Fayette County, Kentucky
Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 40% of Fayette County's mapped land, a higher share than 87% of US counties and the 4th highest of 120 Kentucky counties. A shallow water table limits basements on 13%.
None of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 33 flood losses here since 2016, 4% of them in buildings with basements. 45% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1984.
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 Fayette County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 39.9% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 12.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 70.8% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 5.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 35.8% |
| Mapped soil | 180,602 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Maury | 20% | n/a |
| Bluegrass | 19% | n/a |
| Lowell | 14% | 76% |
| McAfee | 11% | n/a |
| Huntington | 5% | n/a |
| Mercer | 5% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas KY643 (2025-09-08)
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 5.3% by land area here, and 36% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 40% of the mapped land.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 51.46 in, 1.53 in above the 1991-2020 average year of 49.93 in.
USDA rates 71% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought
0% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 10 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 7 weeks, most recently on the May 26, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 72.3% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 0% |
| D2 severe or worse | 0% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
33 flood losses since 2016, $943,436 paid. The worst year was 2025, with 8. Foundations of the buildings, where recorded: 4% basements, 9% slabs, 17% crawl spaces, 70% elevated.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 2 |
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2019 | 6 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 5 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 2 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2025 | 8 |
| 2026 to date | 4 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 49.93 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 51.46 in (+1.53) |
| 2025 | 62.07 in (+12.14) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 2018: 73.31 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1930: 25.47 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at LEXINGTON BLUEGRASS AP (8 mi away) | 12.1 |
Homes
| Housing units | 148,959 |
| Median year built | 1984 |
| Built before 1980 | 45% |
| Built 2000 or later | 27% |
| Owner-occupied | 54% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $293,500 |
| Single-family detached | 58% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jessamine County, KY | 13 mi | 27% | 4% |
| Woodford County, KY | 16 mi | 31% | 4% |
| Bourbon County, KY | 18 mi | 56% | 5% |
| Clark County, KY | 18 mi | 27% | 9% |
| Scott County, KY | 18 mi | 31% | 3% |
| Madison County, KY | 24 mi | 13% | 19% |
| Franklin County, KY | 26 mi | 20% | 6% |
| Mercer County, KY | 28 mi | 22% | 4% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 8, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status