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Penelope, Texas
Inside Penelope's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 88% of mapped land, the 2nd-highest of 14 cities in Hill County. A shallow water table limits basements on 1%.
That clay share is above Hill County's 53%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 76676 overlapping the city.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Hill County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 1 overlapping ZIP
Foundation repair in Penelope
Foundation repair in Penelope: shrink-swell clay limits slab homes on 88% of Penelope's mapped land, more than in 96% of Texas cities.
| 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 Penelope city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 88.4% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 0.5% |
| Septic fields very limited | 88.4% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 12.9% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 88.4% |
| Mapped soil | 652 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Ferris | 43% | n/a |
| Heiden | 31% | 80% |
| Houston Black | 12% | 91% |
| Tinn | 9% | n/a |
| Altoga | 3% | n/a |
| Whitesboro | 1% | n/a |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 12.9% by land area here, and 88% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 88% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of Hill County is in drought on the latest map, and 88% of Penelope's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
USDA rates 88% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Hill County
100% of Hill 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 Penelope. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 76676 | 100% | 0 | $0 |
Homes
Penelope has fewer than 100 housing units in the ACS 2020-2024 estimates, too few for reliable shares.
Nearby cities
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026). Methods · Data status