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Amherst, Ohio
Inside Amherst's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 74% of mapped land, higher than 58% of Ohio cities. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 5%.
That water-table share is below Lorain County's 91%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 44001 overlapping the city. Of its 5,001 homes, 59% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1971.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Lorain County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 1 overlapping ZIP
of homes built before 1980
Basement waterproofing in Amherst
Basement waterproofing in Amherst: a shallow water table limits basements on 74% of Amherst's mapped land, more than in 58% of Ohio cities.
In Lorain County, 65% of the 60 flood-loss buildings with a recorded foundation type had basements.
About 4,300 of Amherst's 5,001 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Amherst city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 4.9% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 73.5% |
| Septic fields very limited | 80.7% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 3.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 2.8% |
| Urban land, not rated | 4.7% |
| Mapped soil | 4,562 acres |
What the numbers mean here
On 74% of Amherst's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 81% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Lorain County
0% of Lorain County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. County detail.
Flood losses by ZIP code
FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Amherst. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 44001 | 100% | 0 | $0 |
Homes in Amherst
| Housing units | 5,001 |
| Median year built | 1971 |
| Built before 1980 | 59% |
| Built 2000 or later | 22% |
| Owner-occupied | 88% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $239,200 |
| Single-family detached | 86% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lorain | 4 mi | 5% | 71% |
| South Amherst | 4 mi | 7% | 82% |
| Vermilion | 4 mi | 4% | 85% |
| Elyria | 7 mi | 8% | 72% |
| Sheffield | 8 mi | 8% | 89% |
| Oberlin | 9 mi | under 1% | 99% |
| Sheffield Lake | 9 mi | 1% | 77% |
| Kipton | 10 mi | 0% | 98% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status