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Athens County, Ohio

A shallow water table limits basements on 27% of Athens County's mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 29%.

None of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 36 flood losses here since 2016, 8% of them in buildings with basements. 54% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1977.

Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources

29%

expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes

27%

high water table: limits basements

in drought, October 13, 2026

54%

of homes built before 1980

Soil under Athens County

Expansive clay (limits slab homes)	28.6%
High water table (limits basements)	27.1%
Septic fields very limited	87.8%
Clay swell (LEP, by area)	3.9%
High-swell land (LEP 6%+)	28.5%
Mapped soil	325,446 acres

Soil series	Share here	Series nationally: high water table
Westmoreland	23%	0%
Guernsey	15%	n/a
Upshur	10%	0%
Dekalb	7%	n/a
Brookside	5%	n/a
Steinsburg	4%	n/a

Athens County (heavy outline) and nearby counties, shaded by high water table share.under 10%10-25%25-40%40-60%60%+

How we count · survey areas OH009 (2025-08-27)

What the numbers mean here

Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 3.9% by land area here, and 29% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 29% of the mapped land.

On 27% of Athens 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: 46.53 in, 3.17 in above the 1991-2020 average year of 43.36 in.

USDA rates 88% 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. No part of the county was in drought in the last 52 weeks.

October 21, 2025Share of area in drought, weeklyOctober 13, 2026

Category, October 13, 2026	Share of county
D0 abnormally dry or worse	0%
D1 moderate drought or worse	0%
D2 severe or worse	0%
D3 extreme or worse	0%
D4 exceptional	0%

Flood losses since 2016

36 flood losses since 2016, $993,468 paid. The worst year was 2017, with 9. Foundations of the buildings, where recorded: 8% basements, 73% slabs, 15% crawl spaces, 4% elevated. Median water depth outside the building: 15 in.

Year	Flood losses
2016	0
2017	9
2018	6
2019	0
2020	3
2021	2
2022	4
2023	2
2024	2
2025	2
2026 to date	6

Rain

Average year, 1991-2020	43.36 in
12 months to August 2026	46.53 in (+3.17)
2025	46.22 in (+2.86)
Wettest year since 1895	2018: 63.27 in
Driest year since 1895	1930: 22.36 in
Days with 1 inch or more, normal at ATHENS OU (3 mi away)	8.7

Homes

Housing units	26,471
Median year built	1977
Built before 1980	54%
Built 2000 or later	18%
Owner-occupied	60%
Median value, owner-occupied	$185,000
Single-family detached	60%

What repairs cost

Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.

Work	Range	Source
Basement waterproofing, US	$3,000 to $10,000	Fixr, February 6, 2026
Sump pump installation, US	$800 to $2,000	Fixr, January 31, 2025
Crawl space encapsulation, US	$2,000 to $8,000	Fixr, August 29, 2025

Cities in Athens County

City	Expansive clay	High water table	Homes
Albany	10%	86%	483
Amesville	42%	47%	73
Athens	25%	22%	8,221
Buchtel	19%	29%	185
Chauncey	10%	49%	343
Coolville	23%	11%	286
Glouster	10%	45%	730
Jacksonville	4%	60%	178
Nelsonville	11%	22%	1,946
Trimble	12%	34%	183

Nearby counties

Place	Distance	Expansive clay	High water table
Meigs County, OH	17 mi	43%	21%
Morgan County, OH	22 mi	35%	23%
Vinton County, OH	24 mi	12%	37%
Hocking County, OH	26 mi	14%	36%
Wood County, WV	29 mi	45%	21%
Perry County, OH	30 mi	13%	42%
Washington County, OH	31 mi	40%	19%
Jackson County, OH	38 mi	17%	53%

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