Mitchell County, IA Shrink-Swell Risk

Mitchell County, IA's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Moderate

Mitchell County, IA: USDA's soil survey rates 65.7% of the county "Moderate" for shrink-swell potential (3.16% 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 Mitchell County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Mitchell 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 Mitchell County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Mitchell County, IA 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.

Mitchell County's rank among Iowa counties

Nationally, Mitchell County, IA is the 1,080-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Iowa alone it ranks 77 of 99. Mitchell County covers 469 square miles and counts 10,632 residents.

See how another county compares

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Rice County, KS and Elk County, PA 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 Iowa

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