Jae Wells is the president of the National Foundation Repair Association and co-owner of American Standard Foundation Repair, with locations in Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, and Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Jae Wells has a music degree, a biochemistry degree, and three years of medical school under his belt. One day, he left all of it behind. In his third year of med school, he opened a foundation repair company — and within months, he knew he wasn't going back.
"Every house is different. Every repair is different," he says. "Everything that we do is custom in a sense."
That novelty was the draw. But what kept him was the same thing that drew him to medicine: stepping into someone's worst moment and making it better. A cracked foundation isn't just a structural problem. For most homeowners, it's their biggest investment. They're scared.
Wells saw an industry full of companies willing to exploit that fear. He built one that did things the right way.
Now, as president of the NFRA — the trade association that represents the foundation repair industry across all 50 states — he has a clear-eyed view of which companies last and why. The stressed business environment, he says, is no longer the exception. It's the condition.
"Every year we think, oh, this is finally going to be the year — no wars, no recession, no COVID. But it just seems like the stressed environment is the norm now."
Here are the three things the best foundation repair companies actually do.
Wells is direct about this one. There are companies, he says, backed by private equity and governed by a single mandate: profit is king. Wells acknowledges that profit still matters. After all, every business exists to make money. However, he argues that centering the business on profit, rather than on the client, puts everything else at risk.
"Taking care of your client is the only real objective you have. If you do that one thing, all the other good things follow."
That philosophy shapes how his company operates at every touchpoint, including who owns the customer relationship. From the first phone call through the final day of work, the same person follows each customer through the entire process. It’s the concept known in medicine as “continuity of care,” something Wells carried directly from his medical training.
The industry's tendency to prey on homeowner anxiety is real and common. Wells went the other direction: lead with education. By the end of every inspection, a customer should understand what they have, what caused it, and what it takes to fix it. That's the main purpose; selling the job is secondary.
This one sounds obvious, but it rarely plays out that way.
Wells has watched the cycle repeat itself across companies of every size. Good year rolls in, equipment gets bought, overhead creeps up. Bad year hits, and there's no buffer. The spending tracked the weather instead of the strategy.
"Every dollar that goes out to pay a bill comes off your net profit. And that net profit is what you use to grow your company."
His advice isn't to be stingy — it's to think past the current year. Every purchase should have a clear answer to a simple question: does this make the company stronger in three to five years? If the answer is yes, the timing almost doesn't matter. If the answer is no, a strong quarter doesn't change it.
The companies that survive multiple cycles are the ones that built spending discipline into good years, not just bad ones.
Wells's callback rate — customers calling back with warranty claims — is under 2%. He'll tell you exactly why.
"There's only one reason that's true. My production teams have been with me for over a decade."
Half of his company has been there since the beginning. They've done the work a thousand times. They know what “good” looks like. And when people know their craft that deeply, repairs hold. Warranty calls don't come. That's not just a culture win — it's a cost structure advantage most of his competitors carry, and he doesn't.
Retention isn't complicated, but it is intentional. Health insurance, benefits, and commission structures that allow folks to achieve their own dreams. These are the things that make someone choose to stay when they could leave.
"You can't expect someone to stick around for 15 years if you're not taking care of them."
It’s logic that goes back to the principles you’re taught in school. Treat folks well, and they’ll look after you, too. Loyal crews produce consistent work. Consistent work means fewer callbacks. Fewer callbacks mean more margin and a cleaner reputation. That reputation attracts more clients.
Foundation repair companies don't fail because the demand dried up. The work will always be there. They fail because busy years convince owners that the business is working, when really the business is just running.
The ones that are still here after the next down cycle will be the ones who figured out the difference — and build accordingly.
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