Lavaca County, TX Shrink-Swell Risk

Lavaca County, TX's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Moderate

Lavaca County, TX: USDA's soil survey rates 39.5% of the county "Moderate" for shrink-swell potential (4.86% linear extensibility). That's a middle reading: not the sharp swings that crack a foundation outright, but enough that grading and drainage are worth getting right.

What Lavaca County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Lavaca County can carry different soil, even though they share one countywide reading. The real answer for one lot is still a site-specific geotechnical report, running about $1,000-$5,000 (typically near $2,700).

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Lavaca County, TX 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, Lavaca County, TX is the 316-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Texas alone it ranks 79 of 253. Lavaca County covers 970 square miles and counts 20,605 residents.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Muskogee County, OK and Lincoln County, ME 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 Texas

Every county in Texas is on this site, including Hill County, TX and Waller County, TX. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.