Foundation repair and concrete permits in North Carolina
For foundation and concrete contractors
Foundation work carries the house, so it needs a permit in North Carolina at any price. Foundation repair, crawlspace and retaining wall permits show where the work is and who's doing it, and new-home permits show where the next footings will be poured.
- Permits, last 12 months
- 1,822
- Last 90 days
- 532
- Last 30 days
- 183
- Contractors on the list
- 12
- most active, below
When foundation and concrete work needs a permit in North Carolina
The $40,000 exemption in G.S. 160D-1110 doesn't cover adding, repairing or replacing load-bearing structure. Helical or push piers, underpinning, new footings and crawlspace supports carry the house, so they need a building permit whatever they cost.
Flatwork is different. A patio, walk or slab that carries no structure is usually under the exemption, which is why few appear in the record. Concrete contractors find more work in new-home and commercial permits, where the foundation and flatwork come first.
This guide counts permits whose description names foundation repair, helical or push piers, underpinning, crawlspace repair, retaining walls or concrete slabs and flatwork, leaving new homes out. Retaining walls are often filed with fences, and foundation repairs as alterations.
The permits worth watching
New homes
Every new house needs footings, a foundation and flatwork. The builder on the permit picks the concrete sub, often for a whole community.
Foundation repairs
Pier and crawlspace permits are jobs already sold, but they show which repair companies are winning where.
Retaining walls
Filed with new subdivisions, commercial sites and steep lots. The developer or site contractor hires.
Additions and pools
An addition needs a foundation; a pool needs a deck around it. Both are concrete work on someone else's permit.
Where the work is
1,822 foundation repair, retaining wall and concrete permits in the last 12 months, by the permit office that issued them and by ZIP code. Each links to its own page.
Foundation and concrete permits by city
Every permit office with 50 or more of these permits in the last year has its own page: counts by month, the busiest ZIP codes, who's pulling them and recent filings.
- Charlotte & Mecklenburg County419 permits in 12 months
- Raleigh348 permits in 12 months
- Durham249 permits in 12 months
- Wake County153 permits in 12 months
- Brunswick County148 permits in 12 months
- Greensboro120 permits in 12 months
- Wilmington & New Hanover County102 permits in 12 months
- Asheville88 permits in 12 months
- Gaston County77 permits in 12 months
- Cary65 permits in 12 months
Who's doing the work
The contractors pulling the most of these permits in the last 12 months — your competitors, or the builders and GCs worth a call.
| Contractor | Last 12 months | Last 90 days |
|---|---|---|
| Groundworks North Carolina (Tar Heel Basement Systems) | 121 | 40 |
| Foundation Pro NC (Ram Jack) | 101 | 36 |
| DryPro Foundation | 83 | 34 |
| Rhinolift LLC | 74 | 25 |
| Vertical Walls, Inc. | 65 | 9 |
| Cardinal Civil Contracting, LLC | 50 | 10 |
| Carolina Basement Systems, LLC | 47 | 9 |
| Ram Jack Of Charlotte LLC | 39 | 18 |
| Foundation Xperts, LLC | 32 | 14 |
| Falcone Crawl Space & Structural Repair | 23 | 1 |
| Moisture Loc | 22 | 8 |
| Sitescapes, LLC. | 20 | 8 |
Recent permits
A sample from 30 or more days ago. Permit Search and the daily email have them as they're filed.
| Address | Type | Value | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3786 ASH-LITTLE RIVER RD NWAsh 28420 | Alteration / RemodelRemodel/Repair | $18K | Issued | |
| 615 BAY FOREST DRKnightdale 27545 | Fence / Retaining WallCommercial Structures other than Buildings | — | In review | |
| 3509 MIDDLEBROOK DRDurham 27705 | Alteration / RemodelRESI | $31K | — | |
| 5042 SILABERT AVCharlotte 28205 | Alteration / RemodelAlteration | $11K | Issued | |
| 4124 COLEMAN DRCharlotte 28215 | Alteration / RemodelAlteration | $13K | Issued |
183 more permits filed in North Carolina in the last 30 days
Pro names the contractor on most, with a phone number on some.
Pro is $199/mo founding rate (ends Dec 31, 2026), then $299/mo.
How to work the list
- 01
Follow the builders
A few builders file most new homes in a county. Footings come first, often within weeks of the permit.
- 02
Map the repairs
Repair permits cluster where soils and older homes keep producing work. Each ZIP page shows where.
- 03
Know your competition
The contractor table shows who's filing foundation and retaining wall work, and each company's page shows where.
Foundation and concrete permits in North Carolina: common questions
- Do you need a permit for foundation repair in North Carolina?
- Yes. Piers, footings and crawlspace supports carry the house, and the $40,000 exemption in G.S. 160D-1110 doesn't cover load-bearing work, so foundation repair needs a permit at any price. A patio, walk or slab that carries no structure is usually under the exemption, which is why few appear on file.
- How many foundation and concrete permits are filed in North Carolina?
- 1,822 in the last 12 months across the offices we read: permits whose description names foundation repair, helical or push piers, underpinning, crawlspace repair, retaining walls or concrete slabs, new homes left out. Most were filed in Mecklenburg County (419), Raleigh (348) and Durham (249).
- Who pulls the most foundation repair, retaining wall and concrete permits in North Carolina?
- By permits in the last 12 months: Groundworks North Carolina (Tar Heel Basement Systems), Foundation Pro NC (Ram Jack) and DryPro Foundation. The table above has the top twelve, each linked to its own page where it has one.
More guides
- North Carolina building permits: the guide
- Roofing permits in North Carolina
- HVAC permits in North Carolina
- Solar permits in North Carolina
- Building permit data for general contractors
- Electrical permits in North Carolina
- Plumbing permits in North Carolina
- Demolition permits in North Carolina
- Pool and spa permits in North Carolina
- Deck, porch and addition permits in North Carolina
- Commercial upfit permits in North Carolina
- Fire alarm and sprinkler permits in North Carolina
- Window, door and siding permits in North Carolina
- The Charlotte region: building permits guide
- The Triangle: building permits guide
- The Triad: building permits guide
- Wilmington and the Cape Fear region: building permits guide
Get these permits as they're filed
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Source: TarSignal, from North Carolina public building permit records, data through October 30, 2026. Refreshed nightly. Counts include every permit type a jurisdiction files — trade permits (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) as well as building permits — so one project can appear more than once. Values are what the applicant declared, where the jurisdiction records one. We keep improving how we collect each office's permits, so a count that steps up suddenly usually means more complete records, not more construction.