Most seismic retrofits are not actually engineered.
They are built on a conflict of interest most homeowners don't discover until it's too late.
Seismic retrofitting is structural engineering. Yet volume contractors and the City treat your home's foundation like a routine water heater install.
You just received a retrofit quote.
Your contractor may bring their own engineer — or skip engineering entirely and rely on a free prescriptive plan. Either way, no one is independently verifying that the work actually protects your home. The plans are designed to clear a permit, not to protect you.
Your retrofit is already done.
The permit you received is not proof of engineering. The city did not review the structural calculations. If an engineer was involved, they may never have visited your foundation — and many contractors skip independent engineering entirely.
You haven't started yet.
You still have a choice — hire an engineer who designs your retrofit before a contractor is involved, not after. Don't let a volume contractor pick your structural engineer.
The Broken Industry
This is not speculation. This is how the Seattle seismic retrofit market operates:
Exploited fast-track permits
Generic plans applied to homes they don't fit
Plans stamped by engineers who never visit your foundation
Hardware installed with no one watching the load path
Here is how the industry gets away with it.
Licensed Structural Engineer · Independent · Seattle, WA
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