How much does foundation repair cost in Ames, IA?
| Typical total$1,742 per pier | $20,910 |
|---|---|
| Range you should see in bidsthree bids on the same scope normally land inside this | $11,616 – $34,849 |
| Labor portion55% of the job — this is the part that moves by city | $11,500 |
| Material portion45% — bought at national prices | $9,409 |
| Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers pay near Amesabout $27/hr · Ames, IA metro | $56,560/yr |
| U.S. mean for the same tradeSOC 47-2051 | $60,050/yr |
| Versus the national pricetrade pay here runs −5.8% against the U.S. mean | −$690 |
| Short pour season123 freezing days a year in Ames. ACI 306 cold-weather protection — blankets, heated water, or waiting — is a real line item here, not boilerplate | — |
Notes
- Where the number comes from. The national price for foundation pier installation is $1,800 per pier — foundation pier pricing published for 2026, $1,000–$3,000 per pier installed. Labor is about 55% of that. Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers near Ames, IA average $56,560 a year against a U.S. mean of $60,050 — a factor of 0.942 — so the labor half is scaled by that and the material half is not. Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 for the Ames, IA metro area, SOC 47-2051.
- Why the city matters, not just the state. Trade pay moves inside a state as much as it does between states. Crews do not commute across a state to bid a job, and materials ship at national prices either way — so a metro wage is the honest input here and a state average quietly rounds four different cities into one number.
- Short pour season. 123 freezing days a year in Ames. ACI 306 cold-weather protection — blankets, heated water, or waiting — is a real line item here, not boilerplate.
- What is in the price: excavation at each location, the pier and bracket, driving or screwing to load-bearing strata, lifting or stabilising, backfill and cleanup.
- What is not: drainage correction, interior crack and drywall repair after the lift, engineering reports, and any landscaping put back. These are the lines that turn a $20,910 quote into a $26,137 invoice, so ask about each one before signing.
- Use this as a bid check, not a quote. It prices an average job in average condition. Difficult access, the state of what is being replaced, the season, and a crew booked out three months all move the real number, and none of them are in a per-unit average.
foundation pier installation in Ames, IA
$20,910 is the typical number, and three bids on the same scope normally land between $11,616 and $34,849.
That is $690 less than the same job priced at the national average.
Why the city changes the number
About 55% of this job is labor — $11,500 of the $20,910 above. Labor is the only part that moves locally; a bundle of material costs what it costs wherever it is nailed down.
Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers near Ames average $56,560 a year, against a U.S. mean of $60,050. That is a factor of 0.942, so the labor half is scaled by it and the material half is not.
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 for the Ames, IA metro area, SOC 47-2051.
What the quote should include
Short pour season
The lines that turn a quote into an invoice
Ask about each of them before you sign. On a job this size they are the difference between $20,910 and something a quarter higher.
Use it as a bid check, not a quote
This prices an average job in average condition. Access, the state of what is being replaced, the season, and a crew booked out three months all move the real number, and none of them are in a national average.
If a bid lands outside $11,616 – $34,849, that is not automatically wrong — but it is the question worth asking out loud.
Nearby sizes
Read more
- When to Call an Engineer — Before the Contractors, Not AfterEvery free inspection in this industry is performed by someone who profits from finding work. That is not dishonest; it is simply not independent.
- Selling After a Repair — The Paperwork Is Worth More Than the PiersTwo identical repairs sell very differently. The difference is a folder, and it is assembled at the time of the work or not at all.
- Cost Per Pier — And the Four Lines That Are Not PiersTwo quotes with the same price per pier can differ by half the job, because the pier is only part of what has to happen at each location.
- Grading and Gutters — The Cheapest Foundation Work There IsA downspout dumping at the wall delivers a bathtub of water to one spot every time it rains. Nothing else in the yard concentrates water like that.