Exeter is a short drive east of Visalia, and the calls we get there sound a lot like the ones at home. A fair share of the houses have some age on them, and the brick on the downtown buildings with the murals shows how long good brickwork can stand when it's looked after.
Newer houses tend to call us for block walls, walkways and retaining wall construction more than repair. We do the same mix of work in Farmersville and up in Kingsburg. On an older house most of the job is matching what's already there, and on a newer lot most of it is getting the footing right, because a wall is only as good as what it sits on.
What sets the price and the schedule
The price comes down to how much is actually failing and what it takes to get to it. A few cracked joints cost far less than a wall that has to come down to the footing, and matching older brick or mortar takes more time than laying new block. Access matters too, since a tight side yard means more hand work and more cleanup. The schedule usually turns on two things, the permit and inspection timing when a job needs one, and the time mortar and concrete need to set before we build on them. I come out, look at the job myself and write the estimate, so the number fits your house.
Fixing older brick instead of replacing it
On older brick, the mortar usually wears out long before the brick does, and that's good news, because the brick can often stay. We clean out the failing joints and repoint them, packing fresh mortar back in with a mix softer than the brick, so the joint takes the wear instead of the brick face. A hairline crack that hasn't moved in years can often wait, and I'll tell you when that's the case. When a wall has shifted or the footing under it has failed, patching won't hold, and that's when we talk about rebuilding a section. Either way, you'll know why we chose what we did.
How permits work between Exeter and the county
Exeter sets its own building rules, but it partners with the Tulare County Building Department for plan checks, permits and inspections, so your permit comes from the county even though the house is in the city. Land use approvals, like a variance, go through Exeter's planning side and are separate from a building permit. When your job needs a permit, we take care of the paperwork with the county office and meet the inspector when it's time. That keeps you out of the back and forth, and the inspector ends up talking to the people who built the work.