Marion County, Texas · Jefferson
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Marion County averages 2 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly midwinter, and 16% of its homes predate 1960.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 17 times a year here, most often in April. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in Marion County spike on heavy-rain days, about 17 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 28 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
8% of occupied homes in Marion County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Texas county median of 6.5%.
About 127 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
With 5,623 homes and around 9,737 residents, Marion County is 381 square miles of eastern Texas. Jefferson is the county seat; Pine Harbor is the next largest community. Half the homes here were built before 1981, half after.
54/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Marion County ranks 87 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Marion County ranks highest compared with other Texas counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in Marion County sits near the middle of the state. In the 2015–2024 record the county logged about 2 nights a year at or below 20°F (126th of 232) and 29 below freezing. Twenty degrees is roughly where uninsulated pipes start to freeze.
Cold snaps are the real risk. The worst in the record lasted 4 days below freezing (ending February 2021), and the low bottomed out near 0°F on February 16, 2021.
Expect the hardest freezes in January, inside a season that runs midwinter. That's when an outdoor spigot left connected to a hose, or a pipe in a crawl space, is most likely to split.
Freezing nights typically start around Nov 13 and end around Feb 26.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Texas. The county gets about 55.2 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 17 days of an inch or more (12th of 232). Those downpours cluster in March, April and December, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 6.89 inches on March 9, 2016. The worst three-day stretch dropped 10.02 inches, ending March 11, 2016, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
The temperature crosses 32°F in both directions on roughly 28 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
49% of homes in Marion County predate 1980, close to the Texas county median of 45.8%, which ranks 100th of Texas's 232 counties.
Older and newer homes sit side by side here: 16% predate 1960 and 25% are from 2000 or later. Corroded pipe is the typical failure in the first group, burst supply hoses in the second.
26% 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.
27% 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.
The Census counted 25% of homes as vacant, above the Texas county median of 16.6%. Empty houses are where a small leak turns into a large claim, because nobody is there to hear it.
Beyond water
Marion County averages 127 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in April. 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 expectBy main heating fuel, Marion County homes break down as 16% utility gas, 75% electric, 6% propane and 2% wood. Wood 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 Marion County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Cass, Morris and Upshur get more pipe-freeze nights than Marion. Morris County has the oldest housing nearby, with 59% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Marion | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 16% | 20% | 140 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 49% | 46% | 100 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 25% | 26% | 126 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 27% | 13% | 16 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 25% | 17% | 47 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 8.1% | 6.5% | 91 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 2/yr | 3/yr | 126 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 17/yr | 7.8/yr | 12 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 28/yr | 27/yr | 107 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 127/yr | 129/yr | 124 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 Marion County: freezing from midwinter, 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