BasementSoil

Florida: basement moisture and foundation risk by county

67 counties, ranked by our combined index. Highest combined risk is Leon County (55), lowest is Miami-Dade County (35). The worst soil for foundation cracks specifically is in Washington County.

Where in Florida the ground is worse

Every county in the state, coloured by the soil values below. Click a county to open its report; switch what the colour means with the buttons. The pattern is geology, not administration — risk stops at the edge of a physiographic region, not at a county line.

Alachua County, FL — combined 48/100, moisture 42, movement 24, water table 95Baker County, FL — combined 36/100, moisture 40, movement 8, water table 66Bay County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 41, movement 38, water table 46Bradford County, FL — combined 45/100, moisture 42, movement 22, water table 82Brevard County, FL — combined 37/100, moisture 41, movement 10, water table 66Broward County, FL — combined 39/100, moisture 42, movement 16, water table 66Calhoun County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 40, movement 47, water table 46Charlotte County, FL — combined 40/100, moisture 42, movement 20, water table 66Citrus County, FL — combined 38/100, moisture 40, movement 16, water table 66Clay County, FL — combined 39/100, moisture 39, movement 20, water table 66Collier County, FL — combined 40/100, moisture 42, movement 17, water table 66Columbia County, FL — combined 36/100, moisture 40, movement 8, water table 66DeSoto County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 42, movement 21, water table 82Dixie County, FL — combined 36/100, moisture 39, movement 11, water table 66Duval County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 40, movement 25, water table 66Escambia County, FL — combined 43/100, moisture 41, movement 30, water table 66Flagler County, FL — combined 39/100, moisture 42, movement 16, water table 66Franklin County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 42, movement 36, water table 46Gadsden County, FL — combined 42/100, moisture 40, movement 43, water table 46Gilchrist County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 40, movement 21, water table 82Glades County, FL — combined 47/100, moisture 41, movement 20, water table 95Gulf County, FL — combined 48/100, moisture 42, movement 43, water table 66Hamilton County, FL — combined 42/100, moisture 39, movement 7, water table 95Hardee County, FL — combined 43/100, moisture 42, movement 16, water table 82Hendry County, FL — combined 39/100, moisture 39, movement 7, water table 82Hernando County, FL — combined 45/100, moisture 42, movement 24, water table 82Highlands County, FL — combined 38/100, moisture 39, movement 18, water table 66Hillsborough County, FL — combined 40/100, moisture 41, movement 7, water table 82Holmes County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 43, movement 31, water table 66Indian River County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 41, movement 23, water table 66Jackson County, FL — combined 47/100, moisture 42, movement 56, water table 46Jefferson County, FL — combined 42/100, moisture 43, movement 50, water table 30Lafayette County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 41, movement 10, water table 82Lake County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 42, movement 23, water table 66Lee County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 42, movement 11, water table 82Leon County, FL — combined 55/100, moisture 43, movement 51, water table 82Levy County, FL — combined 38/100, moisture 40, movement 14, water table 66Liberty County, FL — combined 43/100, moisture 40, movement 30, water table 66Madison County, FL — combined 39/100, moisture 41, movement 17, water table 66Manatee County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 42, movement 21, water table 82Marion County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 40, movement 23, water table 66Martin County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 41, movement 20, water table 82Miami-Dade County, FL — combined 35/100, moisture 39, movement 8, water table 66Monroe County, FL — combined 42/100, moisture 41, movement 16, water table 82Nassau County, FL — combined 37/100, moisture 41, movement 9, water table 66Okaloosa County, FL — combined 38/100, moisture 40, movement 31, water table 46Okeechobee County, FL — combined 43/100, moisture 39, movement 11, water table 95Orange County, FL — combined 46/100, moisture 42, movement 16, water table 95Osceola County, FL — combined 40/100, moisture 43, movement 7, water table 82Palm Beach County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 40, movement 14, water table 82Pasco County, FL — combined 38/100, moisture 40, movement 16, water table 66Pinellas County, FL — combined 43/100, moisture 40, movement 20, water table 82Polk County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 41, movement 20, water table 82Putnam County, FL — combined 46/100, moisture 42, movement 25, water table 82Santa Rosa County, FL — combined 43/100, moisture 42, movement 43, water table 46Sarasota County, FL — combined 45/100, moisture 42, movement 24, water table 82Seminole County, FL — combined 37/100, moisture 40, movement 13, water table 66St. Johns County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 40, movement 22, water table 82St. Lucie County, FL — combined 39/100, moisture 42, movement 16, water table 66Sumter County, FL — combined 37/100, moisture 40, movement 12, water table 66Suwannee County, FL — combined 45/100, moisture 42, movement 13, water table 95Taylor County, FL — combined 46/100, moisture 42, movement 52, water table 46Union County, FL — combined 41/100, moisture 42, movement 11, water table 82Volusia County, FL — combined 44/100, moisture 40, movement 23, water table 82Wakulla County, FL — combined 52/100, moisture 43, movement 54, water table 66Walton County, FL — combined 46/100, moisture 43, movement 36, water table 66Washington County, FL — combined 52/100, moisture 42, movement 57, water table 66
  • Low (0–27)
  • Moderate (28–49)
  • Elevated (50–74)
  • High (75–100)

County boundaries: US Census TIGER (public domain), simplified for display. Colours are our index from USDA SSURGO fields where loaded, otherwise from our regional model — each county page states which. How the index is calculated.

CountyIndexMoistureCracksWater tableRegion
Leon County55435182Gulf Coastal Plain
Wakulla County52435466Gulf Coastal Plain
Washington County52425766Gulf Coastal Plain
Alachua County48422495Florida karst and sand
Gulf County48424366Gulf Coastal Plain
Glades County47412095Florida karst and sand
Jackson County47425646Gulf Coastal Plain
Orange County46421695Florida karst and sand
Putnam County46422582Florida karst and sand
Taylor County46425246Gulf Coastal Plain
Walton County46433666Gulf Coastal Plain
Bradford County45422282Florida karst and sand
Hernando County45422482Florida karst and sand
Sarasota County45422482Florida karst and sand
Suwannee County45421395Florida karst and sand
Calhoun County44404746Gulf Coastal Plain
DeSoto County44422182Florida karst and sand
Gilchrist County44402182Florida karst and sand
Holmes County44433166Gulf Coastal Plain
Manatee County44422182Florida karst and sand
Martin County44412082Florida karst and sand
Polk County44412082Florida karst and sand
St. Johns County44402282Florida karst and sand
Volusia County44402382Florida karst and sand
Escambia County43413066Gulf Coastal Plain
Hardee County43421682Florida karst and sand
Liberty County43403066Gulf Coastal Plain
Okeechobee County43391195Florida karst and sand
Pinellas County43402082Florida karst and sand
Santa Rosa County43424346Gulf Coastal Plain
Gadsden County42404346Gulf Coastal Plain
Hamilton County4239795Florida karst and sand
Jefferson County42435030Gulf Coastal Plain
Monroe County42411682Florida karst and sand
Bay County41413846Gulf Coastal Plain
Duval County41402566Florida karst and sand
Franklin County41423646Gulf Coastal Plain
Indian River County41412366Florida karst and sand
Lafayette County41411082Florida karst and sand
Lake County41422366Florida karst and sand
Lee County41421182Florida karst and sand
Marion County41402366Florida karst and sand
Palm Beach County41401482Florida karst and sand
Union County41421182Florida karst and sand
Charlotte County40422066Florida karst and sand
Collier County40421766Florida karst and sand
Hillsborough County4041782Florida karst and sand
Osceola County4043782Florida karst and sand
Broward County39421666Florida karst and sand
Clay County39392066Florida karst and sand
Flagler County39421666Florida karst and sand
Hendry County3939782Florida karst and sand
Madison County39411766Florida karst and sand
St. Lucie County39421666Florida karst and sand
Citrus County38401666Florida karst and sand
Highlands County38391866Florida karst and sand
Levy County38401466Florida karst and sand
Okaloosa County38403146Gulf Coastal Plain
Pasco County38401666Florida karst and sand
Brevard County37411066Florida karst and sand
Nassau County3741966Florida karst and sand
Seminole County37401366Florida karst and sand
Sumter County37401266Florida karst and sand
Baker County3640866Florida karst and sand
Columbia County3640866Florida karst and sand
Dixie County36391166Florida karst and sand
Miami-Dade County3539866Florida karst and sand

Values from USDA NRCS SSURGO where available, otherwise our regional model — each county page states which. Methodology.

The physiographic regions inside Florida

State lines are political; soil follows geology. These are the distinct ground types inside Florida and why each behaves the way it does.

Florida karst and sand

Two contradictory facts at once: sand that drains almost instantly, and a water table so shallow that it reaches the surface in the wet season. Volume change is negligible. The real hazard is karst — sinkhole activity is a recognised, insurable peril in much of the state, unlike almost anywhere else.

50 counties: Alachua County, Baker County, Bradford County, Brevard County, Broward County, Charlotte County, Citrus County, Clay County, Collier County, Columbia County, DeSoto County, Dixie County, Duval County, Flagler County, Gilchrist County, Glades County, Hamilton County, Hardee County, Hendry County, Hernando County, Highlands County, Hillsborough County, Indian River County, Lafayette County, Lake County, Lee County, Levy County, Madison County, Manatee County, Marion County, Martin County, Miami-Dade County, Monroe County, Nassau County, Okeechobee County, Orange County, Osceola County, Palm Beach County, Pasco County, Pinellas County, Polk County, Putnam County, Sarasota County, Seminole County, St. Johns County, St. Lucie County, Sumter County, Suwannee County, Union County, Volusia County

Gulf Coastal Plain

Extremely variable over short distances: deep sand on the ridges, saturated clay in the flats between them. High rainfall and a seasonally high water table make crawlspace and slab moisture the dominant complaint rather than structural movement.

17 counties: Bay County, Calhoun County, Escambia County, Franklin County, Gadsden County, Gulf County, Holmes County, Jackson County, Jefferson County, Leon County, Liberty County, Okaloosa County, Santa Rosa County, Taylor County, Wakulla County, Walton County, Washington County

Page data updated