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How close can a tree be to a foundation?

Trees do not push foundations. They dry out clay, the clay shrinks, and the house settles. Soil matters more than distance.

No US code sets a tree distance The distance-to-mature-height rule in wide circulation comes from UK NHBC guidance for UK clay soils. This page uses it as a screen and labels it as one.

This screen compares the distance from your foundation to a tree against the tree’s mature height and water demand, then asks whether your soil shrinks and swells.

No US building code sets a tree distance; the rule used is UK guidance. On clay soil, trees can dry the ground under a foundation. On non-shrinking soil, the mechanism barely applies. It does not tell you to remove a tree.

Distance screen

A heuristic, not a code rule. The soil answer carries more weight than the distance.

Mature, not current. You are deciding about the next thirty years.

— Screening position
— On your soil
— Distance against mature height
— How the damage happens
— Before you fell anything
— Where the rule comes from

What this assumed —

No US code sets tree distances. A screening heuristic of UK origin, used as a screen only.

Questions this calculator answers

How far should a tree be from a house foundation?
No US building code sets a distance, so be skeptical of any page that quotes one as a rule. The common distance-to-mature-height rule comes from UK NHBC guidance for UK clays. It is a fair screen, but on soil that does not shrink and swell, it answers a question you do not have.
How do tree roots damage a foundation?
Mostly by drawing water, not by force. Roots pull moisture out of clay soil, the clay shrinks as it dries, and the foundation settles into it. That is why the damage is seasonal, worst in drought years, and largely confined to shrink-swell soils. See why foundations move.
Should I remove a tree that is too close to my house?
Not on the strength of a screening tool, and possibly not at all. Removing a mature tree lets clay rehydrate and swell, which causes heave and can do as much damage as the settlement it was meant to prevent. Decide with someone who has seen the site, soil and building.
How do I find out whether my soil is expansive clay?
Start with the free USDA NRCS Web Soil Survey, which maps soil properties, including shrink-swell, at address level. It is general context, not a diagnosis, but it is better evidence about your site than a distance measurement.
Why use mature height instead of current height?
Because you are deciding for the next several decades. A young tree at what looks like a safe distance will have a much larger canopy and root system in thirty years, and mature height stands in for that.
Does the tree species matter?
Yes, somewhat. Water demand varies between species, and the tool adjusts for it. But that difference is smaller than the difference between shrinkable and non-shrinkable soil, so treat the species setting as a coarse screen.
My tree is close and I have cracks. Is the tree the cause?
Possibly, but not necessarily. Poor drainage, a leaking pipe, seasonal moisture swings and ordinary shrinkage all crack foundations, often together. Finding the cause is an engineer’s job; the engineer or contractor triage covers who to call first.
What should I do before anything drastic?
Fix the water first. Keep gutters working, extend downspouts, slope the ground away, and water steadily rather than drought-then-flood. The Colorado Geological Survey advises you to “consult a competent, professional soil engineer and engineering geologist” before structural decisions, including felling a mature tree.

Sources and methodology

Figures dated 5 September 2026. Last reviewed .

  • Expansive Soil and Rock (Colorado Geological Survey, retrieved 2026-09-05. Source for expansive soil behavior — “expand up to 20% by volume when exposed to water” and “Expansive soils can exert a force of up to 30,000 pounds-per-square-foot” — and for the recommendation to consult a soils professional before structural decisions.)
  • Swelling Clays Map of the Conterminous United States, Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map I-1940 (1989) (US Geological Survey, retrieved 2026-09-05. National mapping of swelling clays. RETRIEVAL FAILED: HTTP 403 to automated retrieval on 5 September 2026, so we publish no figure from it.)
  • Web Soil Survey (USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, retrieved 2026-09-05. Address-level soil properties including shrink-swell behavior. Free, and far better evidence about your site than a distance measurement.)

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