Sinkhole risk in Gaines County, TX: Not karst, but voids possible

Not karst, but voids possible

No soluble bedrock; some pseudokarst (piping or lava-tube ground).

On soluble rock: 0%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 0%

What this means before you buy

Not true karst, but soil piping or lava tubes can still open voids - mention it to an inspector.

Across 1,502 square miles, under one square mile of Gaines County maps onto soluble rock. With about 22,892 residents (15 per square mile), much of the land is open, and the mapped rock may sit far from where people actually live. The figures come from 392 map points about 2.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Worth reading for this county: why gypsum and salt move faster than limestone, and how ground with no limestone still opens up.

Counties around Gaines County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Ector County, TX, about 61 miles south. 4 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Andrews County, TX 30 mi south · under 1% at surface
Yoakum County, TX 31 mi north · 0% at surface
Terry County, TX 34 mi northeast · 0% at surface
Dawson County, TX 40 mi east · 3% at surface
Lea County, NM 46 mi west · 0% at surface
Martin County, TX 49 mi southeast · 3% at surface

Against the rest of Texas

Gaines County ranks 177 of 254 in Texas for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.