Carroll County, Missouri · Carrollton
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Carroll County averages 35 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly November to February, and 49% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 10 times a year here, most often in June. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Backups often follow heavy rain, which Carroll County gets about 10 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 81 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
34% of occupied homes in Carroll County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Missouri county median of 24.5%.
About 62 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
About 8,411 people live in Carroll County, 695 square miles in northwest Missouri, in roughly 4,381 homes. The county seat is Carrollton, and Norborne, Hale and Bosworth round out the largest towns. The county's median home was built in 1961.
70/100 Water Damage Risk Index: High Carroll County ranks 1 of 114 Missouri counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Carroll County ranks highest compared with other Missouri counties.
Carroll is on the colder side of Missouri for pipes. It averaged 106 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 35 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 114 Missouri counties that's 29th.
On January 15, 2024 the low fell to about -12°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 14 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
Most freezing nights fall from November to February, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Oct 25 and the last spring freeze around Apr 11.
Rainfall is about average for Missouri. About 10 days a year bring an inch or more (62nd of 114), most often in June, out of 39.5 inches of total precipitation. On June 25, 2021, 5.86 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 7.19 inches (through June 27, 2021).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 81 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
Roughly 77% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Carroll among the oldest housing stocks of Missouri's 114 counties.
In Carroll County 49% of homes are older than 1960. If yours is one of them and the plumbing has never been replaced, expect galvanized steel supply pipe and cast iron drain lines, the two materials most likely to fail quietly.
Here 9% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
The Census counted 20% of homes as vacant, above the Missouri county median of 15.3%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
Carroll County averages 62 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in June. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectHeating fuel matters for fire risk. In Carroll County it's 36% utility gas, 27% electric, 31% propane and 4% wood. Propane heat is more common here than the state median. Have chimneys swept and fuel-burning appliances serviced each fall, and keep three feet clear around stoves and space heaters.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Carroll County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Caldwell and Livingston get more pipe-freeze nights than Carroll. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Carroll | Missouri median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 49% | 25% | 3 of 114 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 77% | 53% | 2 of 114 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 8.5% | 21% | 113 of 114 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 8.7% | 9.8% | 72 of 114 |
| Vacant homes | 20% | 15% | 37 of 114 |
| Wood or propane heat | 34% | 25% | 35 of 114 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 35/yr | 28/yr | 29 of 114 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 10/yr | 10/yr | 62 of 114 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 81/yr | 77/yr | 35 of 114 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 62/yr | 65/yr | 63 of 114 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Missouri county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Carroll County: freezing from November to February, heavy rain in June, July and August.
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