Monroe County, IA Shrink-Swell Risk

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

Moderate

Monroe County, IA: USDA's soil survey rates 61.2% of the county "Moderate" for shrink-swell potential (5.18% linear extensibility). Conventional foundations are the reasonable expectation here, with routine moisture-control practice rather than special engineering.

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 local geotechnical report, typically $1,000-$5,000 (around $2,700 typical), is the only way to know what one lot in Monroe County will actually do.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Monroe 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.

Monroe County's rank among Iowa counties

Nationally, Monroe County, IA is the 258-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Iowa alone it ranks 16 of 99. The county spans 434 square miles, home to 7,373 people.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Calhoun County, WV and Graham County, NC 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 Hancock County, IA and Cerro Gordo County, IA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.