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Tom Bean, Texas
Inside Tom Bean's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 40% of mapped land. A shallow water table limits basements on under 1%.
That clay share is below Grayson County's 60%. FEMA's flood data list no flood losses since 2016 in ZIP code 75489 overlapping the city. Of its 323 homes, 54% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1979.
Data as of October 13, 2026 · sources · in Grayson County
expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes
high water table: limits basements
flood losses since 2016 in 1 overlapping ZIP
of homes built before 1980
Foundation repair in Tom Bean
Foundation repair in Tom Bean: shrink-swell clay limits slab homes on 40% of Tom Bean's mapped land.
About 200 of Tom Bean's 323 homes are detached houses.
| 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 Tom Bean city limits
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 40.1% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 0.2% |
| Septic fields very limited | 92.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 5.3% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 20.4% |
| Mapped soil | 918 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Eddy | 21% | 0% |
| Whitewright | 20% | n/a |
| Austin | 20% | 93% |
| Fairlie | 11% | 70% |
| Houston Black | 10% | 91% |
| Howe | 9% | n/a |
What the numbers mean here
Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 5.3% by land area here, and 20% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 40% of the mapped land.
Clay shrinks as it dries: 100% of Grayson County is in drought on the latest map, and 40% of Tom Bean's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.
USDA rates 92% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
Drought in Grayson County
100% of Grayson 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 Tom Bean. ZIP areas reach past city limits.
| ZIP | Share of city land | Flood losses | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75489 | 89% | 0 | $0 |
Homes in Tom Bean
| Housing units | 323 |
| Median year built | 1979 |
| Built before 1980 | 54% |
| Built 2000 or later | 18% |
| Owner-occupied | 69% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $232,300 |
| Single-family detached | 75% |
Nearby cities
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whitewright | 5 mi | 75% | 2% |
| Howe | 8 mi | 77% | 2% |
| Bells | 8 mi | 83% | 7% |
| Savoy | 9 mi | 86% | 13% |
| Van Alstyne | 9 mi | 78% | under 1% |
| Trenton | 10 mi | 78% | 0% |
| Sherman | 11 mi | 61% | 3% |
| Dorchester | 12 mi | 73% | under 1% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status