Hi Wazuans,

Forgive me if blonde. What is the difference between Clay Soil and Black cotton.

I always hear them say Black cotton is worse for building. Is clay soil any better?

Would you buy a plot that has clay soil? Or Black cotton? with intention of building on it?

Nichanue.

Black cotton and clay are used interchange-ably to mean the same thing. clay soil chemically behaves like plastic ie it can expand and contract esp in the presence of water, therefore if you build on it, your structure will move up and down and maybe even tilt.
Can i buy a buy land with such soil: answer is yes, but factor in its removal and backfilling costs when building. Fact: most of nairobi cbd and eastern side estates of the city have black cotton soil.

So long as foundation is done right, all should be well? (of course considering the costs which you say are more).