Hunt County, Texas
Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 78% of Hunt County's mapped land, a higher share than 99% of US counties and the 5th highest of 254 Texas counties. A shallow water table limits basements on 17%.
100% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 24 flood losses here since 2016. 35% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1990.
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 Hunt County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 78.0% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 16.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 84.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 9.2% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 79.2% |
| Mapped soil | 564,633 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Crockett | 20% | 94% |
| Leson | 12% | n/a |
| Wilson | 10% | 88% |
| Houston Black | 8% | 91% |
| Kaufman | 7% | n/a |
| Axtell | 6% | 89% |
How we count · survey areas TX231 (2025-09-04)
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 9.2% by land area here, and 79% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 78% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of the county is in drought on the latest map, and 78% of Hunt County's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
On 17% of Hunt County's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 32.67 in, 10.97 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 43.64 in.
USDA rates 84% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
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 34 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 9 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 | 46.3% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0.6% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
24 flood losses since 2016, $820,872 paid. The worst year was 2017, with 7.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 |
| 2017 | 7 |
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2019 | 3 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 2 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 |
| 2025 | 1 |
| 2026 to date | 1 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 43.64 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 32.67 in (-10.97) |
| 2025 | 44.40 in (+0.76) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 2015: 69.61 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1910: 20.22 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at GREENVILLE KGVL RADIO (3 mi away) | 15.2 |
Homes
| Housing units | 43,022 |
| Median year built | 1990 |
| Built before 1980 | 35% |
| Built 2000 or later | 37% |
| Owner-occupied | 71% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $241,700 |
| Single-family detached | 69% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Cities in Hunt County
| City | Expansive clay | High water table | Homes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caddo Mills | 88% | 29% | 1,259 |
| Campbell | 53% | 46% | 391 |
| Celeste | 84% | under 1% | 326 |
| Commerce | 73% | 18% | 3,658 |
| Greenville | 81% | 10% | 13,090 |
| Hawk Cove | 84% | 24% | 223 |
| Lone Oak | 87% | 14% | 222 |
| Neylandville | 87% | 32% | 43 |
| Poetry | 76% | 24% | 519 |
| Quinlan | 86% | 39% | 729 |
| Union Valley | 77% | 35% | 294 |
| West Tawakoni | 78% | 36% | 1,038 |
| Wolfe City | 68% | 3% | 492 |
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rains County, TX | 24 mi | 60% | 34% |
| Rockwall County, TX | 24 mi | 72% | 2% |
| Collin County, TX | 29 mi | 72% | 1% |
| Delta County, TX | 30 mi | 77% | 15% |
| Hopkins County, TX | 30 mi | 63% | 31% |
| Fannin County, TX | 32 mi | 66% | 23% |
| Kaufman County, TX | 37 mi | 73% | 16% |
| Van Zandt County, TX | 42 mi | 46% | 35% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 4, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status