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El Paso, Texas
Inside El Paso's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 4% of mapped land, the 5th-highest of 7 cities in El Paso County. A shallow water table limits basements on 0%.
That clay share is close to El Paso County's 4%. FEMA's flood data list 95 flood losses since 2016 in the 19 ZIP codes overlapping the city. Of its 265,320 homes, 44% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1984.
Data as of September 22, 2026 · sources · in El Paso County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 19 overlapping ZIPs
of homes built before 1980
Soil under El Paso city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 4.0% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 0.0% |
| Septic fields very limited | 45.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 2.5% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 4.0% |
| Mapped soil | 166,069 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Delnorte | 17% | n/a |
| Bluepoint | 11% | n/a |
| Turney | 9% | n/a |
| Hueco | 8% | n/a |
| Wink | 6% | n/a |
| Canutio | 6% | n/a |
What the numbers mean here
With shrink-swell clay on 4% and a shallow water table on 0% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of El Paso; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought in El Paso County
66.1% of El Paso County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the September 22, 2026 map. County detail.
Flood losses by ZIP code
FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap El Paso. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 79934 | 19% | 1 | $5,279 |
| 79911 | 13% | 0 | $0 |
| 79912 | 9% | 25 | $1.1 million |
| 79936 | 8% | 2 | $345,988 |
| 79925 | 7% | 0 | $0 |
| 79907 | 5% | 1 | $0 |
| 79924 | 5% | 22 | $448,351 |
| 79904 | 5% | 9 | $129,123 |
| 79932 | 4% | 6 | $12,568 |
| 79915 | 3% | 10 | $16,158 |
| 79930 | 3% | 4 | $71,462 |
| 79922 | 3% | 5 | $10,395 |
| 79902 | 3% | 1 | $71,765 |
| 79905 | 3% | 3 | $20,497 |
| 79935 | 1% | 3 | $46,193 |
| 79903 | 1% | 3 | $515,045 |
| 79901 | 1% | 0 | $0 |
| 79906 | 1% | 0 | $0 |
| 79920 | under 1% | 0 | $0 |
Homes in El Paso
| Housing units | 265,320 |
| Median year built | 1984 |
| Built before 1980 | 44% |
| Built 2000 or later | 30% |
| Owner-occupied | 61% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $184,500 |
| Single-family detached | 67% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vinton | 12 mi | under 1% | 0% |
| Anthony | 14 mi | 6% | 0% |
| Socorro | 18 mi | 27% | 0% |
| Horizon City | 18 mi | 0% | 0% |
| San Elizario | 21 mi | 22% | 0% |
| Clint | 21 mi | 20% | 0% |
| Dell City | 72 mi | 0% | 0% |
| Van Horn | 109 mi | 0% | 0% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (September 22, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status