Documentation as a product
Foundation repair documents for selling your house — what to get and keep.
The crew leaves in a few days. The paperwork stays for the life of the house. When you sell, refinance, file an insurance claim, or simply want to prove the work was done right, it isn't the memory of a good crew that protects you — it's the documents. This is the full list of what a proper foundation repair produces, what each one is, and why it matters.
The short answer — what a foundation repair company should hand you at completion:
The signed scope of work, a before-and-after elevation survey, the pier installation log (locations, depths, pressures), the written transferable warranty, the building permit and sign-off where required, a final lien waiver, the contractor's certificate of insurance, dated photos, the paid invoice — and an engineer's letter when the job had one. If you're preparing a sale, the survey, pier log, and warranty are the three a buyer's inspector will actually ask for; the details on each are below, and selling your house after foundation repair shows how the packet plays in a real transaction. Selling before the repair instead? Start with selling a house with foundation problems.
Most foundation complaints aren't about the engineering — they're about a homeowner who can't prove what was done, can't transfer a warranty, or can't answer a buyer's inspector. Good documentation is the cheapest insurance in this industry, and the easiest thing to ask for before you sign. If a contractor can't tell you which of these you'll receive, that's your answer.
Why it matters
Paperwork is what survives the project.
A foundation repair is invisible six months later — backfilled, re-sodded, forgotten. The elevation survey, the pier log, and the warranty are how anyone — a future buyer, an engineer, an insurer, or you — confirms what happened underground. Treat these as part of what you're buying, not an afterthought.
The complete checklist
Ten documents to ask for — and keep.
Not every job needs every one (a small slab repair won't need an engineer's letter), but you should know which apply to yours and receive them in writing.
Scope of work / signed proposal
An itemized description of exactly what will be done — method, number of piers or piles, locations, depths targeted, and price — agreed and signed before work starts.
Why it matters: It's the contract the work is measured against. If a question ever arises about what you paid for, the scope settles it.
Before-and-after elevation survey
A floor-level (relative elevation) map of your home taken before repair and again after — numbers at points across the slab showing how far each area sat low or high, and how much it moved back.
Why it matters: It's the only objective proof the repair actually lifted or stabilized the structure. Buyers' inspectors and engineers read this first.
Pier / pile installation log
A per-pier record: each pier's location on the plan, the depth it reached, and the hydraulic pressure or resistance it bore before it was accepted.
Why it matters: It proves every support was driven to a load-bearing stratum, not stopped short. It's what lets any future engineer verify the job.
Structural engineer's letter (when applicable)
An independent, licensed engineer's written opinion — a design before the work, a verification letter after, or both — often stamped.
Why it matters: Lenders, buyers, and insurers frequently require third-party sign-off. The letter is what satisfies them.
Written warranty document
The actual warranty terms: what's covered, for how long, what voids it, and — critically — whether it transfers to the next owner.
Why it matters: A warranty you can't produce on paper isn't a warranty. This document is the one a future buyer will ask to see.
Building permit & inspection sign-off
Where the jurisdiction requires it, the pulled permit and the municipal inspection approval for the foundation work.
Why it matters: Unpermitted structural work is a red flag in a sale and can complicate insurance. The permit closes that loop.
Final lien waiver
A signed release confirming the contractor (and any suppliers) have been paid and waive the right to file a mechanic's lien against your property.
Why it matters: Without it, a paid-in-full job can still leave a lien risk on your title. It protects your clear ownership.
Certificate of insurance (COI)
Current proof of the contractor's general liability and workers' compensation coverage, ideally naming the dates your job ran.
Why it matters: If something is damaged or someone is hurt on your property, this is what stands between you and the liability.
Photo documentation
Dated before, during, and after photographs — cracks, pier holes, tunnels, and finished restoration — tied to the locations on your plan.
Why it matters: Photos turn 'trust us' into a visual record. They're invaluable for warranty claims and for explaining the work to a buyer years later.
Paid invoice & payment record
A final, itemized, paid-in-full invoice matching the signed scope.
Why it matters: It's your proof of expense — for resale disclosure, for taxes on a rental, and for any future insurance or warranty claim.
When you'll reach for them
Four moments these documents pay for themselves.
Selling the home. A foundation note in the seller's disclosure scares buyers — until you hand over a transferable warranty, a before-and-after elevation survey, and a pier log. Documented repairs close deals; undocumented ones reopen negotiations. More in selling your house after foundation repair — and if you're the listing agent assembling this packet for a client, foundation repair for realtors is written for you.
Filing an insurance claim. A Texas foundation claim generally only has a path when a sudden, covered event — most often a plumbing leak under the slab — caused the movement, and proving that cause is a documentation job. The documents that carry a claim are the engineer's report (independent opinion on cause and scope), the plumber's leak evidence (leak-detection or static test report), a dated before-and-after elevation survey showing where the slab moved, and timestamped photos. See how coverage actually works — the covered-peril exception, endorsements, and limits — in foundation repair insurance coverage in Texas.
Making a warranty claim. Years later, a warranty is only as good as your ability to produce the document and show the original elevation baseline. That baseline is why the survey matters as much as the repair.
Refinancing or appraisal. Lenders and appraisers flag foundation history. A permit and an engineer's verification letter turn a question mark into a closed item.
How Motmot does it
We treat documentation as a deliverable.
Every Motmot job starts with a measured elevation survey and ends with a complete package: the before-and-after survey, a per-pier installation log with depths and pressures, dated photos, the permit where required, a final lien waiver, our certificate of insurance, and a lifetime, transferable warranty on paper. It's the same record we'd want if it were our home being sold years from now.
It's also why we don't pay anyone on pier count: the documentation has to be honest, and that only works when no one profits from finding more. Read more about how the company is built, or see how a project actually runs.
Straight answers
Foundation repair documents, answered.
Start with the one document everyone should have.
A free Motmot inspection ends with a measured elevation survey of your home — the baseline that makes every other document meaningful, whether you repair now or not.
Now booking free inspections in Central Texas.