San Francisco home restoration and rebuilds

Our record in the city

Two and a half years of work inside city limits

Our job log counts 25 jobs in San Francisco between March 2024 and October 2026. That is real work in real homes, which is why this page exists at all; we do not write pages for places we have not worked.

What we do

Water mitigation, fire and smoke cleanup, mold remediation, air duct cleaning, the reconstruction once the damage is handled, and construction and remodeling. Restoration to rebuild, under one call.

Why there are no photos here yet

We only publish a job after its owner has cleared it for the site. None of the San Francisco jobs has been cleared so far, so this page shows none. When one is, its photos and story go here.

The housing

How old are San Francisco homes, and why does it matter?

Very old. The Census Bureau's 2020–2024 American Community Survey puts the median year built for housing in San Francisco at 1946. Of about 415,000 housing units, roughly 187,000, close to 45 percent, were built in 1939 or earlier, and about 76 percent date from before 1980 (Census table B25034, year structure built; table B25035, median year).

Layers of past repairs
A house this old has usually been patched, re-plumbed and re-floored more than once. Water follows those seams, so we read the rooms around the leak, not only the stain.
Hidden spaces
Old framing leaves cavities behind walls and under floors where water sits unseen. The meter tells us where to open, so we open as little as the readings allow.
Mold is replaced, not cleaned
When mold has grown in a damp cavity, everything it touched is replaced with new material. In an old house that can mean matching trim or flooring when the room is put back.
Lead-safe rules for older homes
Federal rules set lead-safe work practices for renovation in homes built before 1978 (EPA, Renovation, Repair and Painting Program). With three in four homes here older than 1980, ask about it before any wall is opened.

The weather

A short, wet winter after a dry summer

The National Weather Service's climate study of the city says over 80 percent of San Francisco's seasonal rain falls between November and March, while May through September brings only about 5 percent of the year's total. It also notes that average rainfall can differ by about 20 percent within a few miles of the city (NOAA National Weather Service, Climate of San Francisco).

The first storms find the gaps

After months without rain, small faults in a roof, a window frame or a deck door go unnoticed. The first heavy storm of the season is when a stain appears on a ceiling.

Summer is damp in its own way

The same study describes summer marine air, coastal fog and drizzle. A space that never fully dries out, like a closed lower floor, is where we look first when a client smells must.

Drying goes by the meter

Cool, moist air slows drying. We do not guess at days; the equipment stays until the moisture readings are back to normal for your materials.

Flooding

The city's own storm flood map

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission keeps a Storm Flood Risk Map. It marks parcels likely to get deep and contiguous flooding from stormwater in a storm with a 1 % chance in any year, meaning at least 6 inches of water across an area about half a city block. City law requires sellers and landlords to disclose when a property is inside that zone. The map covers stormwater only, not flooding from the Bay or the ocean, and you can search it by address (SFPUC, Flood Maps).

If storm water came in

Keep away from outlets and appliances in the wet area, take photos before anything is moved, and call. Water that rose through a floor drain or toilet is sewage, category 3, and is handled that way.

What we do about it

We get the water out, remove what cannot be saved, dry the structure until the readings say it is dry, and document the loss for your claim. See storm damage repair for the rebuild side.

The ground

Fill, hills and earthquake hazard zones

The U.S. Geological Survey says the highest liquefaction hazard is in man-made fill, especially old fill placed on what used to be bay floor, and that such areas along the Bay margins are found in San Francisco (USGS, liquefaction). The California Geological Survey's EQ Zapp shows whether a property sits in a mapped liquefaction, landslide or fault-rupture zone, and says site-specific geologic studies are required for new construction or significant remodels in those zones (California Geological Survey, EQ Zapp).

For a repair, that rarely changes the drying. It matters when a rebuild grows into a larger remodel: knowing the zone early keeps the plans from stalling later.

Permits

When does a rebuild here need a permit?

The city's building permit page says plainly that you must have a building permit to do construction, and to start work only after the permit is issued. It lists simple projects that can be applied for online, such as no-plan reroofing and in-kind, non-structural kitchen and bath, door, window and siding replacements; complex projects have their plans checked in house, and the Fire Department checks plans for buildings with three or more residential units (SF.gov, Building permits).

Stop the damage
Water out, wet material removed, drying set. This comes first, whatever the permit path.
Measure the scope
Readings, photos and measurements show what has to be rebuilt.
Permits and plans
When the rebuild needs them, we handle the permits and plans.
Put it back
The same company that dried the house rebuilds it, so nothing is lost between two crews.

Paying for it

Insurance, the deductible and the paperwork

We are the repair contractor, never the adjuster. We document the damage with photos, moisture readings and measurements, write a line-item estimate in the industry's standard format, send it to your adjuster and answer their questions about our scope. For the covered repair you pay only your deductible; your insurer pays us the rest directly. Upgrades you choose are priced separately. More on how we work with insurance.

The services behind this page

Questions

What San Francisco owners ask us

My house was built before 1940. Does that change how you handle water damage?

The steps stay the same: moisture readings in every affected room, photos for the claim, drying until the readings say dry, and anything mold touched replaced with new material. What changes is how far we look. Older walls and floors have had decades of repairs, so we read past the spot that looks wet before anything is closed up.

My home is in the SFPUC flood risk zone. What do I do if storm water gets in?

Keep away from wet outlets and appliances, photograph the water before anything is moved, and call us. If the water came up through a floor drain or toilet, treat it as sewage until we have looked. We remove the water, dry the structure by the readings and document the loss for your claim.

Do I need a city permit to rebuild after water or fire damage in San Francisco?

Often yes. The city says you must have a building permit to do construction, and some simple in-kind replacements can be applied for online, while larger projects need plans checked by the city first. Drying and cleanup come first; when the rebuild needs a permit, we handle the permits and plans.

When does the rain season start in San Francisco, and what should I check before it?

Most of the city's rain falls between November and March, and May through September is nearly dry. Before the first storms, look at the ceilings under the roof, the window frames on the weather side and any room below street level. If you find a stain or a damp smell, call us and we will take readings.

Don't Wait—Call Remediate.

Tell us what happened in your San Francisco home

What got wet or burned, which floor it is on, and when it started. A person answers 24/7, or send the form and we call you back.

Call (281) 671-7777

Restoration and rebuilds in San Francisco