We just added USDA SSURGO soil screening to Groundcheck. Reports now identify soil map units for the property and summarize major component data that can affect drainage, infiltration, septic planning, grading, foundations, stormwater design, and early site feasibility.
Soil is easy to overlook when you first compare properties. Two nearby parcels can have very different drainage behavior or hydric soil indicators, and those differences can change the amount of usable land and the cost of development.
What Groundcheck checks
Groundcheck sends the parcel geometry to USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Soil Data Access. It finds intersecting SSURGO map units, then retrieves the major soil components and components that represent at least 10 percent of a map unit.
The report includes available map unit names, farmland classification, hydric rating, drainage class, hydrologic soil group, component percentage, and representative slope. If Groundcheck has only a point, it runs an approximate point lookup and labels the result accordingly.
How Groundcheck identifies concerns
Groundcheck uses transparent screening rules. Hydric soils, poor or very poor drainage, hydrologic group D, or representative slopes of 15 percent or more create a high concern. Somewhat poor drainage, hydrologic group C, or representative slopes of 8 percent or more create a moderate concern.
These thresholds organize the public data. They do not calculate bearing capacity, infiltration rate, seasonal groundwater, septic suitability, or the exact soil conditions at a proposed building location.
- Hydric ratings can point to wet soil conditions and support further wetland review.
- Drainage class helps identify areas that stay wet or drain slowly.
- Hydrologic soil groups provide an early signal for runoff and infiltration behavior.
- Representative slope helps flag grading and erosion concerns inside the soil data.
- Farmland classifications add context for agricultural land and potential policy questions.
Why this layer matters
Raw soil databases contain useful information, but they are not easy to interpret quickly. Groundcheck connects the parcel to the relevant map units, pulls out the fields most useful for early development screening, and places them beside floodplain, wetlands, terrain, and environmental findings.
That combination helps you recognize when a cheap or attractive parcel needs a geotechnical review, septic investigation, drainage study, or more conservative site planning.
What you still need to verify
SSURGO describes mapped soil patterns across an area. Conditions can vary within a map unit, and site disturbance or fill can change what you find in the field.
Do not use this result as a substitute for soil borings, infiltration testing, a septic evaluation, geotechnical engineering, wetland review, or civil design. Use it to identify the right questions earlier.
Use the new layer
Check the property you are considering
Groundcheck combines this source with parcel details and other available national, state, and local layers.
Start a property check See every Groundcheck data layerGroundcheck provides early public data screening, not a legal, engineering, surveying, environmental, planning, permitting, or buildability determination. Verify important findings with the responsible agencies and qualified professionals.