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East Cleveland, Ohio
Inside East Cleveland's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 14% of mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 0%.
That water-table share is below Cuyahoga County's 51%. USDA doesn't rate the 52% of mapped land classed as urban land, so these shares are floors. FEMA's flood data list 2 flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 44112 overlapping the city. Of its 9,849 homes, 92% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1939 or earlier.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Cuyahoga 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 East Cleveland
Basement waterproofing in East Cleveland: a shallow water table limits basements on 14% of East Cleveland's mapped land, and the ZIP code overlapping East Cleveland logged 2 FEMA flood losses since 2016.
In Cuyahoga County, 47% of the 90 flood-loss buildings with a recorded foundation type had basements.
About 3,400 of East Cleveland's 9,849 homes are detached houses.
Soil under East Cleveland city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 0.0% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 14.0% |
| Septic fields very limited | 35.9% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 3.8% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 0.0% |
| Urban land, not rated | 52.0% |
| Mapped soil | 1,973 acres |
What the numbers mean here
With shrink-swell clay on 0% and a shallow water table on 14% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of East Cleveland; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought in Cuyahoga County
0% of Cuyahoga 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 East Cleveland. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 44112 | 90% | 2 | $23,392 |
Homes in East Cleveland
| Housing units | 9,849 |
| Median year built | 1939 or earlier |
| Built before 1980 | 92% |
| Built 2000 or later | 3% |
| Owner-occupied | 37% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $68,800 |
| Single-family detached | 35% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Heights | 2 mi | 0% | 21% |
| Bratenahl | 2 mi | 0% | 6% |
| South Euclid | 3 mi | 0% | 31% |
| University Heights | 3 mi | 0% | 32% |
| Shaker Heights | 4 mi | 0% | 32% |
| Richmond Heights | 4 mi | 0% | 57% |
| Lyndhurst | 4 mi | 0% | 35% |
| Euclid | 5 mi | 0% | 20% |
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