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Hamilton, Ohio
Inside Hamilton's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 13% of mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 8%, the 4th-highest of 10 cities in Butler County.
That water-table share is below Butler County's 30%. USDA doesn't rate the 25% of mapped land classed as urban land, so these shares are floors. FEMA's flood data list 27 flood losses since 2016 in the 3 ZIP codes overlapping the city. Of its 26,922 homes, 78% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1956.
Data as of September 22, 2026 · sources · in Butler County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 3 overlapping ZIPs
of homes built before 1980
Soil under Hamilton city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 8.3% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 12.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 59.9% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 4.2% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 5.2% |
| Urban land, not rated | 25.1% |
| Mapped soil | 14,027 acres |
What the numbers mean here
USDA rates 60% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
With shrink-swell clay on 8% and a shallow water table on 13% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of Hamilton; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought in Butler County
0% of Butler County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the September 22, 2026 map. County detail.
Flood losses by ZIP code
FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Hamilton. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45013 | 52% | 18 | $222,630 |
| 45015 | 24% | 0 | $0 |
| 45011 | 22% | 9 | $71,043 |
Homes in Hamilton
| Housing units | 26,922 |
| Median year built | 1956 |
| Built before 1980 | 78% |
| Built 2000 or later | 12% |
| Owner-occupied | 54% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $165,200 |
| Single-family detached | 69% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Miami | 3 mi | 2% | 3% |
| Fairfield | 5 mi | 5% | 16% |
| Millville | 5 mi | 2% | 41% |
| Seven Mile | 6 mi | 21% | 16% |
| Forest Park | 8 mi | 3% | 10% |
| Trenton | 8 mi | 1% | 4% |
| Springdale | 9 mi | under 1% | 1% |
| Greenhills | 9 mi | 11% | 19% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (September 22, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status