Union County, IA Shrink-Swell Risk

Union County's SSURGO shrink-swell reading

Moderate

In Union County, IA, 68.5% of the surveyed soil carries a "Moderate" shrink-swell rating, 5.45% linear extensibility on average. A real but modest amount of movement - standard foundations usually hold up, but drainage and moisture control around the foundation still matter more than on low-risk soil.

Before you rely on this for one address

Union 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 Union County will actually do.

Budgeting for Union County, IA

Union 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.

Union County's rank among Iowa counties

Among the 3,085 rated counties on this site, Union County, IA ranks 221 most-constrained nationally, and 10 of 99 within Iowa. The county spans 424 square miles, home to 11,955 people.

Before you act on this

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Clallam County, WA and Suffolk County, MA 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 Iowa

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