Washington County, Arkansas
A shallow water table limits basements on 24% of Washington County's mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 20%.
100% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 188 flood losses here since 2016, 5% of them in buildings with basements. 27% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1995.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
in drought, October 13, 2026
of homes built before 1980
Soil under Washington County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 20.5% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 24.2% |
| Septic fields very limited | 83.4% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 3.5% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 20.8% |
| Mapped soil | 611,917 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: high water table |
|---|---|---|
| Enders | 17% | n/a |
| Leesburg | 10% | n/a |
| Clarksville | 7% | 0% |
| Mountainburg | 6% | n/a |
| Hector | 6% | n/a |
| Nixa | 6% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas AR143 (2025-09-10)
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 3.5% by land area here, and 21% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 20% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of the county is in drought on the latest map, and 20% of Washington County's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
On 24% of Washington County's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 41.77 in, 7.47 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 49.24 in.
USDA rates 83% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought
100% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 34 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 28 weeks, most recently on the October 13, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 100% |
| D2 severe or worse | 100% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 98.9% |
| D4 exceptional | 0.8% |
Flood losses since 2016
188 flood losses since 2016, $8.1 million paid. The worst year was 2017, with 90. Foundations of the buildings, where recorded: 5% basements, 59% slabs, 23% crawl spaces, 13% elevated. Median water depth outside the building: 15.5 in.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 |
| 2017 | 90 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2019 | 11 |
| 2020 | 2 |
| 2021 | 1 |
| 2022 | 64 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2025 | 13 |
| 2026 to date | 1 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 49.24 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 41.77 in (-7.47) |
| 2025 | 55.18 in (+5.94) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 1973: 72.57 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1963: 23.49 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at FAYETTEVILLE DRAKE FLD (3 mi away) | 14 |
Homes
| Housing units | 105,461 |
| Median year built | 1995 |
| Built before 1980 | 27% |
| Built 2000 or later | 42% |
| Owner-occupied | 56% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $298,400 |
| Single-family detached | 62% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adair County, OK | 25 mi | 14% | 21% |
| Benton County, AR | 25 mi | 3% | 47% |
| Crawford County, AR | 27 mi | 16% | 15% |
| Madison County, AR | 28 mi | 24% | 11% |
| Franklin County, AR | 37 mi | 15% | 19% |
| Delaware County, OK | 44 mi | 5% | 23% |
| Cherokee County, OK | 44 mi | 16% | 20% |
| Sequoyah County, OK | 44 mi | 6% | 26% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 10, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status