House Demolition
We tear down old houses and cabins, including homes hurt by fire or storms. The debris goes out on our dump truck, and the lot is left clean for what comes next.
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Sylva is an older town on steep ground. By Census estimates, about half the homes in town went up before 1980. The federal soil survey maps more than half of Sylva's land at slopes of 15 percent or more. So an old house or a mobile home past saving often has to come down on a hillside lot.
Sanders Contracting is based in Murphy, about 64 road miles from Sylva on US 74. Sylva is part of our service area. We do house demolition and mobile home demolition here, and our dump truck hauls the debris off. Call or text (828) 342-1467, and we look at the job and put the quote in writing.
Tell us what you need done and where the property is. We look at the job and put the quote in writing.
Sylva is the Jackson County seat, a town of about 2,700 people by the 2025 Census estimate. Census estimates count about one home in five in town as a mobile home. A third of the homes went up before 1960, by the same estimates. Roughly half the built lots in town are under half an acre, in county parcel data.
For an old house, the state's Health Hazards Control Unit recommends an asbestos inspection before demolition. If it finds asbestos, an abatement company removes it before the tear-down starts. Then our excavator takes the house down, and we haul the debris away in the dump truck. When the job calls for it, the slab or the foundation comes out too.
On a single wide or a double wide, we tear the home down and haul it off. We clear the old block piers and the skirting, then clean up the pad. The lot is left ready for a new home or a new pad.
State law says a building can't come down until the building code permits are in hand. Around Sylva, that means a demolition permit from Jackson County Permitting and Code Enforcement, which keeps an office in town. The county's form asks for the parcel ID number. Inside Sylva's zoning area, the town's ordinance also calls for a zoning certificate before an existing building is demolished.
Jackson County requires a permit for any new land disturbance. Under half an acre, a single-page Land Development Permit covers it. Past half an acre, the county reviews an erosion control plan and issues the permit before work begins. It asks for at least 24 hours of notice before new grading starts.
The town and the county have the final word on what your parcel needs. Downtown Sylva is also a historic district, so ask the town before an old building there comes down. We point you to the right office, and we plan the work around what they require.
About a third of the land in town is mapped at 30 percent slope or more. The soil survey rates runoff on those hillside soils low under forest and higher once the trees come off. Steep ground in town can also slide. In 2020, the North Carolina Geological Survey studied slope failures along part of Allen Street for the town.
Inside Sylva's zoning area, slopes of 15 percent or more fall under the town's hillside rules. On a 15 to 19 percent slope, up to 80 percent of the site can be graded. At 40 percent and steeper, the limit drops to 20 percent. The town's zoning administrator can work out the average grade of your lot.
The Census Bureau counts 254 new single-family homes permitted in Jackson County in 2024 and 232 in 2025. We plan land clearing and site development for a new house around Sylva's hillside limits. The county's erosion brochure asks for ground cover within 10 days after any phase of grading. We can hydroseed the bare ground once the grading is done.
Scott Creek runs through Sylva on its way to the Tuckasegee River. FEMA maps a flood zone and a floodway along the creek through town. About 6 percent of the land in town sits in a mapped flood zone. The flood map panels in effect there date to April 2010.
Jackson County's permit office says new preliminary flood maps will bring several properties into the flood zone. If your lot sits near the water, talk with the county's floodplain staff before work starts. That goes for a tear-down and for new grading.
Helene came through in September 2024, and Jackson County is in the federal disaster declaration for it. We take down storm-damaged houses and outbuildings, and we haul off the downed trees and the debris.
Communities and areas we serve around Sylva: Downtown Sylva, Skyland Drive, Harris Hills, Sylvan Heights, Dillsboro, Webster, Cullowhee, Forest Hills, Scott Creek, Beta, Balsam, Savannah.
Sylva ZIP codes served: 28779.
Sylva is part of our service area. We come out from Murphy, look at the job and put the quote in writing.
(828) 342-1467 We tear down old houses and cabins, including homes hurt by fire or storms. The debris goes out on our dump truck, and the lot is left clean for what comes next.
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We tear down single wide and double wide mobile homes and haul them off in our dump truck. The lot is left cleaned up and ready for a new home or a new pad.
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We tear down barns, garages, sheds and old store buildings with the excavator. The dump truck hauls the debris off and the spot is left clean.
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We break out old slabs, foundations, driveways and patios with the excavator. The broken concrete goes out in our dump truck.
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We clear brush and small trees off lots and acreage, then pull the stumps. The dump truck hauls the debris away, and the ground is ready to use.
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We cut house pads and driveways into sloped lots and dig for the foundation. Your build starts on level ground.
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We dig for footings and basements and cut level building pads into sloped lots. Extra dirt and rock leave in our dump truck.
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We take down dead and leaning trees with the excavator and haul the wood off in the dump truck. We also trim and prune limbs and handle storm cleanup.
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Retaining walls that hold a driveway or a house pad on a sloped mountain lot. You choose the material, and every wall gets drainage behind it.
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We spray seed and mulch over new lawns, graded sites, cleared ground and cut banks. Once the grass takes, its roots hold the soil in place.
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We haul off demolition, construction and storm debris with the excavator and the dump truck. Brush piles and stumps go too, and the site is left clean.
Learn MoreA few of the questions we hear most around Sylva. If yours is not here, call or text and ask.
Tell us what has to come down or get cleared, and where the job is. Call or text (828) 342-1467 or (828) 361-8764, or send the form, and we set a time to look at it.
Tell us what you need done and where the property is. We look at the job and put the quote in writing.