Benton County, MO Shrink-Swell Risk

Benton County, MO's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Moderate

Benton County, MO: USDA's soil survey rates 43.3% of the county "Moderate" for shrink-swell potential (3.77% linear extensibility). Conventional foundations are the reasonable expectation here, with routine moisture-control practice rather than special engineering.

What Benton County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Benton County can carry different soil, even though they share one countywide reading. A site-specific soil report, usually $1,000-$5,000, is what an engineer would actually pull before designing a foundation on a lot in Benton County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Benton County, MO rating "Moderate", a geotechnical report is still worthwhile before a build, just less urgent than in a high-risk county. A geotechnical report runs $1,000-$5,000, typically around $2,700. Foundation repair, if a specific lot turns out to differ from the county average, runs $5,000-$15,000.

Where this sits nationally

Nationally, Benton County, MO is the 689-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Missouri alone it ranks 62 of 114. Benton County covers 704 square miles and counts 20,614 residents.

See how another county compares

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Walthall County, MS and Lewis County, WA are worth a look for comparison.

How this reading is built, and its real limits · Moisture management: the cheap fix that works on any soil

More of Missouri

Every county in Missouri is on this site, including Taney County, MO and Clark County, MO. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.