Willacy County, Texas · Raymondville
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With 18% of homes built before 1960 and about 0 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Basements flood here mostly in May. Willacy County averages 5.9 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Willacy County spike on heavy-rain days, about 5.9 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Willacy County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 6.54 inches.
2% of occupied homes in Willacy County heat mainly with wood or propane, below the Texas county median of 6.5%.
About 227 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
Willacy County covers 591 square miles of southeast Texas, with about 20,139 residents and 6,885 homes. Besides Raymondville, the county seat, the biggest communities are Lyford, Lasara and Sebastian. The county's median home was built in 1984.
39/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Willacy County ranks 201 of 232 Texas counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Willacy County ranks highest compared with other Texas counties.
Willacy County is milder than most of Texas, but not mild enough to skip winterizing. From 2015–2024 it averaged 0 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 2 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 205th of 232 counties.
With only about 2 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 22°F, on February 16, 2021.
Rainfall is about average for Texas. The county gets about 27.2 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 5.9 days of an inch or more (154th of 232). Those downpours cluster in May, June and September, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 6.54 inches on June 25, 2019. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 9.91 inches (through June 22, 2018).
Housing
Texas's 232 counties range widely in housing age; Willacy ranks 137th, with 43% of its homes built before 1980.
The mix runs from 18% built before 1960 to 26% built since 2000, so older neighborhoods bring aging pipe while newer subdivisions bring failed appliance lines and water heaters.
About 31% 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.
13% of homes are manufactured or mobile homes, close to 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 227 times a year here, above the Texas county median of 129. 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 Willacy County it's 12% utility gas, 85% electric, 2% propane and under 1% wood. Fires here are likelier to start in the kitchen or the wiring than in the furnace. After any fire, keep the HVAC off until ducts are checked, or soot will travel through the house.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Willacy County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Willacy gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. All of its neighbors see more heavy-rain days. Its housing is the oldest in the area by share of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Willacy | Texas median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 18% | 20% | 124 of 232 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 43% | 46% | 137 of 232 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 26% | 26% | 116 of 232 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 13% | 13% | 116 of 232 |
| Vacant homes | 17% | 17% | 103 of 232 |
| Wood or propane heat | 2.3% | 6.5% | 201 of 232 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 0/yr | 3/yr | 205 of 232 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 5.9/yr | 7.8/yr | 154 of 232 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 2/yr | 27/yr | 227 of 232 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 227/yr | 129/yr | 2 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 Willacy County: freezing from midwinter, heavy rain in May, June and September.
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