Deschutes County, Oregon
USDA's soil survey flags shrink-swell clay on 9% of Deschutes County's mapped land and a shallow water table under basements on 5%, both below the national shares of 15% and 29%. The soil survey maps 48% of the county's land area; these shares describe the mapped part.
100% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses here since 2016. 24% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1998.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
in drought, October 13, 2026
of homes built before 1980
Soil under Deschutes County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 9.1% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 4.7% |
| Septic fields very limited | 95.5% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 2.8% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 8.7% |
| Mapped soil | 918,935 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Dester | 8% | n/a |
| Gosney | 6% | n/a |
| Stookmoor | 6% | n/a |
| Deschutes | 5% | n/a |
| Goodtack | 5% | n/a |
| Shanahan | 5% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas OR620 (2025-09-10)
What the numbers mean here
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 17.62 in, 5.26 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 22.88 in.
USDA rates 96% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
With shrink-swell clay on 9% and a shallow water table on 5% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of Deschutes County; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought
100% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 42 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 26 weeks, most recently on the October 13, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 100% |
| D2 severe or worse | 90.4% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 58.5% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
FEMA's flood data list no flood losses in Deschutes County since 2016.
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 22.88 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 17.62 in (-5.26) |
| 2025 | 20.35 in (-2.53) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 1996: 38.03 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1949: 14.63 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at BEND (10 mi away) | 0.7 |
Homes
| Housing units | 99,297 |
| Median year built | 1998 |
| Built before 1980 | 24% |
| Built 2000 or later | 46% |
| Owner-occupied | 70% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $650,900 |
| Single-family detached | 76% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crook County, OR | 46 mi | n/a | n/a |
| Jefferson County, OR | 51 mi | 29% | 1% |
| Linn County, OR | 76 mi | 25% | 34% |
| Wheeler County, OR | 82 mi | 27% | 1% |
| Lane County, OR | 83 mi | 12% | 14% |
| Wasco County, OR | 86 mi | 15% | 2% |
| Klamath County, OR | 88 mi | 20% | 21% |
| Lake County, OR | 88 mi | 28% | 11% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 10, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status