This was a property built in the late 1940s by a guy who used to build barracks for the US Army. The home was sitting on metal I-beams and they were supported by large concrete piles. The home hasn't moved an inch since being built. Very interesting and impressive!

This 7-inch crack is showing severe signs of differential settlement, meaning portions of the foundation are sinking at a greater rate.

Foot added for reference.

Jenga! Your turn.

This subterranean basement had a window that opened up into an open area underground. Imagine opening the window in your basement and a group of bats fly in. That probably wouldn't happen here but it's possible! This is a great spot for putting your disobedient kids.

They did not understand the assignment.

These homeowners were out of town when their pool service technician left the water running. As a result, the pool overflowed and contributed to the failure of this deck.

You are looking at the worst framing rot that we have ever come across on an inspection.
You can't even touch this wall without the whole thing falling apart. Just look at the insulation around it!
You know it's really bad when the studs begin to look like fractured vertebrae.

This apartment complex's tucked-under garage has begun to spall.
Spalling can cause serious injuries as it can damage the whole structure to a point of failure.

There are three stories above this garage.

At least they placed the concrete on the dirt to avoid termites. 2 out of 10 for the effort.

These posts are waiting to fall over any day now.

Pottery can be a very useful tool.

The main support beams for this stilt home are suffering from extreme wood rot.

This home is suffering from a severe case of fungus growth inside the crawlspace. The amount of fungus that has spread across the joists and girder can potentially be a serious issue for the homeowners.

This Rancho Palos Verdes home is experiencing extreme settlement and shifting which is evident in the huge cracks along the exterior.

Let’s just say the bend in the roof is not architectural.

I don't know about you but I would want to park the furthest away from this wall...

"How do you know if your wood is rotting?" This is how.

Life always finds a way...

An unstable slope will show indications of movement by the presence of geotropism, which refers to the growth of plants against gravity. The way the trees bend towards the bottom of the slope lets us know the hillside is unstable and is constantly moving.

I love magic shows.

This house impressed me with floating posts and invisible piers.

Still selling for one million dollars…

The foundation of this home has literally snapped in half resulting in extreme shifting throughout the structure.

Interesting brickwork on that chimney you got there.

Tell me you love controlled chaos without telling me you love controlled chaos.

"I'm on the edge" - Lady Gaga

Please watch your step!

When you gotta go... you gotta go.

Hmm, did they drink a bit too much and forgot to pour the footing?

This is the result of a creeping hillside and shallow pile placement.
As the hillside slowly moves down or "creeps", the concrete piles, retaining walls and their footings begin to go down with it. This is why proper bearing material should be reached for all supporting systems on a hillside. Some places only require 5 feet down, others require 45+ feet down. It is imperative to get the proper depth!

Structural support shouldn’t be a balancing game.

This was taken during one of our structural inspections in North Hollywood. It's gonna take a little more than duct tape to fix this one.

The “Balcony Bill” was signed back in 2018, and for good reason. Let’s get them up to code now.

Anyone want to step foot on this balcony?

This is one of the craziest things that we've seen during our inspections. This owner had undermined almost the entirety of his home by digging underneath the slab and excavating around the piles. There had been a minor mudslide and they decided it would be a good idea to create more space underneath... The grade of soil used to be up to the concrete slab above. Believe it or not, the property had not yet been red-tagged.

Jenga but 100x bigger!

We were called out to assess a failing deck on an ocean-front home, but the ocean had other plans.

Santa better have insurance.

Only bounce houses should move side to side. This home’s garage is clearly on its way out. Hope it’s empty.

Being that my company in LA does this sort of repair/prevention work, this was some scary news to see this morning. Torrential rain and debris caused a large chunk of Highway 1 on the West Coast of California to wash away.
You're going to need yourself a Yoshi if you're wanting to cross here. Back in 2017, a massive landslide covered up over a half mile of the road. It took months to clean up and there was no access around it. If it continues to rain, I wouldn't be surprised if more of this happened in and around Southern California.

Notice the compression of the posts into the girder. They go into the girder about an inch. This property has some crazy settlement and moisture problems

One good look at this photo and you'll see multiple things going on. The floors are sloping (and have been for quite some time) so bad that it is effecting the levelness of the lamp, desk, drawers, AC vents and door frames. This home has some of the craziest sloping floors that we've seen.

Sometimes the access points to these crawlspaces can be a bit rough...

The Los Angeles hillside communities were some of the hardest hit during the storm. Hillsides all over SoCal failed and our assessors were quickly dispatched out on emergency calls.

Don’t underestimate the power of water.

The pig from the three little pigs story did a better job at building a house of bricks.
This looks rushed. Maybe the big bad wolf was closer than they thought.

Who else is bummed they missed this party?

We have inspected this home a few times. It's a vacant lot, currently up for sale.
It has been like this for quite some time and should somebody buy the property, they would be in for a nice replacement project.
Here's the side of the home where you can see a decently sized crack separating the failed and stable areas.
Nature is taking over where this retaining wall has cracked and displaced.

Jenga: House Edition.

We inspected this "dangerous" retaining wall in Los Angeles that is leaning and broken apart. You can see how bad it's actually leaning from this angle. It has been there for quite some time but nobody has done anything to repair or replace it.

Here we have a brick retaining wall experiencing surcharge from the neighboring hill. Structures that are settling can cause this surcharge in the soil. This creates a high-pressure situation which then pushes out the remaining soil and results in this type of damage to retaining walls.

Another failing railroad tie "retaining wall" that should be replaced soon. You can see how far it has begun to lean towards the street.

The brick and mortar piers are literally turning into dust. Not something you want holding up your entire house.

This post and pier looks funny.
Someone replaced the post with a game of jenga.