Monroe County, FL Shrink-Swell Risk

Monroe County, FL's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Low

Monroe County, FL: USDA's soil survey rates 100% of the county "Low" for shrink-swell potential (0.01% linear extensibility). That's as favorable a county-level reading as this dataset produces - standard foundation practice, pending one lot's own geotechnical report.

What Monroe County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Monroe 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 Monroe County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Monroe County, FL rating "Low", 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, Monroe County, FL is the 3,085-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Florida alone it ranks 66 of 66. Monroe County covers 983 square miles and counts 80,908 residents.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Campbell County, WY and Sanders County, MT 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 Florida

Every county in Florida is on this site, including Levy County, FL and Putnam County, FL. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.