Across Rancho Santa Fe, Poway, and Point Loma, retaining walls are what turn slopes into usable yards. When they fail, they usually fail the same way: water builds up behind the wall, the soil gets heavy, and the wall starts to lean or crack.
The fix is drainage, built in from day one. Behind every wall we build there's a layer of drain rock, a perforated pipe at the base that carries water away, and weep holes that let pressure escape. Without those, even a thick concrete wall is fighting the full weight of saturated soil every time it rains.
The footing matters just as much. Its width and depth depend on how tall the wall is and what kind of soil it's holding, and taller walls in San Diego County generally need engineering and a permit. We'll tell you plainly when your wall crosses that line.
Finally, think about the face. Block walls can be finished with stucco or stone veneer to match the house, and terraced walls can hold planting beds, which often looks better and costs less than one tall wall.