Albemarle County, Virginia · Charlottesville
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With 10% of homes built before 1960 and about 15 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Basements flood here mostly in September. Albemarle County averages 10.7 days a year with an inch of rain or more.
Sewage backups in Albemarle County spike on heavy-rain days, about 10.7 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Albemarle County's wettest day in the 2015–2024 record brought 3.37 inches, and about 74 freeze-thaw days a year mean ice dams in some winters.
12% of occupied homes in Albemarle County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Virginia county median of 11.9%.
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
With 49,159 homes and around 114,919 residents, Albemarle County is 720 square miles of central Virginia. The county seat is Charlottesville, and Crozet, University of Virginia and Hollymead round out the largest towns. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1992.
45/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Albemarle County ranks 66 of 95 Virginia counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Albemarle County ranks highest compared with other Virginia counties.
For frozen pipes, Albemarle County is a typical Virginia county, which is still plenty. It averaged 79 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 15 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 95 Virginia counties that's 41st.
On February 20, 2015 the low fell to about -1°F, and in the stretch ending January 2018 the county went 4 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs December to February, 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 Nov 6 and the last spring freeze around Apr 5.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Virginia. The county gets about 46 inches of rain and melted snow a year, with 10.7 days of an inch or more (31st of 95). Those downpours cluster in May, September and October, when sump pumps and gutters are tested hardest. The wettest day on record brought 3.37 inches on August 9, 2024. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 5.05 inches (through May 19, 2018).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 74 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
31% of homes in Albemarle County predate 1980, below the Virginia county median of 46.2%, which ranks 78th of Virginia's 95 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 35% of today's homes. In houses that new, the weak points are washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, water heaters and sump pumps rather than the pipes in the walls.
The 1980s and 1990s account for 35% of the county's homes. If yours is from those decades, look under the sinks and at the water heater for gray plastic pipe stamped PB, which is polybutylene and leak-prone.
Renters occupy 34% of homes. If you rent, the building is usually the landlord's to repair, but your belongings are only covered by renters insurance.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 62 times a year here, close to the Virginia county median of 64. 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 Albemarle County's occupied homes: 17% utility gas, 66% electric, 10% propane and 2% 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 Albemarle County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Augusta, Greene, Louisa, Orange and Rockingham get more pipe-freeze nights than Albemarle. Rockingham County has the oldest housing nearby, with 42% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Albemarle | Virginia median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 10% | 20% | 83 of 95 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 31% | 46% | 78 of 95 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 35% | 25% | 20 of 95 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 2% | 9.6% | 81 of 95 |
| Vacant homes | 6.6% | 15% | 76 of 95 |
| Wood or propane heat | 12% | 12% | 51 of 95 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 15/yr | 14/yr | 41 of 95 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 11/yr | 10/yr | 31 of 95 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 74/yr | 77/yr | 56 of 95 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 62/yr | 64/yr | 50 of 95 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Virginia county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Albemarle County: freezing from December to February, heavy rain in May, 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