What drainage work covers
Drainage moves water away from the house by regrading, by gutters and downspout extensions, or through a buried drain. The NRCS paper on expanding soils puts the aim in one line, minimize wetting and drying.
The Water Development Board's February 2022 drought report says drought can cause soil movement, especially where vertisol soils run in a broad arc through central and north Texas and in parts of the coastal plain. Neither source is about your yard. They describe soils, and NRCS soil survey reports give the shrink-swell classes for an area.
Drainage around a Texas foundation: our estimate
We put drainage work at $1,850 to $14,400 per project. That's a model, not a quote: 2 national published ranges scaled by the Texas construction laborer wage ratio, with no Texas company price in it. Regrading a low spot and burying a drain line are different jobs, which is why the band is so wide.
| Item | Figure | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Estimated range, not a quote | $1,850 to $14,400 per project | Built from 2 national published ranges, adjusted by the Texas construction laborer wage ratio (0.82). Ten Texas foundation companies publish a price we could count on their own websites; where five or more price the same job, the range is the middle half of their prices, and where two to four do, the estimate is widened to take them in. Coupons, specials and figures a page gives as an average are not counted. Basis: no state company sample (no counted Texas company price for this job), national estimate only. |
| Estimated range per linear foot, not a quote | $8 to $35 per linear foot, exterior French drain | Built from 2 national published ranges, adjusted by the Texas construction laborer wage ratio (0.82). Ten Texas foundation companies publish a price we could count on their own websites; where five or more price the same job, the range is the middle half of their prices, and where two to four do, the estimate is widened to take them in. Coupons, specials and figures a page gives as an average are not counted. Basis: no state company sample (no counted Texas company price for this job), national estimate only. |
| Construction laborers: what Texas pays per hour | $20.63 an hour | Mean hourly wage in Texas, BLS May 2025, for the occupation closest to drain crews; a wage, not a bill. |
| Construction laborers: what the US pays per hour | $25.02 an hour | The national mean in the same release; Texas divided by it is the drainage ratio. |
Estimated range. Built from national published ranges (2 sources), adjusted by Texas's construction laborer wage ratio to the US (0.82, BLS May 2025). Not a quote. Ten Texas foundation companies publish a price we could count on their own websites; where five or more price the same job, the range is the middle half of their prices, and where two to four do, the estimate is widened to take them in. Coupons, specials and figures a page gives as an average are not counted. We have no counted Texas company price for this job, so the range is our national estimate alone. Full method. Prices as of Oct 23, 2026.
Where a city's foundation rules mention drainage
San Antonio's Information Bulletin 172 covers foundation repair permits. It says the inspection is cleared by an Engineer's Inspection Letter from the Engineer of Record on the City template, and that a City final building inspection is still required for skirting, ventilation, subfloor access and drainage items.
No Texas city page in our sources treats a yard drain or French drain as a permit item on its own, so ask your building office before the digging starts.
Is there a license to check?
TDLR's 41 licensed and regulated programs include no foundation repair, structural repair, concrete or general contractor program, so the state has no foundation license for you to look up before a drain goes in.
Water problems that won't wait
- Water is pooling against the house and spreading toward an outlet, an appliance or the panel.
- Floodwater or sewage is getting into the house.
- Water has cracked or lifted part of the slab or a wall within days.
- A low spot by a downspout that holds water only after heavy rain and hasn't changed the house.
Before you pay for a drain
- Watch the house in a hard rain and note where water collects against the foundation.
- Check that each downspout empties away from the walls.
- Ask the company where the new drain lets the water out.
Permit position for drainage
San Antonio's drainage inspection item sits inside its foundation repair permit. For a drain or regrading job by itself, the building office decides, so describe the work and ask.
Texas has no state license for foundation repair, so ask for the contractor's certificate of insurance and call the insurer listed on it before you sign anything.
Questions people ask
Does drainage matter to a Texas foundation?
NRCS says minimizing wetting and drying is the real trick on expansive soils. That's a statement about expanding clays, not about your lot. NRCS soil survey reports give shrink-swell classes by area.
What does foundation drainage cost in Texas?
About $1,850 to $14,400 per project in our model, which is no quote. The band runs from regrading to a buried drain. Ask each company to price the grading, the pipe and the outlet as separate lines.
Can drought damage a foundation?
The Texas Water Development Board says drought can cause soil movement that damages foundations. Its report places vertisol soils in a broad arc through central and north Texas and in parts of the coastal plain.
What does shrink-swell mean?
NRCS measures it as linear extensibility, the change in a clod's length from moist to dry. The higher a soil's coefficient of linear extensibility, the more NRCS's glossary says it can move.
- USDA NRCS: Understanding Soil Risks and Hazards Read Oct 23, 2026.
- TWDB: Drought in Texas, 1950-1957 and 2010-2015 (Feb 2022) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- San Antonio DSD: Information Bulletin 172 Read Oct 23, 2026.
- San Antonio DSD: Residential Permits Read Oct 23, 2026.
- TDLR: Programs Licensed and Regulated by TDLR Read Oct 23, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025: Construction Laborers (SOC 47-2061), Texas, mean hourly wage Read Oct 23, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025: Construction Laborers (SOC 47-2061), United States, mean hourly wage Read Oct 23, 2026.
- FoundationMatch: how we estimate costs, Texas (editorial policy) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- USDA NRCS: Glossary of Terms Used in Soil Survey and Classification Read Oct 23, 2026.