Clay County, IA Shrink-Swell Risk

Clay County's SSURGO shrink-swell reading

Moderate

In Clay County, IA, 44.1% of the surveyed soil carries a "Moderate" shrink-swell rating, 4.49% linear extensibility on average. Conventional foundations are the reasonable expectation here, with routine moisture-control practice rather than special engineering.

Before you rely on this for one address

Clay County's reading is an average across the whole county, not a promise about any one lot inside it. A local geotechnical report, typically $1,000-$5,000 (around $2,700 typical), is the only way to know what one lot in Clay County will actually do.

Budgeting for Clay County, IA

Clay County's soil reading points toward standard foundation practice as the likely outcome, not the exception. 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

Among the 3,085 rated counties on this site, Clay County, IA ranks 389 most-constrained nationally, and 31 of 99 within Iowa. Clay County, IA is 567 square miles with a population of 16,474.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Polk County, AR and Alameda County, CA 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

Elsewhere in Iowa

Every county in Iowa is on this site, including Jefferson County, IA and Dallas County, IA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.