Underpinning is not a project where the cheapest bid deserves the benefit of the doubt. You're removing footings and rebuilding the foundation under a house that's still standing on it. Before you sign anything, these are the questions that separate a licensed crew from a contractor who's learning on your house.
1. Who Is Your Engineer of Record?
Every underpinning project in Hamilton needs a structural engineer's stamped drawings before the City will issue a permit. Ask who the engineer is and whether they've reviewed your specific house, not a generic template. A contractor who's vague here, or who says "we don't really need an engineer for a job this size," is telling you they cut corners on the one step that keeps your foundation from failing mid-project.
Red flag: "We've done hundreds of these, we don't need to wait on an engineer." Every one of those hundreds needed one.
2. Will You Pull the City of Hamilton Permit?
A licensed contractor pulls the permit and schedules the City's section-by-section inspections as part of the job - it should already be in the written scope. If a contractor suggests you pull it yourself, or that it's "faster without one," walk away. Unpermitted underpinning work can't be signed off, which becomes your problem at resale.
3. What's Your Sequencing and Section Plan?
Ask them to describe, in plain terms, how they'll open and pour sections around your foundation. A contractor who can walk you through a real sequence - how many sections, how wide, what order - has done this before. One who answers vaguely ("we just go around") hasn't thought through how to keep your house structurally supported at every stage.
What a Real Answer Sounds Like
"We open 2.5 to 4-foot sections, non-adjacent, so no two open sections touch. Each one gets excavated, formed, poured, and inspected before the next opens nearby."
What a Vague Answer Sounds Like
"We just work our way around the house." No section width, no sequencing logic, no mention of inspection between pours.
4. Is the Quote Fixed-Price, and What's Excluded?
Full underpinning in Hamilton runs $45,000 to $90,000, or roughly $80 to $150 per linear foot. Get the quote in writing as a fixed price with a clear list of what's included - excavation, formwork, concrete, waterproofing, permits - and what would trigger a change order, like the undocumented utility line that showed up on one of our own Westdale projects. A written change-order process protects you; an open-ended "we'll bill as we go" quote does not.
5. Are You Licensed, Insured, and WSIB Compliant?
Ask for proof, not a verbal yes. WSIB compliance in particular matters because if an uninsured worker is injured on your property during excavation, you can be held liable. A legitimate contractor hands over these documents without hesitation.
6. What Warranty Do You Offer, and What's In Writing?
Ask what's covered after the job closes and for how long - BaseWorks backs its underpinning work with a 5-year structural warranty. Get it in the contract, not a verbal promise. A contractor who won't commit warranty terms to paper usually isn't planning to be around if something goes wrong.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. A quote well below the $80-150 per linear foot range for Hamilton usually means shortcuts somewhere - unlicensed labour, no engineer of record, or a bid that will grow through change orders once work starts. Compare scope line by line, not just the bottom number.
The contractor should pull the City of Hamilton permit and handle inspections as part of the job. If a contractor asks you to pull it yourself, or suggests skipping the permit entirely, that is a serious red flag - it usually means they are not confident the work will pass inspection.
Three is a reasonable minimum for a project this size. It gives you a real sense of the pricing range and lets you compare how each contractor talks about engineering, permits, and sequencing - not just the number on the page.