HARO RETROFIT
Lic. 913899
Foundation Repair Contractor
IN BUSINESS SINCE 2008
Now offering balcony inspections & repairs!
Now offering balcony inspections & repairs!
Haro Retrofit began as a general works contractor in 2008. Over the years, our group has undertaken many challenging projects and accumulated skills, know-how and experiences in design and build solutions, project management services, building trades and related engineering works.
Today, we take on the role of main contractor for small to medium size projects and performs project management services to coordinates specialist trades for residential/commercial projects. We also provide design inputs and engineering solutions as value-add services to our clients.
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Seismic Retrofit
We are a preferred contractor of the Earthquake Bolt & Brace program.
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Leveling
House leveling is a foundation repair procedure that lifts and levels a settling house back up to where it was before.
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Foundation Cracks
We use epoxy injection method and strapping to repair cracks in a foundation structure.
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Under Pinning
The method of underpinning helps to strengthen the foundation of an existing building.
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Shotcrete Foundation Solutions
Shotcrete is the method of spraying concrete onto crumbling and deteriorating walls.
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Crawlspace Trash Cleanout
Many crawlspaces are in need of help. We do clean outs! Clean outs are very common and one of our most popular services.
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Wet Crawl Spaces
Water damage in your crawlspace can cause beams, posts, sill plates and rim joists to rot. But we can fix these problems.
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Dry Rot Repair
Dry rot can be a real challenge under your house. We are working in a very tight space with big tools.
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Dig Outs
Often times older homes have very shallow crawlspaces. A dig out is needed when there is rot occurring in the wood framing of the home. Sometimes we see the wood sitting in the dirt. We bring in our mini conveyor belts and dig out the space to comply with current building code (A minimum of 18″ from the bottom of the floor joists to the ground). By the time we’re finished, your crawl space will have plenty of room to breathe!
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Encapsulations
Encaptulations are not necessary in many situations and they are usually overkill, but helpful when you have extremely wet soil or water springs near by.
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Post & Beam Replacement
We can replace rotten beams, posts, pier pads.
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Soft-Story Retrofit
A soft-story retrofit simply adds to and reinforces the structure of the building so it can hold up much better in an earthquake. The main goal is to make sure the building is still standing after an earthquake hits and ensure the safety of everyone in and around the building.
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Drainage
Dedicated crawl space drainage is designed to prevent water buildup after heavy rain and manipulate the movement of water when heavy weather events occur. Along with drainage systems, you can also install sump pumps, perimeter devices, vapor barriers, and dehumidifiers.
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sump pump
A sump pump is a water removal device that is located in the crawl space. It will detect any leaks, collect and drain the water, preventing it from rising and going anywhere near the guts of your house. There are two different types of sump pumps: pedestal pumps and submersible pumps.
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Trench Drains
In its simplest form, a trench drain provides an elongated surface for water to drain from a specific area, such as a driveway, beneath an un-guttered roof edge, sidewalk or similar area where water tends to collect. It's essentially a gutter that is set into the ground. It works well to help protect areas where erosion may be an issue by slowing down the flowing water and diverting it to another area.
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Grade Beam
A grade beam or grade beam footing is a component of a building's foundation. It consists of a reinforced concrete beam that transmits the load from a bearing wall into spaced foundations such as pile caps or caissons.[1] It is used in conditions where the surface soil’s load-bearing capacity is less than the anticipated design loads.
BALOCNY SB741 & SB326 INSPECTIONS, REPAIRS AND WATERPROOFING
YOUR BUILDING MUST BE INSPECTED IF YOU ANSWER “YES” TO THESE QUESTIONS:
Does your building have 3 or more units?
Does your building have “Exterior Elevated Elements” (EEE’s)? (for example, exterior balconies, decks, porches, stairways, walkways, entry structures, or other exterior elements with walking surfaces)
Do your elevated structural elements rely substantially on wood or wood-based products for structural support?
Are your exterior elevated elements walking surfaces more than 6 feet above ground level?
If you answered “Yes” to the above questions, then the California Balcony Bill applies and you must have your EEE’s inspected by January 1, 2025. But wait! Read the discussion below to see that there are plenty of reasons to get inspected much, much earlier!
CALIFORNIA’S MANDATORY “BALCONY INSPECTION LAWS”
(SB 721 AND SB 326)
Two California state laws, California Senate Bill 721 (SB 721) and California Senate Bill 326 (SB 326), have been “on the books” for a while, and both have important consequences in the coming years for apartment building owners and residential Condominium associations.
These “California Balcony Inspection Laws” were passed by the California legislature in 2018 and 2019, in response to the 2015 death of six UC Berkeley students at a downtown apartment complex due to the collapse of a fifth-floor balcony. The legislature determined that these deaths would have been preventable, if a proper inspection was done to determine that the balcony was in poor condition.
WHAT DO CALIFORNIA BILLS SB 721 AND SB 326 REQUIRE?
It is important to note that one law, SB 721, relates to multi-family residential apartment buildings (commercial apartment buildings) and the second law, SB 326, relates to condominiums controlled by a Condominium association. While the two laws are similar, they do have some important differences.
First, the similarities: both laws require inspections that evaluate the structural integrity, flashings, and waterproofing of decks, balconies, and other external, “Exterior Elevated Elements” (“EEE”) that rely in whole or in substantial part on wood structural supports, in buildings that have 3 or more units and 2 or more stories in height.
Such EEE are structures (including supports and railings) such as: balconies, decks, porches, stairways, walkways, and entry structures that extend beyond exterior walls of the building and which have a walking surface that is elevated more than six feet above ground level, are designed for human occupancy or use, and rely in whole or in substantial part on wood or wood-based products for structural support stability of the exterior elevated element. Also included in the required inspections are the EEE’s “associated waterproofing elements” (i.e., flashings, membranes, coatings, and sealants).
Second, note below the various differences in the laws:
SB 721 CALIFORNIA DETAILS
Owners have until January 1, 2025, to complete the first inspection, and must have an inspection every 6 years (or less) thereafter.
The inspections must be performed only by a licensed architect, civil or structural engineer, or a building contractor holding specific licenses as a B General Contractor or C5 Framing. Although SB 721 originally prohibited balcony repair contractors who conducted inspections from repairing faulty EEEs, SB 607, signed into law in September 2021, eliminated this prohibition! Today, California law allows contractors to both inspect and repair EEEs at multi-family residential apartment buildings!
There are three scenarios that may occur upon apartment balcony inspections:
If the inspector finds that no apartment balcony repair is necessary, no further action is required, other than record-keeping steps.
If the inspector finds that there are EEEs that require repairs but there are no immediate safety concerns, the building owner will apply for a repair permit within 120 days after they receive the inspection report. When the permit is approved, the owner has 120 days to complete the work (although the city building department can grant extensions).
If the inspector finds that there are EEEs that pose an immediate health and safety threat to residents or that emergency repairs are necessary, then SB 721 requires the inspector to send a copy of the inspection report to the property’s local enforcement agency (city building and safety department) in 15 days. At that point, the enforcement agency may declare the building to be substandard and send the owner an abatement notice, along with time frames to resolve the issues.
Inspectors must notify local enforcement authorities if the building owner doesn’t comply with the repair requirements within 180 days. That notice gives the owner a 30-day period to complete the repairs. If the local enforcement authorities do not grant the owner an extension to complete the repairs, after 30 days the owner gets a daily civil penalty until repairs are complete (the penalty can also be in the form of a building safety lien on the property).
The California Balcony law also requires the building owner to keep copies of at least two inspection cycles worth of inspection reports in their permanent records, and the owner must also disclose and deliver the reports to the buyer if the building is sold.
SB 326 CALIFORNIA DETAILS
Condominium associations have until January 1, 2025, to complete the first inspection, and must have an inspection every 9 years (or less) thereafter.
Unlike SB 721, which allows building contractors, licensed architects, or structural/civil engineers to make inspections, SB 326 only permits a licensed architect or structural/civil engineer to inspect (note that SB 326 was amended by AB-2114 to additionally authorize a civil engineer to conduct the inspection, and AB-2114 was signed into law, and took immediate effect, on July 15, 2024). Moreover, large Condominium associations may also need to hire a statistician, to calculate the number of EEEs that are to be inspected (as the law requires a statistically relevant sample size to be inspected – see additional detail below). SB 326 doesn’t have a restriction for having Los Angeles balcony repair contractors do the remediation work, as such licensed contractors must not provide EEE inspections under the law.
There are three scenarios that may occur upon a condo building inspection:
If the inspector finds that no balcony structural repairs are needed, no further action is required, other than record-keeping steps.
If the inspector finds that non-critical repairs needed, the Condominium association is not required to apply for permit repairs under any particular timeline, and has full control of the timeline to complete any required repairs.
If the inspector finds that there are EEEs that pose an immediate health and safety threat to residents or that emergency repairs are necessary, SB 326 requires the inspector to send a copy of the inspection report to the property’s local enforcement agency (e.g., the city’s building and safety department) in 15 days. The association then must take preventative steps immediately to prevent access to the affected EEEs until repairs are performed, inspected, and approved by the enforcement agency.
Note that if the Condominium association submitted a building permit application on or after January 1, 2020, the first inspection to its property must occur no later than six years following the issuance of the certificate of occupancy.
Interestingly, SB 326 invalidated the various “poison pen” provisions in Covenants, conditions, and restrictions (“CC&Rs”) that previously insulated developers and builders from construction defect litigation.
The law also requires the Condominium association to keep copies of at least two inspection cycles of inspection reports in their permanent records and as such, an Condominium association is required to maintain inspection reports for 18 years.
WHAT WILL BALCONY INSPECTIONS CONSIST OF?
The California code requires that the exterior elevated element inspection should identify each type of EEE and the various components of the deck, balcony, landing, or stairway structure. After they are identified, the inspection should include, at a minimum, an evaluation of the:
Condition, adequacy and performance of load-bearing components
Condition, adequacy and performance of associated waterproofing elements
Evaluation of expected future performance and projected service life
INSPECTION METHODOLOGY UNDER
SB 721 CALIFORNIA & SB 326 CALIFORNIA
SB 721 requires that 15% of each type of EEE in the building be inspected as part of the initial round of inspections prior to January 1, 2025. After six years, the next randomly selected 15% sampling of EEEs would need to be inspected.
SB 326 states that a “statistically significant sample” of EEE’s must be inspected (defined as 95% confidence, plus or minus 5%). Obtaining this number will likely require the Condominium association to employ a statistician to calculate the number of EEE that should be inspected.
In undertaking the inspection, the inspector must, among others:
Identify the EEE subject to inspection
Evaluate the physical condition of the EEE and whether or not they pose a threat to the health and safety of residents
Evaluate the expected future performance of the EEE and their remaining useful life
Make recommendations for any repairs (e.g., repair balcony floor or balcony replacement) and
Sign the report (and under SB326, include it in the Condominium association’s reserve study).
WHAT SHOULD APARTMENT BUILDING OWNERS AND CONDO BUILDING OWNERS IN THE GREATER LOS ANGELES AREA DO RIGHT NOW?
While it may seem to some that the January 1, 2025 California balcony inspection law deadline is far, far away and “can be ignored” for now, nothing can be further from the truth! This is because while the Los Angeles area is home to many thousands of apartment complexes and condo buildings, the city only has a relatively small number of engineers and balcony inspection service providers to conduct balcony inspections, or qualified contractors who can undertake the required repair work!
This means that the more one delays and the closer one gets to the inspection deadline, one will see:
Higher demand for inspections
Less availability of qualified engineers, inspectors, and contractors to conduct inspections
Higher prices for inspections and
Higher prices to remediate any safety issues.
ACCEPT NO DELAYS FOR BALCONY INSPECTION LAW CALIFORNIA
Getting inspected earlier means having more flexibility to schedule an inspection with balcony inspection contractors when you want it, getting a better balcony inspection service price, and receiving a better price for potential balcony repairs in Los Angeles (if any are needed)!
If you are heading to Google to ask whether there are any “balcony repair contractors near me” know that Weinstein Construction’s professionals are experts at balcony repairs and we want to be your balcony contractors! There’s no need to be searching “balcony contractors near me” as our professionals can undertake a balcony replacement, balcony repair, residential balcony repair, and repairs for (EEE) Exterior Elevated Elements!
Act now! Call us today at 626-975-8265 to schedule your free “California Balcony Law” consultation – take advantage of lower prices today and get help in planning for this important and mandatory inspection program and balcony repairs in Los Angeles!
Foundation Repair Seismic Retrofit Balcony Repair
We take pride in our delivery, thus our clients can always be assured that only the most experienced and qualified people are serving them, thru every step of our project.
Our
Team
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MAURICE HARO
Founder/ General Contractor
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