Windsor County, Vermont
A shallow water table limits basements on 27% of Windsor County's mapped land. Shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 0%.
None of the county is in drought on the October 13, 2026 Drought Monitor map. FEMA's flood data list 159 flood losses here since 2016, 55% of them in buildings with basements. 61% of homes were built before 1980, against 50% nationally; the median home dates from 1973.
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 Windsor County
| Expansive clay (limits slab homes) | 0.0% |
| High water table (limits basements) | 27.1% |
| Septic fields very limited | 94.3% |
| Clay swell (LEP, by area) | 1.0% |
| High-swell land (LEP 6%+) | 0.0% |
| Mapped soil | 625,300 acres |
| Soil series | Share here | Series nationally: high water table |
|---|---|---|
| Vershire | 12% | n/a |
| Tunbridge | 12% | n/a |
| Buckland | 8% | n/a |
| Berkshire | 7% | n/a |
| Lyman | 7% | n/a |
| Glover | 6% | n/a |
How we count · survey areas VT027 (2025-09-16)
What the numbers mean here
On 27% of Windsor County's mapped land, soil stays saturated within about 6 feet of the surface for part of the year, which is basement depth.
Rain over the 12 months to August 2026: 41.27 in, 4.67 in below the 1991-2020 average year of 45.94 in.
USDA rates 94% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.
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 30 of the last 52 weeks; the most was 100% of its area, in 4 weeks, most recently on the November 11, 2025 map.
| Category, October 13, 2026 | Share of county |
|---|---|
| D0 abnormally dry or worse | 100% |
| D1 moderate drought or worse | 0% |
| D2 severe or worse | 0% |
| D3 extreme or worse | 0% |
| D4 exceptional | 0% |
Flood losses since 2016
159 flood losses since 2016, $10.8 million paid. The worst year was 2023, with 141. Foundations of the buildings, where recorded: 55% basements, 22% slabs, 4% crawl spaces, 19% elevated. Median water depth outside the building: 24 in.
| Year | Flood losses |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 3 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2019 | 8 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 2 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 141 |
| 2024 | 3 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 to date | 0 |
Rain
| Average year, 1991-2020 | 45.94 in |
| 12 months to August 2026 | 41.27 in (-4.67) |
| 2025 | 42.55 in (-3.39) |
| Wettest year since 1895 | 2011: 59.88 in |
| Driest year since 1895 | 1963: 31.65 in |
| Days with 1 inch or more, normal at RUTLAND (19 mi away) | 7.8 |
Homes
| Housing units | 34,846 |
| Median year built | 1973 |
| Built before 1980 | 61% |
| Built 2000 or later | 12% |
| Owner-occupied | 75% |
| Median value, owner-occupied | $296,400 |
| Single-family detached | 71% |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rutland County, VT | 23 mi | 2% | 37% |
| Sullivan County, NH | 24 mi | 2% | 26% |
| Orange County, VT | 32 mi | 0% | 36% |
| Windham County, VT | 40 mi | 0% | 29% |
| Addison County, VT | 42 mi | 5% | 53% |
| Grafton County, NH | 45 mi | 1% | 29% |
| Bennington County, VT | 45 mi | 0% | 32% |
| Washington County, NY | 45 mi | 12% | 34% |
Sources: USDA SSURGO (September 16, 2025) · US Drought Monitor (October 13, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · NOAA (August 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status