We have been working on a 2nd floor addition to a 100 yr old house. As one can imagine, there are many significant structural issues that may arise unexpectedly when opening up walls and seeing how people build things 100 yrs ago. David and Ray have been incredible since the beginning of the process, helping us navigate through all the structural concerns and always trying to find a value engineering approach - whether it was optimizing depth of foundation work, or finding ways to reinforce old windows, coming up with ways to get headers into locations where there isn't the space, and/or proposing alternative shear wall options when there isn't room to fit things. Ray, our project engineer, has been the best communicating and responding to all our questions and worries. He carefully reviews the problem at hand that arise and often will provide 2 or 3 possible options that our builder can work on. With our current project, Ray is always super prompt to resolve any issues via call or email, or video conference and if necessary an onsite visit to inspect the construction phase. He was just crawling in our crawlspace the other day and notified our builder if some items that needed to be addressed to maintain a positive continuous connection from 2nd floor down to 1st floor and to crawlspace foundation. We are now adding the 2nd floor framing and almost done the most stressful part of the project. We have done 3 major remodels in the past with other firms where it was difficult to get in touch with anybody. With Ray and David at Simplengi Engineering, it has been a very refreshing experience to have experts that promptly responds to all our concerns. Value engineering, great timely communication, attention to detail, common sense, simple and smart engineering. We highly recommend Ray and David and Simplengi Engineering for any structural work. Simply great engineering. We don't plan to do another remodel for 100+ years but if we did, we would hire Simplengi 100% for sure. read more

​If you want the highest degree of professionalism​, the best customer service​, and an incredibly well trained and highly ethical engineer​, who is a supreme problem-solver and someone who actually responds to your questions, then you'll be 1000% satisfied with Dave Yadegar at Simplengi. ​D​ave is a superbly qualified engineer with a ​v​ast amount of varied professional experience​, and with his knowledge and skills​, ​h​e has saved us substantial amounts of time, money and perhaps most importantly - aggravation.​ ​I​nterestingly, I have met ​two other clients​ of Dave's, and they both shared the same opinion of​ his ability.​ ​D​ave will save you time, money, frustration, etc. New construction, remodels, expansion, - commercial and residential: he will simplify your life as ​he has done for me. He is absolutely the very best. PS- a shout-out goes to Antwon Trinh and Santosh Chitturi for helping round out the team! read more

This is my second time working with David and Simplengi. Thoughtful, easy to work with, reliable, and solid value. My architect and contractor were both very happy with his work through the whole process, including his willingness to make changes as needed, affordably. Definitely my go to engineer for any future projects. read more

I hired David in November of 2013 to inspect and provide a professional assessment of the foundation for a home (built in 1937) that I was about to purchase in the Eastmont Hills area of Oakland in 2013. He didn't seem to take the job very seriously as he did not provide a professional write up of his findings and only offered verbal guidance that the foundation appeared to be in reasonable shape despite some cracks in the slab and slanted floors. He did indicate that it was difficult to tell for certain as walls were covering the foundation at the time. I purchased the home and after doing demolition of the area David inspected we found significant cracks and separation in the foundation. After a long road of other assessments and structural engineering work its been determined that four of the five foundation walls need to be entirely replaced. The price of the repairs is over $100K and is exactly what I was hoping to avoid by hiring a structural engineer before buying the home. He might be excellent at other work but I would not recommend him for foundation inspections/assessments prior to purchasing a home. read more

I am an architectural designer who has worked with numerous structural engineers over the years. That being said, David is by far the best I've ever come across. First off, David is approachable and empathetic. David is not only interested in giving you good drawings and calculations, he is interested in the quality of his relationship with others. As a designer, I feel open to asking him any question because he doesn't give me a look like, "What, you don't know that?!" Instead, he is huge on establishing rapport, speaking in simple, easy to understand terms, and making things go smoother for everyone, including the client, contractors, and designers. He also doesn't oversize beams just to make things easier for him as some of my past engineers have done. As one who truly cares for the well being of his clients and the planet, he does the calculations to know exactly what size is needed without wasting unnecessary money or material. As a contractor recently said to me after the three of us met on a job site, "That dude's awesome! I've never met an engineer like that." What more can I say? read more

I am super excited to write this review for David's services. I was in a panic to find a structural engineer after finding out my newly purchased condo had a load bearing post removed. Not one post, but two. I am the top unit so it wasn't imminent danger unless people started walking around on the roof - which is exactly what will happen once our roof is replaced in December! David was able to look through all the units in my building and actually find that the ground level unit had the same load bearing wall removed - an exponentially worse condition. David was able to expedite creating plans and running them through San Francisco's DBI planning services within a matter of days, delivering to me a package fully approved, signed off, and ready for implementation. I know that this is pretty much a standard description of what a structural engineer should do, but the way David did this is what truly made him stand out. He was very easy to communicate with, dealt with me introducing him to the other panicked owner with professionalism, and overall executed putting plans together to augment the remaining beam in our units with sister beams within a matter of a few days. His expertise is exactly what I needed and is going to not only bring structural stability to our 100 year old Victorian, but also peace of mind. read more

I am a contractor and I have worked with many engineers. My experience with David at Simplengi stands out as a very positive one. I have worked with David on a few projects and really appreciate the ease of communication and his availability when needed. He pays close attention to detail, and in an industry with a lot of inefficiencies, it pays off in time and money. I also appreciate that he has an eye on sustainability and being a more "green" engineer, while also considering cost and not over-engineering things. As a contractor, it's important to me that the engineer I'm working with has worked in the field and knows how buildings get put together. Thank you for making it a pleasurable experience to work with you. read more

We consulted with David before we recently purchased a house. Because the house was a "contractor flip", we wanted to feel confident about the quality of the work that was done. On very short notice, David made time for us so that we could schedule his visit in tandem with the regular home inspector that was scheduled to come. David was fantastic! Knowledgable, easy to talk to, and thorough, he not only gave us his assessment of the place, but also collaborated with the home inspector to make sure nothing was missed. We were so happy he was there. We cannot recommend him highly enough. If you need some structural engineering contracting done, definitely call David. read more

I highly recommend Simplengi for any structural engineering needs. David is a responsive, prompt, and highly knowledgeable structural engineer. I enjoyed his candid style and excellent recommendations. David formulated and documented the necessary engineering solution, so my architectural plans for a duplex remodel would pass review. In fact, my plans passed DBI the first time, and I accredit that to David's excellent work. David was even available for a call during the DBI review to help answer questions. Truly the sign of a professional who cares about his clients. read more

David seems like a nice guy, and in his defense was going through a busy time when I reached out to him, BUT he has ghosted me twice without any follow up. First time was around the end of year rush, and he said he could squeeze me in. I sent him all of the info, tried to schedule a walk through, called him multiple times, and never heard back. About a month later, I tried again. He said he was sorry he fell off the map but he got super busy and had a baby coming... Not sure why he couldn't email a quick "hey, sorry, turns out I'm too swamped" note, but I was willing to overlook it. This time he said he was busy but could probably help me out. He said to email him again, and he'd follow up about a house visit and estimate. Again, crickets...no follow up. It's totally fine to be busy and unable to take the work, but it does not look good to disappear twice after committing to a project. Just sayin'. read more

David stepped in when my wife and I were in need of good structural engineering work for our home remodel. He was prompt, professional and did great work at a fair price. Highly recommended! read more

I've never paid anyone $200 for nothing and been so happy that I had. David came over for a brainstorming initial consult. My wife and I were wanting to finish our attic space, which is a big beautiful space. David, in an hour, looked at our space and told us what he thought our options were. He said we would spend a good amount of money doing this project right, here are the hurdles with the potential project, etc. He helped us understand the project enough to do a go/no-go, which is exactly what I wanted. We're not finishing our attic, but we're not getting a divorce or wasting our precious life force. Plus, David was an easygoing, genuinely cool dude. Thanks David! read more

We have worked with David on multiple occasions on the remodel of our home in Berkeley. He's been instrumental in providing us with options, drawings and calcs for things like shear walls, load bearing beams over open spaces, stairs, cantilevered decks, etc. Basically all the stuff we needed to both get our permits approved and feel confident that our house wasn't going to collapse around us after construction. As other reviewers have said, he is creative, expert, super responsive, easy to talk to and comes highly recommended. read more

I started my kitchen remodel with one structural engineer, but wound up switching to David at Simplengi because he is so amazing at what he does. He walked in the door and - without my saying a single word - knew exactly what was required for our situation. We needed a structural post removed, so he designed a very elegant and simple solution that was not over-engineered and was really easy (and cost-effective) for my contractor to implement. That's what you're looking for in a structural engineer! Also super fast and responsive. And David was happy to be on stand-by during San Francisco DBI review (which passed easily due to his clear drawings). read more

Our company has worked with David and he is a excellent engineer. I like his methodical approach and the fact that he makes sure to address the clients needs, budget and best methods to provide good value. read more

I own a 4 story apartment building in San Francisco as David has been great in guiding me through the daunting owner/builder process. He is patient, intuitive and knows his stuff! If you dont warnt to hire an architect and design your project first hand, David and his team is the way. His drawings and calculations will fly by the Department of Building and Inspection. read more

We hired David as a structural engineering consultant during our recent kitchen remodel. We had some structural facets of our remodel that required his expertise regarding load bearing walls. David was very responsive to our time demands, and our contractor found him great to work with. He was more than helpful with our foundation and ceiling joist issues, giving us great confidence with our decisions. He also appended our city building permit drawings and helped that process along. If you need a structural engineer, Simplengi is a great choice. read more

I recently worked with David Yadegar on a landscape project I was designing. He came very highly recommended to me by a colleague who'd used his services, and David did not disappoint. He prepared all the engineering specs and calculations for the project's cantilevered patio, retaining walls, in-ground spa and water features, as well as the outdoor staircase coming down from the home's second story . He handled all of these aspects easily with his great knowledge of construction materials and methods, and he delivered his work precisely when he said he would. His efforts allowed our project to pass the City of Oakland Engineering Department's review and permitting process without even the slightest hiccup. Both the client and I found David to be very professional, approachable, and easy to work with. I have recommended him now to two other clients because I have full faith he will treat them and their projects with the same professionalism and produce the same high caliber service. read more

Professional and kind. David came over to look at done deck and other issues. Inspectors and engineers can sometimes be alarmists but David was reasonable and spelled out clearly the things I should be concerned about and those I shouldn't. Would hire him again. read more

I'm a homeowner of a small house in Oakland. I needed an engineer to make some drawings of a foundation replacement project at my home. David Yadegar was able to come out to visit the site within a week, showed up on time, and had the drawings done when he promised. He was personable and educated me about the structure of my house, and made some suggestions about earthquake retrofitting and excavating more usable basement area that were really helpful. I would recommend him. read more

Pulled together drawings for a kitchen renovation. David came out quickly to get the details he needed and has been super responsive as our contractor has come back asking for more details. read more

A very good structural engineer. David came up with structural plans for my 1890's era SF Victorian flat that passed SF city building department's planning and inspection services. I was a newbie when it came to remodeling and David helped me through the structural engineering portion of the project with plans and advice that were spot on for the most economical price out of any of the bids i received. read more

"David came to inspect my house in South Berkeley before I purchased it. I needed to find a structural engineer that would give me some perspective on the home I was buying. He clearly and patiently answered my questions and is a knowledgeable engineer. Thank you for giving me the confidence I needed to purchase my home." read more