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Newark, Ohio
Inside Newark's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 20% of mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on under 1%.
That water-table share is below Licking County's 69%. FEMA's flood data list 29 flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 43055 overlapping the city. Of its 21,755 homes, 71% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1963.
Data as of November 3, 2026 · sources · in Licking 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 Newark
Basement waterproofing in Newark: a shallow water table limits basements on 20% of Newark's mapped land, and the ZIP code overlapping Newark logged 29 FEMA flood losses since 2016.
In Licking County, 46% of the 57 flood-loss buildings with a recorded foundation type had basements.
About 14,600 of Newark's 21,755 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Newark city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 0.1% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 19.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 67.9% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 3.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 0.0% |
| Urban land, not rated | 15.6% |
| Mapped soil | 13,745 acres |
What the numbers mean here
On 20% of Newark's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 68% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Newark covers 21.0 square miles of land and counts 21,755 housing units, about 1,036 per square mile.
56% of Newark's occupied homes are owner-occupied, and the median owner-occupied home is valued at $192,300; 10% of all homes in the city date from 2000 or later.
The largest soil series under Newark is Ockley, on 23% of the mapped land, followed by Stonelick at 8%.
Clay swell, measured as linear extensibility, averages 3.3% across Newark's 13,745 mapped acres.
Drought in Licking County
0% of Licking 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 Newark. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43055 | 99% | 29 | $493,699 |
Homes in Newark
| Housing units | 21,755 |
| Median year built | 1963 |
| Built before 1980 | 71% |
| Built 2000 or later | 10% |
| Owner-occupied | 56% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $192,300 |
| Single-family detached | 67% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heath | 4 mi | under 1% | 48% |
| Granville | 4 mi | 0% | 32% |
| St. Louisville | 7 mi | 0% | 5% |
| Hanover | 8 mi | 0% | 34% |
| Hebron | 8 mi | 0% | 86% |
| Buckeye Lake | 10 mi | 2% | 85% |
| Alexandria | 10 mi | 0% | 29% |
| Utica | 11 mi | 0% | 80% |
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