How Much Does It Cost to Level a Mobile Home?

Cost Range to Level a Manufactured or Mobile Home

Most homeowners pay $500 to $1,600 to have their mobile home leveled by a manufactured home specialist. This cost range includes a underside inspection to determine how best to level the mobile home, and all labor and materials to jack up the effected areas and level (or re-level) your mobile home. It does not include repairs that were a result of the home not being level, like repairing cracks in walls, windows, etc. Once completed, it’s common to need to replace the skirting on your mobile home.

Low Cost – When the home is on a slab that is level and in good condition, then adding a few shims or thin blocks to raise the height of some piers is often all that is needed. Cost will be on the low end – up to $450 or so.

Average – When the mobile home is on soil that isn’t level, but it is stable, then blocks, additional piers or adjustable jack posts are often used. Cost is typically average in these situations. Depending on the size of the home and the number of supplies added, cost is $650 to $1,100.

High Cost – If a slab needs to be repaired or soils need to be hardened and built up, cost is highest. This is due to the amount of equipment brought in and the time required to raise and level a manufactured home under these conditions. Expect estimates of $900 to $1,600 or possibly more.

Average Cost

The average cost to level a mobile home is $845.

Mobile Home Leveling Overview

Even though your mobile was setup properly and leveled at the time, they do need to be checked often to assure they stay level. From our own experience and that of the Mobile Home Villager, they do need leveling adjustments from time to time.

Most mobile homes have pier and beam foundations – concrete footings with block or poured beams that the house’s steel frame rests upon. In time, the piers can sink, crack or tilt depending on what they rest upon and local site conditions.

Common signs that your manufactured home needs leveling include visible low spots, buckled skirting, siding or fascia, some windows being difficult to open and broken window or door frames. The trim at the top of the wall buckling or separating from vinyl siding is a good indication of where the home is sagging and needs to be raised and leveled.

The cost to level a mobile home includes bringing in multiple hydraulic jacks, raising the low section or sections of the home, and shoring up the ground beneath it. This is done by adding and compacting fill or, more often, by installing blocks, piers and/or jack posts to fix the house at the proper height and in a level position.

When the home is raised, any broken blocks and piers are replaced. If the problem is a slab that has sunk, then slab jacking – raising the slab by one of several means – is an option. If the home has skirting around it, the skirting will be removed prior to leveling and reinstalled when the job is done.

Mobile Home Releveling Cost Factors

Manufactured home raising and leveling starts under $500 but can exceed $1,600. These factors will determine how much it costs to relevel a mobile home in your situation.

• What Needs to Be Done – Simply leveling a home on a solid foundation is an affordable repair. When the slab must be raised or repaired, then the cost is much higher.
• Equipment Required – Simple hydraulic bottle jacks are easy to move and use, so cost can be reasonable. But if a large jack must be brought in and concrete hauled to the site, then cost increases.
• Piers Added – If an inspection of the home determines that it lacks sufficient support and is sagging in places as a result, then piers are added. Some leveling contractors include 2-4 extra piers in their cost. Others charge extra per additional pier.
• Extras – Most initial estimates do not include replacing insulation or the tarp holding the insulation in place, fixing holes in the underside of the house and repairing or replacing skirting. Those costs are extra.
• House Size – All else being equal, the larger the house, the higher the cost to level it. A chart showing mobile home leveling price by home size – single/double/triple wide – is below.
• Solving the Reason the Home Isn’t Level – Soils settle and erode and need to be built up. If the home doesn’t have gutters, then gutter installation will reduce soil erosion beneath the home. Tree roots push against piers, and tree removal is necessary. Tree stump grinding might be necessary too. These are extra costs but necessary to solve the problem long-term.
• Location – When the crew and equipment have to travel a greater distance, the cost to relevel a home is greater.
• Where you Live – The cost in rural areas, especially in the South and Midwest, is lower than in large metro areas, especially on the Coasts.

Signs Your Mobile Home is Out of Level

There are many ways you can tell if your home is no longer level without getting out any tools. The most obvious would be if you can see it with your naked eye, looking at the mobile home from the front, rear or either side.

• If you hear random creaking or crackling sounds in the house.
• The underpinning, or skirt around the base of the mobile home is no longer fitting properly.
• The siding on the exterior is showing misalignment, cracks or simply separating and no longer fits properly.
• Windows, sliding glass doors or interior doors that no longer line up properly or close tightly.
• Hairline cracks in the walls, windows, roof, ceilings, or any exposed direct surface of the home.
• You recently had excavation done near your home that may have disturbed the ground in the area.
• You can physically feel dips in the floor in some area, or notice gaps where the walls meet the floor or ceilings.

Regardless of any of these factors, having the level on your mobile home checked at regular intervals will prevent much larger and more costly repairs being needed in the future when it is caught early.

Cost of Mobile Home Leveling Supplies

If you DIY, then here are common tools and supplies used to relevel a manufactured house.

$50 – $80 Each | Hydraulic Bottle Jacks – Typically 2-4 are needed.

$48 – $60 | House Jack Posts – Adjustable-height Steel Posts installed beneath the house when it has been raised to level.

$2 – $6 Each | Blocks 12” Square used to build piers (alternative to jack posts).

$20 – $45 | Water Level – Used to indicate when the house is raised to the appropriate level.

$5 – $7 Each | 80lb Bags of Concrete Mix – Used when a slab is raised and the space below must be filled.

$4 – $10 per Bundle | 4” x 12” or 4” x 16” Shims – Used to provide temporary support between piers and the house until it is raised and concrete blocks can be installed for permanent use.

$10 – $30 | Protective Gear – Gloves, safety goggles, clothing.

$12 – $20 | Hammer or Maul to drive in wedges and shims.

Mobile Home Raising by Process

Process for Leveling Mobile Home	Cost
Raising Pier Height	$445 – $650
Raising Pier Height Plus Adding Piers or Posts	$600 – $1,000
Replacing Broken Footings and Piers	$775 – $1,400
Repairing or Raising a Slab Foundation	$950 – $1,650

If the mobile home is on a concrete block foundation and the foundation is damaged, block foundation repair is an added expense. Also, raising the house and installing a block foundation is costly but can be a much more permanent solution.

Mobile Home Leveling Cost by Home Type

Home Type	Cost
Single Wide	$445 – $1,100
Double Wide	$550 – $1,285
Triple Wide	$685 – $1,600

Mobile Home Releveling by House Size

Home Size in Square Feet	Cost
Up to 800	$445 – $950
800 – 1200	$615 – $1,175
1200 – 1600	$750 – $1,350
1600 – 2000	$875 – $1,500
More than 2000	$1,050 – $1,650

Permits, Inspection, Installation Labor Costs and Time

• $0 | This outdoor home improvement project doesn’t usually require a permit.

Mobile Home Leveling Labor Cost and Time

• $300 – $1,000| Average Total Labor Cost for manufactured home raising and leveling.

Labor Cost by House Leveling Process

Job Type	Labor Cost
Raising Pier Height	$300 – $750
Raising Pier Height – Adding Piers	$550 – $950
Replacing Broken Piers	$650 – $1,100
Repairing/Raising a Slab	$750 – $1,275

Completed Time

Expect the crew to be at your home for 1-3 days. Here’s how a typical schedule works:

• 2-4 Hours | Inspection to determine the scope of the problem and best solution.
• .5 to 2 Days | Raising Piers – Adding up to 6 new piers.
• 1-2 Days | Raising a Slab – Excavating, raising the slab and injecting concrete beneath it to keep it level.

Related Projects

DIY or Hire a Pro

Most homeowners hire a mobile home specialist for this job. However, if you enjoy a challenge and either have the equipment or want to rent or purchase it, DIY can be done. You’ll need to use a water level to determine where and how far out of level the house is. Then you can decide the best method for leveling it – raising pier height and/or adding more piers.

The most difficult DIY leveling job is slab jacking – raising a concrete foundation slab that has settled. This requires raising the slab and injecting a concrete mix beneath it. This often requires a concrete pump and is best left to a slab jacking contractor.