Winterizing DFW Apartment Communities: A Property Manager's Freeze-Readiness Checklist
Multifamily property insurance costs jumped an average of 26% in a single year, with some owners reporting increases as high as 120%, according to National Multifamily Housing Council survey data reported by Multifamily Dive — and the February 2021 Texas freeze was named as one of the biggest drivers behind those hikes. For DFW property managers, that's the real cost of getting caught unprepared when a hard freeze hits: it isn't just the emergency repair bill, it's what shows up on the insurance renewal for years afterward.
Texas doesn't see a hard freeze every year, which is exactly what makes winterization easy to deprioritize — and expensive to skip. Here's a practical framework for getting a DFW portfolio ready before the next cold snap, whether that's this winter or a few years from now.
Why DFW Portfolios Are Especially Exposed
Most DFW multifamily buildings simply weren't built to the same cold-weather standard as construction in consistently cold climates: pipes run through attics, exterior walls, and unheated breezeways with less insulation than a northern building would have. Because hard freezes are infrequent here, maintenance teams and residents alike are often under-practiced when one actually arrives — which raises both the odds of a failure and how bad it gets once one starts.
Building- and Unit-Level Freeze Prep
Most freeze damage traces back to a short list of preventable gaps. Before the first hard freeze of the season, work through:
Insulating exposed pipes in attics, crawl spaces, and exterior walls
Confirming every building's water shutoff valve locations with the maintenance team
Servicing heating systems and replacing filters before the cold arrives, not after
Sealing gaps around windows, doors, and foundations where cold air — and pipes — are exposed
Insulating or disconnecting exterior hose bibs and irrigation lines
Testing exterior lighting and any heat-traced walkways ahead of the season
Getting Residents Ready Before the Cold Hits
Resident behavior during a freeze matters as much as building prep. A short reminder ahead of a forecasted cold snap goes a long way toward preventing an in-unit pipe burst:
Ask residents to drip faucets and keep their units heated during a hard freeze
Remind residents to report a suspected leak or loss of heat immediately, rather than waiting
Confirm emergency contact information is current for every household
Pair freeze notices with a reminder to test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, since space heater use rises in cold snaps
Emergency and Power-Outage Readiness
Winter Storm Uri was as much a grid failure as a weather event, and DFW portfolios should plan for both. Designate a warming area in a clubhouse or leasing office, stock basic emergency lighting and supplies, and put a communication protocol in place before, during, and after a forecasted freeze so residents and staff know what to expect if the power goes out.
Winterization is cheapest when it happens on a calm October afternoon instead of during an emergency callout in January. PrecisionMFS handles maintenance for both occupied and vacant units across the DFW metro and can help a portfolio get ahead of freeze season with pipe insulation, HVAC servicing, and weatherization work — plus fast turnaround if a freeze does cause damage. Happy to talk through what a winterization plan could look like for your properties.
Written by Joanna Lapointe, Director of Operations at PrecisionMFS. Connect on LinkedIn.
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