Payne, Ohio
Inside Payne's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 95% of mapped land, the 5th-highest of 10 cities in Paulding County. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 94%, the 4th-highest of 10 cities in Paulding County.
That water-table share is close to Paulding County's 96%. FEMA's flood data list 3 flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 45880 overlapping the city. Of its 497 homes, 83% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1947.
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 1 overlapping ZIP
of homes built before 1980
Basement waterproofing in Payne
Basement waterproofing in Payne: a shallow water table limits basements on 95% of Payne's mapped land, more than in 85% of Ohio cities, and the ZIP code overlapping Payne logged 3 FEMA flood losses since 2016.
About 400 of Payne's 497 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Payne city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 93.8% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 94.7% |
| Septic fields very limited | 94.7% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 6.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 47.8% |
| Mapped soil | 436 acres |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 6.3% by land area here, and 48% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 94% of the mapped land.
On 95% of Payne's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 95% 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 Payne. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45880 | 100% | 3 | $39,829 |
Homes in Payne
| Housing units | 497 |
| Median year built | 1947 |
| Built before 1980 | 83% |
| Built 2000 or later | 3% |
| Owner-occupied | 69% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $112,000 |
| Single-family detached | 82% |
Nearby cities
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