Residential work in DC, Maryland & Virginia.
Yard drainage, retaining walls, concrete, sod, planting — for private property owners who want the work done to a real standard.
Get a QuoteActaeon handles residential construction and landscape work for property owners across Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia — drainage systems, hardscape, concrete, sod, planting, and landscape maintenance.
Most homeowners who call us have a specific problem: a yard that floods after every storm, a retaining wall that's starting to move, a driveway that needs to be replaced and done right this time. We start by looking at what's actually happening before we quote anything.
Request EstimateThe scope of what we do.
Drainage first. Yard drainage, French drains, dry creek beds, catch basins — sized and placed for the specific runoff profile of the property, not a standard install regardless of conditions. When drainage work requires a county permit or will affect a neighboring lot, we pull it.
Hardscape and concrete: patios, driveways, retaining walls, stairs, walkways, stamped and standard concrete, stone and masonry. We do the base work correctly — that's the part that determines whether a patio still looks right in three years or starts cracking at the control joints.
Landscape: sod installation, planting, mulch, and maintenance. On full-scope projects, we run everything under one contract so the grading, drainage, and planting are coordinated from the start rather than patched together after the fact.
We do it legally — which matters more than it sounds.
Maryland requires a separate Home Improvement Commission license to contract for residential work. We hold MHIC #16364825. That's not a formality: it means we're registered, bonded, and covered under the Maryland Home Improvement Guaranty Fund. An unlicensed contractor working on your home leaves you with limited recourse if the work fails.
We're fully licensed and insured in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. When a project requires a permit — structural retaining walls, drainage work affecting adjacent properties, any work subject to county inspection — we pull the permit. The cost is part of what we quote.
We hold Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP) certification and a Maryland Certified Pesticide Applicator license. For residential properties near streams, wetlands, or any land in the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area, we know the specific requirements and restrictions.
This region's soil is specific. The work has to match.
Heavy clay is the rule in Northern Virginia, Maryland, and DC — not the exception. Clay holds water when it rains and shrinks when it dries, which is harder on concrete and masonry than standard specifications account for. Freeze-thaw cycles crack improperly base-prepped flatwork. A patio or wall that looked fine the first summer can show real problems by year two if the prep wasn't right.
We've been doing this work in these conditions since 2017. Base depths, drain pipe sizing, concrete mix specifications — calibrated for DMV soils, not a generic mid-Atlantic average.
The standard we apply to residential work is the same one we bring to our government and stormwater contracts, where specs come from engineers and the finished work gets inspected. It doesn't change because the client is a homeowner.
Residential work in the field.
Common questions
Yard drainage, French drains, retaining walls, patios, driveways, stamped and standard concrete, stone and masonry, sod, planting, and maintenance. We also handle combined scopes under one contract.
Yes. MHIC #16364825 is Maryland's required license for home improvement contracting. We're fully licensed and insured in DC and Virginia as well. Permits are handled by us when required.
Free, in writing. We come to the property, assess the conditions, and give you a number before any work starts. If the project needs a permit, that cost is in the estimate.
We take residential projects at various scales. Reach out with the basics and we'll let you know if we're the right fit.