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Prospect, Ohio
Inside Prospect's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 72% of mapped land, higher than 57% of Ohio cities. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 16%.
That water-table share is below Marion County's 92%. FEMA's flood data list 9 flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 43342 overlapping the city. Of its 489 homes, 82% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1953.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Marion 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 Prospect
Basement waterproofing in Prospect: a shallow water table limits basements on 72% of Prospect's mapped land, more than in 57% of Ohio cities, and the ZIP code overlapping Prospect logged 9 FEMA flood losses since 2016.
About 400 of Prospect's 489 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Prospect city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 16.3% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 72.3% |
| Septic fields very limited | 83.8% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 4.8% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 13.8% |
| Mapped soil | 463 acres |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 4.8% by land area here, and 14% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 16% of the mapped land.
On 72% of Prospect's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 84% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Marion County
0% of Marion 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 Prospect. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43342 | 100% | 9 | $45,096 |
Homes in Prospect
| Housing units | 489 |
| Median year built | 1953 |
| Built before 1980 | 82% |
| Built 2000 or later | 1% |
| Owner-occupied | 73% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $164,100 |
| Single-family detached | 83% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waldo | 5 mi | 22% | 98% |
| Green Camp | 6 mi | 39% | 84% |
| Richwood | 6 mi | 7% | 86% |
| Magnetic Springs | 8 mi | 25% | 97% |
| Marion | 10 mi | 21% | 60% |
| New Bloomington | 11 mi | 78% | 92% |
| Ashley | 13 mi | 28% | 98% |
| Ostrander | 13 mi | 4% | 86% |
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