packs up, verify the city shows it closed.
Check the engineer too. The seal on the plan carries a name and a license number, and the state board's roster search will show whether that license is current.
Windstorm certification
Nueces County is one of the coastal counties where the Texas Department of Insurance runs a windstorm inspection program. A certificate of compliance for certain construction and repairs is what makes a property eligible for wind and hail cover through the state's windstorm association. The city's permit page says windstorm-related repairs require an engineer.
Whether a particular foundation job needs that certificate depends on the work. Ask the engineer before the job starts, since the paperwork is easier to do alongside the repair than afterward. The department's windstorm page explains the program and lets you search existing certificates for an address.
Outside the city limits
Each neighbouring city runs its own permits. Portland publishes a foundation checklist that asks for stamped plans and an engineer's letter about the plumbing. Robstown, Rockport and Aransas Pass each have a building department of their own. The service area page links to a page for each town with its office and phone number.
On Padre Island, beach and dune rules may add a certificate or permit on top of the building permit. A call to Development Services settles it for a given address.
Ready for someone to measure the house?
Dial the number and say what you have noticed. A foundation repair firm covering your part of the Coastal Bend answers, books a visit, and afterward sends its report and price under its own name. That firm is a separate business from this website.
Wall, ceiling or floor shifting while you watch? Gas in the air? Get everybody outdoors, then phone 911 or the gas utility.
House foundations only
Call (361) 217-1905Corpus Christi Foundation Repairs refers callers and repairs nothing itself. Calls may be recorded. Details: referral disclosure.