Randall County, Texas
Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 66% of Randall County's mapped land, a higher share than 96% of US counties. A shallow water table limits basements on 7%.
61.7% of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map, down from 100% a week earlier. FEMA's flood data list 41 flood losses here since 2016, 14% of them in buildings with basements. 42% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1986.
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 Randall County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 66.5% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 6.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 75.5% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 5.8% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 61.9% |
| Urban land, not rated | 1.1% |
| Mapped soil | 590,765 acres |
How we count · survey areas TX381 (2025-09-05)
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 5.8% by land area here, and 62% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 66% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 61.7% of the county is in drought on the latest map, and 66% of Randall County's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 10.12 in, 9.19 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 19.31 in.
USDA rates 75% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought
61.7% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 40 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 32 weeks, most recently on the October 6, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 61.7% |
| D2 severe or worse | 7.9% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
41 flood losses since 2016, $1.7 million paid. The worst year was 2023, with 19. Foundations of the buildings, where recorded: 14% basements, 83% slabs, 3% crawl spaces. Median water depth outside the building: 9 in.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 |
| 2017 | 7 |
| 2018 | 0 |
| 2019 | 5 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 8 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 19 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 1 |
| 2026 to date | 0 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 19.31 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 10.12 in (-9.19) |
| 2025 | 22.69 in (+3.38) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 1923: 38.66 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 2011: 8.08 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at CANYON (2 mi away) | 4.7 |
Homes
| Housing units | 61,677 |
| Median year built | 1986 |
| Built before 1980 | 42% |
| Built 2000 or later | 36% |
| Owner-occupied | 68% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $238,800 |
| Single-family detached | 70% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Cities in Randall County
| City | Expansive clay | High water table | Homes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canyon | 19% | under 1% | 6,116 |
| Lake Tanglewood | under 1% | 0% | 389 |
| Palisades | 1% | 0% | 169 |
| Timbercreek Canyon | 6% | 0% | 219 |
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Potter County, TX | 30 mi | 19% | 2% |
| Armstrong County, TX | 31 mi | 45% | 6% |
| Swisher County, TX | 31 mi | 87% | 10% |
| Castro County, TX | 36 mi | 82% | 5% |
| Deaf Smith County, TX | 40 mi | 70% | 3% |
| Carson County, TX | 43 mi | 55% | 7% |
| Briscoe County, TX | 49 mi | 40% | 8% |
| Oldham County, TX | 50 mi | 20% | 1% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 5, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status