Marion County, WV Shrink-Swell Risk
Marion County's SSURGO shrink-swell reading
Low
In Marion County, WV, 88.2% of the surveyed soil carries a "Low" shrink-swell rating, 2.17% linear extensibility on average. Among the 3,144 counties on this site, that's the clean result: little shrink-swell movement, standard construction the likely outcome.
Before you rely on this for one address
Marion 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 Marion County will actually do.
Budgeting for Marion County, WV
Marion 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, Marion County, WV ranks 1,825 most-constrained nationally, and 25 of 55 within West Virginia. Marion County, WV is 309 square miles with a population of 55,649.
See how another county compares
Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Tillamook County, OR and Elk County, KS 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 West Virginia
Every county in West Virginia is on this site, including Marshall County, WV and Preston County, WV. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.