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Melrose, Ohio
Inside Melrose's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 93% of mapped land, higher than 82% of Ohio cities. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 92%.
That water-table share is close to Paulding County's 96%. FEMA's flood data list 1 flood losses since 2016 in the 2 ZIP codes overlapping the city. Of its 162 homes, 61% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1973.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Paulding County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 2 overlapping ZIPs
of homes built before 1980
Basement waterproofing in Melrose
Basement waterproofing in Melrose: a shallow water table limits basements on 93% of Melrose's mapped land, more than in 82% of Ohio cities, and the 2 ZIP codes overlapping Melrose logged 1 FEMA flood losses since 2016.
About 100 of Melrose's 162 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Melrose city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 91.7% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 93.3% |
| Septic fields very limited | 93.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 7.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 90.9% |
| Mapped soil | 548 acres |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 7.3% by land area here, and 91% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 92% of the mapped land.
On 93% of Melrose's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 93% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Paulding County
0% of Paulding 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 Melrose. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45861 | 86% | 0 | $0 |
| 45873 | 14% | 1 | $0 |
Homes in Melrose
| Housing units | 162 |
| Median year built | 1973 |
| Built before 1980 | 61% |
| Built 2000 or later | 17% |
| Owner-occupied | 90% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $122,200 |
| Single-family detached | 75% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oakwood | 2 mi | 92% | 95% |
| Grover Hill | 6 mi | 95% | 96% |
| Broughton | 6 mi | 94% | 94% |
| Dupont | 7 mi | 34% | 93% |
| Continental | 8 mi | 93% | 94% |
| Cloverdale | 8 mi | 93% | 98% |
| Latty | 9 mi | 6% | over 99% |
| Paulding | 9 mi | 52% | 85% |
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