Hill County, Texas · Hillsboro
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Pipes freeze in Hill County on about 3 nights a year, mostly midwinter. Older homes, 24% of the stock here, are most at risk.
May brings the most downpours to Hill County, part of 13 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
Sewage backups in Hill County spike on heavy-rain days, about 13 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Hill County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 8.1 inches, and about 21 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
14% of occupied homes in Hill County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Texas county median of 6.5%.
With 138 muggy nights a year, mold in Hill County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
With 16,434 homes and around 37,328 residents, Hill County is 959 square miles of eastern Texas. Besides Hillsboro, the county seat, the biggest communities are Itasca, Whitney and Hubbard. The county's median home was built in 1984.
62/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Hill County ranks 30 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Hill County ranks highest compared with other Texas counties.
For frozen pipes, Hill County is a typical Texas county, which is still plenty. From 2015–2024 it averaged 3 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 23 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 94th of 232 counties.
On February 16, 2021 the low fell to about 0°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 7 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
With only about 23 freezing nights a year, many homes here aren't built for cold, so a single arctic outbreak can burst pipes across the county. The record low in this data was about 0°F, on February 16, 2021.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Texas. Of roughly 40.8 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 13 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 54th of 232. April, May and October see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 8.1 inches, October 24, 2015. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 11.19 inches (through October 25, 2015).
About 21 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
45% of homes in Hill County predate 1980, close to the Texas county median of 45.8%, which ranks 122nd of Texas's 232 counties.
24% were built before 1960. Homes from that era often still have galvanized steel supply pipe, which rusts from the inside until it pinholes, and cast iron drains that crack with age. Slow leaks behind walls are a common start to water damage in these houses.
28% date from 1980 to 1999, the window when polybutylene, a gray flexible plastic supply pipe, was used in some homes. It's prone to leaks at the fittings, so it's worth checking for in a house from those years.
16% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, above the Texas county median of 13.4%. 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.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 138 times a year here, close to the Texas county median of 129. 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 expectMain heating fuel in Hill County's occupied homes: 15% utility gas, 70% electric, 13% propane and under 1% wood. Propane heat is above the Texas norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Hill County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Hill gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Bosque County has the oldest housing nearby, with 51% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Hill | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 24% | 20% | 91 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 45% | 46% | 122 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 28% | 26% | 107 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 16% | 13% | 79 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 16% | 17% | 120 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 14% | 6.5% | 38 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 3/yr | 3/yr | 94 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 13/yr | 7.8/yr | 54 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 21/yr | 27/yr | 142 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 138/yr | 129/yr | 90 of 232 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Texas county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Hill County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in April, May 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