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Foundation Repair and Basement Waterproofing in Burlington, MA
Burlington will pay a professional to move a sump pump off the sewer and onto the storm drain system, at no charge to the homeowner, under its Sump Pump Amnesty Program. Call (978) 800-2819 or use the form. A person reads every request and replies with what happens next.
- Free for homeowners
- State registration checked first
- Fox Hill to Sandy Brook
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Basement work in Burlington
What's the basement doing?
Waterproofing & Drainage
Wet walls, seepage at the floor joint and spring water in the basement, handled with interior drains, exterior work or both.
Sump Pumps
New pits, replacement pumps and battery backups, with the discharge going somewhere your town allows.
Foundation Cracks & Repair
Leaking cracks, bowing or settling walls and failing mortar in old fieldstone, with an engineer brought in when the job is structural.
Crawl Spaces & Finishing
Damp crawl spaces sealed up, and dry basements turned into finished space with the right permits.
Not sure what it needs?
(978) 800-2819Tell us your street and how often the sump runs, and we'll help you work out the job.
Permits
Permits and rules for basement work in Burlington
Burlington's Building Department is in Town Hall, 29 Center Street; its direct line is 781-270-1615. The town says most projects need a building permit before work begins, asks for at least two weeks for review, and tells owners near wetlands to contact the Conservation Department before applying. Applications go through OpenGov, and a Floodplain Development Permit application is posted for projects that need one (Permits and Applications). Town Hall is open Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 8:30 to 4:30, Wednesday 8:30 to 7 and Friday 8:30 to 1.
- Building Department
- Town Hall, 29 Center Street, 781-270-1615
- Apply
- OpenGov online permits
- Residential building permit
- $13 per $1,000, $50 minimum (fees as of August 2026)
- Plumbing and gas
- $75 for the first 3 fixtures, $20 each above 3
- Review time
- At least two weeks
- Sump on the sewer
- Free redirection through the Sump Pump Amnesty Program
What needs a permit. The town's permit page doesn't name basement finishing, foundation repair, waterproofing or egress windows, so ask the Building Department before that work starts. Its fee sheet, dated as of August 2026, lists a residential building permit at $13 per $1,000 with a $50 minimum, and plumbing or gas at $75 for the first three fixtures plus $20 for each one above three (Building Permit Fees).
Adding a bedroom. Burlington's sewer allocation policy charges $500 per bedroom for bedroom additions (Sewer Allocation), so ask the town early if a finished basement will add one.
State rules. Contractors on an existing one- to four-family owner-occupied home generally need Home Improvement Contractor registration; check yours on the state's Contractor Hub. A licensed construction supervisor or registered design professional must oversee permitted construction on a one- or two-family house (construction supervisor rules). Contracts over $1,000 have to be in writing, a deposit can't exceed a third of the price unless special-order materials cost more, and a homeowner who pulls their own permit is excluded from the state's Guaranty Fund (M.G.L. c.142A §2). For a wall that is bowing or shifting, a structural engineer should look before a repair is chosen.
Last verified November 2026. Fees, restrictions and deadlines on this page are due for re-checking by May 2027. New England Basement Pros is a referral service. We don't pull permits or do the work; the contractor you hire files the permit.
Ground and water
Where the water comes from in Burlington
Sump pumps and the sewer. Burlington counts storm water from roof gutters, yard drains or sump pumps connected to the sanitary sewer as inflow, and says illicit connections violate local, state and federal law. The sewer has been under MassDEP Administrative Consent Order ACO-NE-01-1004 since July 25, 2001 for excessive groundwater and rainwater, and the town has worked to remove infiltration and inflow since 1985, including a joint project with Woburn. Under the Sump Pump Amnesty Program, the town will "fund a proper professional redirection of the sump pump to the storm water system" at no charge to the homeowner; call DPW Engineering at 781-270-1640 (Inflow and Infiltration). The town doesn't say online where a sump line may end on your own lot, so ask Engineering before a contractor routes one.
Groundwater is the flood story. The town's 2025 Hazard Mitigation Plan update (the September 2025 draft posted for public comment) says residents have needed sump pumps to protect their basements from groundwater flooding, that most respondents to its June 2024 survey reported poor groundwater drainage in their yards and basements, and that "a rise in groundwater levels has become a major issue for many residents." Groundwater flooding was reported "even in years of drought," residents point to the town's "location in lowlands and former wetlands," and the plan notes that constant sump pumping at some homes may make the rise worse (Hazard Mitigation Plan 2025 Update). Its event table lists severe storms and flooding on April 18, 1987 and floods in October 1996, June 1998 and April 2004.
Flood maps. FEMA's newer Middlesex County flood maps took effect July 8, 2025 (FEMA notice). Check your address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center; the plan's groundwater problems are not limited to mapped flood zones.
Fox Hill
Frequent groundwater flooding reported in the 2025 plan.
Sandy Brook and Long Meadow Brook
The brook area the plan names for frequent groundwater flooding.
Hilltop Road, Thomas Street, Susan Avenue, Donald Road
Streets listed together in the plan for groundwater flooding.
Muller and Wheeler Roads, Harriett and Kenmere Avenues
Also named, along with Garrity Road and Maud Graham Circle.
Burlington's houses
Postwar subdivisions on former farmland and wetland
Burlington's 2019 Open Space and Recreation Plan says farmland gave way to housing subdivisions after Route 128 arrived, and notes half-acre zoning for single-family lots (2019 OSRP), and about 65% of homes are detached single-family houses (Housing Needs Assessment, July 2022). With the hazard plan describing lowlands and former wetlands, ask whether a house's water comes from rising groundwater or from surface runoff, since the fixes differ.
Wetland setbacks. Burlington's wetland regulations, amended March 14, 2024 and effective April 1, 2024, presume that filling, excavating, grading or clearing within 20 feet of a resource area (no-disturb) or within 40 feet (the building setback on an existing residential lot) alters it, and runoff from new impervious surface in the buffer has to be infiltrated on site to the maximum extent possible. A Request for Determination for buffer work at an existing single-family home has a $50 local fee (Wetlands Regulations). The bylaw also protects a 200-foot riverfront along streams on the town's regulatory streams map (Wetlands Bylaw).
Stormwater and digging. The town's stormwater bylaw requires a permit for land-disturbing work that adds impervious surface equal to 5% or more of the lot, or that disturbs 5,000 square feet or more, when it drains to the town storm sewer, an adjacent property, a street or a wetland (Stormwater Bylaw). Any excavation along a foundation must be premarked and called in to Dig Safe at least 72 hours ahead, not counting weekends and holidays (M.G.L. c.82 §40A).
Radon
Radon testing in Burlington
Burlington is in Middlesex County, where Massachusetts requires passive radon mitigation in new one- and two-family homes because the EPA generally rates the county among the highest for radon potential (MA EPHT residential radon). The rule covers homes built after January 2, 2015 (Radon in the Home). The state health department advises testing at the lowest livable level between November 1 and March 31 and mitigating at 4.0 pCi/L or above (Testing your home for radon).
FAQ
Burlington basement questions
What is Burlington's Sump Pump Amnesty Program?
The town funds a proper professional redirection of a sump pump from the sanitary sewer to the storm water system at no charge to the homeowner. Questions go to DPW Engineering at 781-270-1640.
Why does Burlington care where my sump pump drains?
Sump pumps, roof gutters and yard drains connected to the sewer are inflow, which the town says violates local, state and federal law. Its sewer has been under a MassDEP consent order since July 25, 2001 for excess groundwater and rainwater.
Do I need Conservation approval to dig around my foundation?
If the house is near a wetland, possibly. Burlington's wetland regulations presume that excavating or grading within 20 feet, or within 40 feet on an existing residential lot, alters a resource area. The town tells owners near wetlands to contact Conservation before applying for a building permit.
How much is a building permit in Burlington?
The town's fees as of August 2026 list residential building permits at $13 per $1,000 with a $50 minimum. Allow at least two weeks for review.
What does it cost me to use New England Basement Pros?
Nothing. Asking is free for homeowners; the contractor prices the job, and the price and contract are between you and them.
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