Arlington rental hail, freeze and flood plan for landlords

Arlington’s weather risk is the Metroplex pattern: hail and severe thunderstorms in spring, short hard freezes in winter, and local flooding that depends on the lot rather than the city. The one mandatory document in this plan is the Property Code §92.0135 flood disclosure — a signed notice at or before signing on 100-year floodplain awareness and flooding in the past five years. No Arlington floodplain page was verified for this guide, so the flood section rests on the federal map and the state form; the rest is operational.

Flood: the disclosure and its evidence

Answer both §92.0135 questions from the FEMA Flood Map Service Center lookup and from records, using the TREC form wording, and keep a dated screenshot. Arlington Water Utilities also manages the city’s stormwater fee — the FY2027 budget left it unchanged (City of Arlington) — and drainage complaints go to the city through its service channels.

Hail: the Entertainment District effect

Arlington’s spring storms do not care about zoning, but the city’s rental stock does: a large share of it is apartment complexes that the city inspects every year, and storm damage left on a roof or a stairwell becomes a citation at the next annual visit and a $150 re-inspection after it (Multi-Family Property Inspection Program). For any Arlington rental, the insurance question comes first: is the wind-and-hail deductible a percentage of the insured value, and does the policy pay loss of rents while a unit is out of service? Read the declarations page or ask a licensed agent. Then keep a spring roof photograph, because a claim adjuster in June wants to know what the roof looked like in March. A tenant’s written report of a leak is the trigger for §92.056 — acknowledge it in writing the same day.

Freeze: the Arlington Water account is the bill

When a pipe bursts in a hard freeze, the water that runs for two days is metered and billed — to the account named in the lease. Arlington Water Utilities raised the average residential bill to $85.20 a month in the FY2027 budget (City of Arlington), and a burst can multiply that. Two preventions cost almost nothing: insulate exposed lines and hose bibs before Thanksgiving, and walk the tenant to the water shutoff at move-in. If the grid fails during a freeze, the call goes to Oncor, which maintains the lines, not to the retail provider printed on the bill.

What the tenant keeps by the door

A single page: Oncor’s outage line; Arlington Water Utilities’ 24-hour emergency number, 817-459-5900; the city’s and Tarrant County’s alert channels; the landlord’s emergency number and the repair route exactly as the lease states it; and the locations of the water shutoff, the breaker panel and the gas shutoff. Add one sentence: the landlord may not cut utilities except as Property Code §92.008 permits, and cannot restore them either — the utility does.

After the event

Photograph before repairing, with dates; keep the tenant’s written report and the insurer’s claim number together; if the home cannot be lived in, read §92.054 on casualty loss before offering the tenant any arrangement. For an apartment property, remember that storm damage found at the annual city inspection becomes a citation and a $150 re-inspection — fix it first.

ARLINGTON RISK SOURCES AND WHAT THE LEASE SAYS
Risk	Where to check	What the lease or file contains
100-year floodplain	FEMA map · TREC form	Signed §92.0135 disclosure; dated map screenshot
Hail and wind	Insurance policy (licensed agent)	Deductible and loss-of-rents noted; roof photographed each spring
Power interruption	Oncor	Outage number on the sheet; §92.008 respected
Water interruption or freeze damage	Arlington Water Utilities	Account holder named; 24-hour line and shutoff on the sheet
Post-storm inspection items	Multi-Family Property Inspection Program	Repairs completed before the annual city inspection

What changes in Arlington

Hail is the dominant insured loss; the deductible structure matters more than the flood zone for most units.
Arlington Water Utilities runs the stormwater program and a 24-hour emergency line.
Outage calls go to Oncor whatever the retail provider on the bill.
For apartments, storm damage left unrepaired becomes an annual-inspection citation.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a flood disclosure for an Arlington rental?

Yes. Property Code §92.0135 applies to most residential leases of 30 days or more anywhere in Texas: a signed written notice about 100-year floodplain awareness and flooding in the past five years.

Who does an Arlington tenant call in a power outage?

Oncor Electric Delivery, which maintains the lines for every retail provider (Oncor).

Who handles a water main break in Arlington?

Arlington Water Utilities, 24-hour emergency line 817-459-5900 (Arlington Water Utilities).

What should I ask my insurer before hail season in Arlington?

Whether the policy has a separate wind-and-hail deductible, often a percentage of dwelling value, and what loss-of-rents cover pays while the unit is uninhabitable. Ask a licensed agent; this page cannot read your policy.

Sources

Rules change and the right answer can depend on the home, the city, the lease and the timing. These are the official pages this guide relies on; check them before signing, charging a fee, sending a notice or making a legal decision.

General information for U.S. landlords, with a Texas focus. This guide is not legal, tax or accounting advice. Consult a qualified professional for your situation. Written by the rentalfreelease.com Editorial Team; last reviewed September 19, 2026.