Vernon County, MO Shrink-Swell Risk

What Vernon County, MO's soil means for a foundation

Moderate

USDA's SSURGO data puts Vernon County, MO's soil at "Moderate" shrink-swell potential, an area-weighted linear extensibility of 3.66% across 50% of the county's surveyed land. 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.

This is a county figure, not a lot figure

USDA's survey covers the whole of Vernon County, MO at once, not any single address. 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 Vernon County.

Report cost vs. repair cost

With Vernon County, MO 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.

Where this sits nationally

Nationally, Vernon County, MO is the 749-most-constrained of 3,085 rated counties for shrink-swell soil. Within Missouri alone it ranks 64 of 114. Vernon County covers 826 square miles and counts 19,787 residents.

For contrast

Orleans Parish, LA carries this site's most-constrained reading. Haskell County, TX and Johnson County, IL 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 Missouri

Every county in Missouri is on this site, including Holt County, MO and Jefferson County, MO. The full underlying dataset is downloadable directly, one row per county.