Floyd County, Virginia
USDA's soil survey flags shrink-swell clay on 1% of Floyd County's mapped land and a shallow water table under basements on 8%, both below the national shares of 15% and 29%. None of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map, after 11.4% a week earlier.
FEMA's flood data list 1 flood losses here since 2016. 41% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1987.
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 Floyd County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 1.0% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 7.8% |
| Septic fields very limited | 84.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 1.7% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 1.0% |
| Mapped soil | 244,000 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: expansive clay |
|---|---|---|
| Glenelg | 31% | 0% |
| Cowee | 13% | n/a |
| Peaks | 8% | n/a |
| Ashe | 6% | n/a |
| Tate | 5% | n/a |
| Sylco | 5% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas VA063 (2025-09-05)
What the numbers mean here
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 35.24 in, 12.17 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 47.41 in.
USDA rates 84% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
With shrink-swell clay on 1% and a shallow water table on 8% of the land, the soil survey points to neither problem across most of Floyd County; conditions still vary lot by lot.
Drought
0% of the county is in drought (D1 or worse) on the October 13, 2026 map. Part of the county was in drought in 47 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 36 weeks, most recently on the August 4, 2026 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 25.1% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 0% |
| D2 severe or worse | 0% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
1 flood losses since 2016, $0 paid. The worst year was 2018, with 1.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 0 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 to date | 0 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 47.41 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 35.24 in (-12.17) |
| 2025 | 39.67 in (-7.74) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 2020: 72.65 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1930: 23.62 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at WOOLWINE 1 SE (12 mi away) | 16.1 |
Homes
| Housing units | 7,977 |
| Median year built | 1987 |
| Built before 1980 | 41% |
| Built 2000 or later | 29% |
| Owner-occupied | 84% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $225,400 |
| Single-family detached | 78% |
What repairs cost
Published ranges from cost guides, not quotes. More sources, and where they disagree.
Nearby counties
| Place | Distance | Expansive clay | High water table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, VA | 17 mi | 33% | 6% |
| Radford city, VA | 17 mi | 19% | 5% |
| Patrick County, VA | 19 mi | under 1% | 6% |
| Pulaski County, VA | 22 mi | 19% | 6% |
| Carroll County, VA | 25 mi | 1% | 5% |
| Franklin County, VA | 26 mi | 1% | 2% |
| Roanoke County, VA | 29 mi | 4% | 2% |
| Salem city, VA | 29 mi | under 1% | 3% |
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