What Causes Subsidence?
Subsidence usually occurs when homes are built on clay soils, and either the water table drops due to a prolonged dry spell, or water is sucked out of the soil by the surrounding trees and plant life. When the clay contracts due to the lack of water, it pulls on the foundations, which may cause structural damage to the home. Another form of subsidence occurs when water leaks into the soil from something such as a broken pipe or leaking drain, thus washing the soil away from the foundations. This happens to soil that has a high sand or gravel content.
