Nevada County, Arkansas · Prescott
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Nevada County averages 4 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly December to January, and 18% of its homes predate 1960.
Basements flood here mostly in April. Nevada County averages 19.4 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Nevada County gets about 19.4 days a year, when storm water overloads sewer mains and pushes up through the lowest drain in the house.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 48 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
11% of occupied homes in Nevada County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Arkansas county median of 10.9%.
Muggy summer nights, lows of 65°F or more, come about 109 times a year in Nevada County. Mold after a leak spreads fastest from June through August.
Local risk profile
Nevada County covers 618 square miles of southwest Arkansas, with about 8,159 residents and 4,308 homes. Prescott is the county seat; Emmet, Rosston and Willisville are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1983.
58/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Nevada County ranks 20 of 75 Arkansas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Nevada County ranks highest compared with other Arkansas counties.
Nevada County is milder than most of Arkansas, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. It averaged 50 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 4 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 75 Arkansas counties that's 53rd.
On February 16, 2021 the low fell to about -2°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 4 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs December to January, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 11 and the last spring freeze around Mar 18.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Arkansas. About 19.4 days a year bring an inch or more (4th of 75), most often in April, out of 61 inches of total precipitation. On April 30, 2016, 4.59 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 6.85 inches (through February 23, 2018).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 48 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
Arkansas's 75 counties range widely in housing age; Nevada ranks 42nd, with 44% of its homes built before 1980.
Housing age is mixed: 18% of homes are pre-1960 and 19% are 2000 or newer. Ask any plumber which era your house is from and you'll know which failures to watch for.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 37% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
29% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Arkansas county median of 15%. Their water lines run under the floor behind the skirting, so a torn skirt or failed heat tape freezes them faster than lines in a site-built house.
With 25% of homes empty at survey time, landlords and seasonal owners should shut off the main or schedule checks in winter. An unheated vacant house is also where many policies limit freeze coverage.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 109 times a year here, close to the Arkansas county median of 105. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60%, ideally 30 to 50%. Basements can pass 60% on their own in summer, so a dehumidifier matters even without a leak, and anything wet should be dried within 24 to 48 hours.
Mold remediation: what to expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Nevada County it's 45% utility gas, 44% electric, 8% propane and 2% wood. Most homes here heat with gas or electricity, so cooking and electrical faults are the likelier fire sources. Even a contained kitchen fire can send soot through the ductwork to every room.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Nevada County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Clark and Pike get more pipe-freeze nights than Nevada. Ouachita County has the oldest housing nearby, with 62% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Nevada | Arkansas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 18% | 15% | 28 of 75 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 44% | 46% | 42 of 75 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 19% | 23% | 54 of 75 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 29% | 15% | 1 of 75 |
| Vacant homes | 25% | 18% | 13 of 75 |
| Wood or propane heat | 11% | 11% | 39 of 75 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 4/yr | 6/yr | 53 of 75 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 19/yr | 17/yr | 4 of 75 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 48/yr | 48/yr | 37 of 75 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 109/yr | 105/yr | 28 of 75 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Arkansas county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Nevada County: freezing from December to January, heavy rain in March, April and December.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024); weather from NOAA nClimGrid-Daily county averages (EpiNOAA), 2015–2024, averaged across the county; county boundaries from Census TIGER. Reviewed 2026-10-21. Methodology