Montgomery County, VA Shrink-Swell Risk

Montgomery County, VA's soil, for shrink-swell risk

Moderate

Montgomery County, VA: USDA's soil survey rates 57.3% of the county "Moderate" for shrink-swell potential (3.54% 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 Montgomery County's reading doesn't cover

Two lots a mile apart in Montgomery 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 Montgomery County.

What it costs to find out, versus to ignore it

With Montgomery County, VA 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.

Montgomery County's rank among Virginia counties

Nationally, Montgomery County, VA is the 812-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Virginia alone it ranks 5 of 114. Montgomery County covers 387 square miles and counts 98,998 residents.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Shelby County, AL and Owen County, KY 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 Virginia

Every county in Virginia is on this site, including Washington County, VA and Grayson County, VA. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.