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Willshire, Ohio
Inside Willshire's city limits, a shallow water table limits basements on 99% of mapped land, higher than 94% of Ohio cities. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 22%.
That water-table share is close to Van Wert County's 99%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 45898 overlapping the city. Of its 151 homes, 92% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1961.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Van Wert 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 Willshire
Basement waterproofing in Willshire: a shallow water table limits basements on 99% of Willshire's mapped land, more than in 94% of Ohio cities.
About 100 of Willshire's 151 homes are detached houses.
Soil under Willshire city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 21.7% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 99.5% |
| Septic fields very limited | 99.5% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 4.7% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 0.4% |
| Mapped soil | 228 acres |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 4.7% by land area here, and under 1% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 22% of the mapped land.
On 99% of Willshire's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
USDA rates 99% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Van Wert County
0% of Van Wert 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 Willshire. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45898 | 100% | 0 | $0 |
Homes in Willshire
| Housing units | 151 |
| Median year built | 1961 |
| Built before 1980 | 92% |
| Built 2000 or later | 1% |
| Owner-occupied | 77% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $80,000 |
| Single-family detached | 91% |
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