Cherokee County, Georgia
USDA's soil survey flags shrink-swell clay on under 1% of Cherokee County's mapped land and a shallow water table under basements on 8%, both below the national shares of 15% and 29%. 35.4% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map, down from 85.4% a week earlier.
FEMA's flood data list 16 flood losses here since 2016. 11% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 2001.
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 Cherokee County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 0.1% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 8.2% |
| Septic fields very limited | 76.2% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 1.6% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 0.1% |
| Mapped soil | 277,900 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Tallapoosa | 31% | n/a |
| Hayesville | 21% | 0% |
| Madison | 11% | 0% |
| Gwinnett | 7% | n/a |
| Dekalb | 5% | n/a |
| Talladega | 4% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas GA622 (2025-08-27)
What the numbers mean here
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 41.99 in, 12.29 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 54.28 in.
USDA rates 76% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
With shrink-swell clay on under 1% and a shallow water table on 8% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of Cherokee County; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought
35.4% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 45 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 25 weeks, most recently on the July 14, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 35.4% |
| D2 severe or worse | 0% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
16 flood losses since 2016, $78,554 paid. The worst year was 2025, with 4.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 |
| 2017 | 0 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 1 |
| 2020 | 2 |
| 2021 | 3 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 4 |
| 2026 to date | 0 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 54.28 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 41.99 in (-12.29) |
| 2025 | 47.05 in (-7.23) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 2013: 75.64 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 2007: 32.10 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at ALLATOONA DAM 2 (16 mi away) | 14.5 |
Homes
| Housing units | 106,407 |
| Median year built | 2001 |
| Built before 1980 | 11% |
| Built 2000 or later | 53% |
| Owner-occupied | 77% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $435,100 |
| Single-family detached | 79% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pickens County, GA | 15 mi | 0% | 7% |
| Forsyth County, GA | 20 mi | under 1% | 8% |
| Bartow County, GA | 21 mi | 0% | 18% |
| Dawson County, GA | 22 mi | 0% | 7% |
| Cobb County, GA | 22 mi | 1% | 12% |
| Gordon County, GA | 29 mi | 6% | 23% |
| Gilmer County, GA | 31 mi | 0% | 6% |
| Fulton County, GA | 31 mi | under 1% | 11% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 27, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status