Livingston County, New York · Geneseo
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With 42% of homes built before 1960 and about 48 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
July brings the most downpours to Livingston County, part of 3.4 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
42% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
In Livingston County, 2.32 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
24% of occupied homes in Livingston County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the New York county median of 19%.
With 15 muggy nights a year, mold in Livingston County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
Livingston County covers 632 square miles of western New York, with about 61,498 residents and 27,328 homes. Geneseo is the county seat; Dansville, Avon and Mount Morris are the next largest communities. The county's median home was built in 1970.
29/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Livingston County ranks 56 of 57 New York counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Livingston County ranks highest compared with other New York counties.
Livingston County is milder than most of New York, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. From 2015–2024 it averaged 48 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 129 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 41st of 57 counties.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 19 days below freezing (ending March 2015), and the low bottomed out near -13°F on February 24, 2015.
The freeze season here runs November to March, 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 Oct 24 and the last spring freeze around May 4.
Livingston gets fewer downpours than most New York counties, but they still fill basements. About 3.4 days a year bring an inch or more (54th of 57), most often in July, out of 35.9 inches of total precipitation. On November 12, 2022, 2.32 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 3.7 inches (through October 22, 2016).
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 92 days a year. Each cycle melts and refreezes water at roof edges and in foundation cracks, which is how ice dams and basement seepage get started.
Housing
Roughly 64% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Livingston near the middle of New York's 57 counties.
Older and newer homes sit side by side here: 42% predate 1960 and 12% are from 2000 or later. Corroded pipe is the typical failure in the first group, burst supply hoses in the second.
About 24% of homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Some houses from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s were plumbed with polybutylene, a gray plastic pipe known for failing at fittings. A plumber can tell you in a few minutes whether you have it.
Here 10% 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.
Beyond water
Livingston County averages 15 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in October. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Livingston County's occupied homes: 50% utility gas, 15% electric, 17% propane and 7% wood. Wood and propane heat are more common here than in most New York counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Livingston County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Allegany, Steuben and Wyoming get more pipe-freeze nights than Livingston. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Genesee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 77% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Livingston | New York median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 42% | 45% | 37 of 57 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 64% | 67% | 38 of 57 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 12% | 13% | 34 of 57 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 9.9% | 7.6% | 18 of 57 |
| Vacant homes | 10% | 14% | 35 of 57 |
| Wood or propane heat | 24% | 19% | 20 of 57 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 48/yr | 55/yr | 41 of 57 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 3.4/yr | 6/yr | 54 of 57 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 92/yr | 101/yr | 39 of 57 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 15/yr | 12/yr | 21 of 57 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest New York county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Livingston County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in July, September and October.
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