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Kettering, Ohio
Inside Kettering's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 28% of mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 6%.
That water-table share is below Montgomery County's 65%. USDA doesn't rate the 26% of mapped land classed as urban land, so these shares are floors. FEMA's flood data list 11 flood losses since 2016 in the 5 ZIP codes overlapping the city. Of its 27,191 homes, 86% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1961.
Data as of November 3, 2026 · sources · in Montgomery County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 5 overlapping ZIPs
of homes built before 1980
Basement waterproofing in Kettering
Basement waterproofing in Kettering: a shallow water table limits basements on 28% of Kettering's mapped land, and the 5 ZIP codes overlapping Kettering logged 11 FEMA flood losses since 2016.
In Montgomery County, 65% of the 48 flood-loss buildings with a recorded foundation type had basements.
About 18,700 of Kettering's 27,191 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Kettering city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 6.0% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 27.5% |
| Septic fields very limited | 71.9% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 4.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 1.5% |
| Urban land, not rated | 26.3% |
| Mapped soil | 12,011 acres |
What the numbers mean here
On 28% of Kettering's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 72% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Kettering covers 18.7 square miles of land and counts 27,191 housing units, about 1,453 per square mile.
65% of Kettering's occupied homes are owner-occupied, and the median owner-occupied home is valued at $208,500; 4% of all homes in the city date from 2000 or later.
The largest soil series under Kettering is Miamian, on 28% of the mapped land, followed by Fox at 10%.
Clay swell, measured as linear extensibility, averages 4.3% across Kettering's 12,011 mapped acres.
Drought in Montgomery County
0% of Montgomery County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the November 3, 2026 map. County detail.
Flood losses by ZIP code
FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Kettering. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45429 | 41% | 2 | $0 |
| 45420 | 22% | 2 | $8,955 |
| 45440 | 17% | 1 | $0 |
| 45409 | 9% | 1 | $0 |
| 45419 | 8% | 5 | $20,718 |
Homes in Kettering
| Housing units | 27,191 |
| Median year built | 1961 |
| Built before 1980 | 86% |
| Built 2000 or later | 4% |
| Owner-occupied | 65% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $208,500 |
| Single-family detached | 69% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oakwood | 2 mi | 3% | 16% |
| Centerville | 4 mi | 17% | 54% |
| Moraine | 5 mi | 3% | 33% |
| Bellbrook | 5 mi | 1% | 44% |
| Beavercreek | 5 mi | 4% | 60% |
| West Carrollton | 6 mi | 3% | 22% |
| Riverside | 6 mi | 3% | 32% |
| Dayton | 7 mi | 6% | 28% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (November 3, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status