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Melvin, Texas
Inside Melvin's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 14% of mapped land. A shallow water table limits basements on 0%.
That clay share is below McCulloch County's 29%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 76858 overlapping the city.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in McCulloch County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 1 overlapping ZIP
Foundation repair in Melvin
Foundation repair in Melvin: shrink-swell clay limits slab homes on 14% of Melvin's mapped land.
| Who designs the repair | The ASCE Texas Section's repair guidelines say a Texas-licensed engineer should evaluate the foundation and design the repair (2022 guidelines) |
| Prices | Cost guide ranges compared |
Soil under Melvin city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 14.5% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 0.0% |
| Septic fields very limited | 82.9% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 5.1% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 27.9% |
| Mapped soil | 296 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Mereta | 40% | n/a |
| Nuvalde | 24% | n/a |
| Cho | 10% | n/a |
| Rowena | 8% | n/a |
| Frio | 4% | n/a |
| Owens | 3% | n/a |
What the numbers mean here
USDA rates 83% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
With shrink-swell clay on 14% and a shallow water table on 0% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of Melvin; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought in McCulloch County
97.8% of McCulloch 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 Melvin. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 76858 | 100% | 0 | $0 |
Homes
Melvin has fewer than 100 housing units in the ACS 2020-2024 estimates, too few for reliable shares.
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brady | 15 mi | 23% | 0% |
| Eden | 16 mi | 36% | 0% |
| Menard | 23 mi | 38% | 0% |
| Paint Rock | 30 mi | 29% | 0% |
| Mason | 38 mi | 25% | 0% |
| Richland Springs | 38 mi | 43% | 0% |
| Santa Anna | 40 mi | 47% | 0% |
| Ballinger | 43 mi | 12% | under 1% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026). Methods · Data status