Storm risk in Linn County, Iowa
FEMA's overall hazard score for Linn County is 86.70 (Relatively Moderate), 419th of 3,144 counties. Hail scores 97.61 (Relatively High), strong wind 98.44 (Very High) and tornado 95.48 (Relatively High). Expected hail loss is $109 per $1 million of buildings a year; NOAA logged 175 hail reports in Linn County from 2014 to June 2026.
FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026. NOAA hail reports 2014 to June 2026.
- Linn County, coloured by its FEMA rating
- all U.S. counties
- each county in the state
- U.S. median
- state median
Expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings, log scale. Dot colour is FEMA’s rating band. The tornado lane counts everything exposed, not only buildings.
How FEMA rates Linn County
| Hazard | Rating | Score (0 to 100) | Rank in U.S. | Rank in IA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Relatively Moderate | 86.70 | 419 of 3,144 | 3 of 99 |
| Hail | Relatively High | 97.61 | 76 of 3,126 | 2 of 99 |
| Strong wind | Very High | 98.44 | 50 of 3,126 | 3 of 99 |
| Tornado | Relatively High | 95.48 | 143 of 3,126 | 4 of 99 |
Expected yearly loss, in dollars
| Hazard | This county, total a year | Per $1M of buildings | State median county | U.S. median county | Rank per $1M, U.S. | Rank per $1M, state |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | $5,915,343 | $109 | $51 | $22 | 450 of 3,126 | 18 of 99 |
| Strong wind | $1,376,062 | $25 | $66 | $20 | 1,346 of 3,121 | 93 of 99 |
| Tornado | $16,151,034 | $297 | $417 | $199 | 1,054 of 3,144 | 78 of 99 |
Rank 1 is the highest. Overall, hail and wind losses count buildings; the tornado row counts everything FEMA exposes, so it overstates building damage. Expected annual loss is an average over many years for the whole county, not a forecast for one roof.
What stands out in Linn County
- FEMA expects hail in Linn County to cost $109 per $1 million of buildings a year: 4.87 times the U.S. median and 2.11 times the IA county median, ranked 450th of 3,126 counties nationally and 18th of 99 in Iowa.
- FEMA expects strong wind in Linn County to cost $25 per $1 million of buildings a year: 1.24 times the U.S. median and 0.38 times the IA county median, ranked 1,346th of 3,121 counties nationally and 93rd of 99 in Iowa.
- FEMA expects tornado in Linn County to cost $297 per $1 million of buildings a year: 1.49 times the U.S. median and 0.71 times the IA county median, ranked 1,054th of 3,144 counties nationally and 78th of 99 in Iowa.
- Applying FEMA's estimate to a $204,400 home, the average yearly loss in Linn County is about $22 for hail and $5.17 for wind before any deductible; at the U.S. median county rates it would be $4.57 and $4.16.
- If the next years look like 2014 to 2025, a roof kept 20 years in Linn County meets about 36.7 hail days of 1 inch or more; the median county in NOAA's file (1,275 counties) would give 35.0.
- Built in 1977, the median home in Linn County is 49 years old, so an original roof has outlived a 3-tab shingle (15 to 20 years) and an architectural one (25 to 30 years); 74.1% of its 101,989 homes are at least 26 years old.
- March to June holds 156 of the 175 hail reports in Linn County (89 percent); the quietest month is January, with 0 reports.
What hail and wind cost a home here in an average year
Enter a home value. The calculator applies Linn County’s own loss rate: the county’s expected yearly loss divided by the value of its buildings. It starts at the Census median home value for the county.
Formula: home value × Linn County yearly loss ÷ building value. Hail: $5,915,343 ÷ $54,366,136,529 = 0.0001088. Wind: $1,376,062 ÷ $54,366,136,529 = 0.0000253. This is FEMA’s estimate of average damage to buildings and does not account for your deductible. Tornado is left out because FEMA’s tornado loss counts people and other exposure, not only buildings.
Read this as a yardstick. The rate is an average over every building in the county, from sheds to office towers, and over many years. Real losses come in rare, large storms; a roof with no damage in 19 years can need full replacement in the 20th. The figure is not a quote and not a prediction for one address.
Linn County in plain numbers
- Linn County scores 86.70 in FEMA's overall hazard index (Relatively Moderate): 419th of 3,144 rated counties and 3rd of 99 in Iowa.
- Hail scores 97.61 (Relatively High). FEMA expects $5,915,343 of hail damage to buildings in Linn County a year, which is $109 per $1 million of buildings, 4.87 times the U.S. median.
- Strong wind scores 98.44 (Very High) with $1,376,062 of expected yearly building loss in Linn County: $25 per $1 million of buildings, 1.24 times the U.S. median.
- Tornado scores 95.48 (Relatively High) and FEMA's expected yearly tornado loss is $16,151,034, counting everything exposed, or $297 per $1 million of buildings in Linn County.
- FEMA's own event record for Linn County averages 4.66 hail events and 6.10 strong-wind events a year.
- NOAA logged 175 hail reports in Linn County between 2014 and June 2026, on 25 days with stones of 1 inch or more; the largest was 2.75 inches.
- In Linn County, FEMA counts buildings worth 54.37 billion dollars and 230,253 residents.
- Social vulnerability is Very Low in Linn County.
- Community resilience there is Very High, for 230,253 residents.
- 1 city in Linn County is covered on this site: Cedar Rapids. 21 Census ZIP areas have more than half of their land in the county.
- Our guide range for a 2,000 sq ft asphalt roof in Cedar Rapids is $6,090 to $13,485.
- Linn County ranks 31 of the 194 counties with a page here for hail loss per $1 million of buildings, 42 for wind and 63 for tornado.
- In Linn County, April is the busiest month with 81 of the 175 reports (46 percent), against 1 report in October.
- Linn County's worst year was 2020, with 3 hail days at 1 inch or more and 35 reports. At the 2014 to 2025 pace that is 1.83 such days a year, one about every 6.5 months.
- The median home in Linn County was built in 1977; 53.7% of its 101,989 housing units date from before 1980, 74.1% from before 2000 and 12.3% from 2010 on.
- Census puts the median home value in Linn County at $204,400, and 73.3% of homes are lived in by their owners.
- 5,834 single-family building permits were issued in Linn County from 2014 to 2025, about 57.2 per 1,000 homes, peaking in 2015.
- NOAA lists 21 tornado tracks in Linn County since 2014; the strongest was an EF2 on June 28, 2017 near Central City, 10.19 miles long.
- The fastest gust in NOAA's records for Linn County is 140 mph on August 10, 2020 at Covington.
- The nearest county with a page here is Johnson County, 30 miles from the centre of Linn County; its hail score is 95.26.
- Across counties the median is one roofing firm for every 5,189 homes; Census counted 18 roofing contractor establishments in Linn County in 2023, one for every 5,666 homes.
- FEMA has named Linn County in 3 disaster declarations since 2014, the latest 2220 days before its data end, and 2 of them were storm-type.
The hail record of Linn County, year by year
NOAA logged 175 reports in Linn County; hail of 1 inch or more fell on 25 days. That is 1.8 such days a year; the median county in NOAA’s file has 1.8.
- reports
- days with hail of 1 inch or more
- * 2026 runs to June only
Reports by calendar month, all years together. Peak: April, 81 reports.
The same numbers as a table (years with at least one report)
| Year | Reports | Days, 1 inch or more | Days, 1.75 inch or more | Largest stone | Damage reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1 in | – |
| 2015 | 34 | 3 | 1 | 2.5 in | – |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.88 in | – |
| 2017 | 20 | 3 | 1 | 1.75 in | – |
| 2018 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1.75 in | – |
| 2019 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.88 in | – |
| 2020 | 35 | 3 | 2 | 2.75 in | – |
| 2021 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1.75 in | – |
| 2022 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 in | – |
| 2023 | 28 | 2 | 1 | 1.75 in | – |
| 2024 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 in | – |
| 2025 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1.5 in | – |
| 2026 (to June) | 25 | 3 | 2 | 2 in | – |
Biggest hail days in Linn County
| Date | Largest stone | Reports that day | Damage reported | Near |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 7, 2020 | 2.75 in | 29 | none recorded | Hiawatha |
| July 11, 2020 | 2.75 in | 4 | none recorded | Fairfax |
| June 22, 2015 | 2.5 in | 21 | none recorded | Marion |
| March 10, 2026 | 2 in | 7 | none recorded | Western |
| April 4, 2023 | 1.75 in | 23 | none recorded | Marion |
Where large hail was reported
FEMA scores the county as a whole. NOAA’s reports show where inside Linn County the big stones fell.
Reported hail locations, Linn County
- 961 to 1.74 in
- 371.75 to 2.74 in, golf ball to tennis ball
- 22.75 in and up, baseball
Largest plotted stone: 2.75 in. Bigger dots are bigger stones.
135 reports of 1 inch or larger have coordinates. Each dot is a reported location, not a storm path.
Sources: NOAA, Census county outlineWind and tornado records for Linn County
Fastest gusts in Linn County
| Date | Gust | Near |
|---|---|---|
| August 10, 2020 | 140 mph | Covington |
| June 30, 2014 | 100 mph | Marion Evans Arpt |
| April 22, 2019 | 90 mph | (Cid)Cedar Rapids Ar |
| July 28, 2023 | 90 mph | Marion |
Strongest tornado tracks in Linn County
| Date | Scale | Length | Injured / killed | Near |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 11, 2025 | EF2 | 6.74 mi | 0 / 0 | Center Pt |
| June 28, 2017 | EF2 | 10.19 mi | 1 / 0 | Central City |
| July 17, 2016 | EF2 | 0.53 mi | 4 / 0 | Fairfax |
| July 11, 2025 | EF1 | 4.97 mi | 0 / 0 | Waubeek |
21 tornado tracks in all since 2014; the strongest 4 are listed.
How old the roofs are
Census counts homes by the decade they were built. Under each bar is the number of hail days of 1 inch or more that an original roof from that decade has met, at Linn County’s 2014 to 2025 pace of 1.83 such days a year. Most roofs have been replaced since; the row shows what a roof that never was would have taken.
Bars: share of 101,989 housing units by decade built. Figures under the decade: hail days met by an original roof, at the county’s 2014 to 2025 pace. The pace of earlier years is unknown.
| Median year built | 1977 |
| Built before 1980 | 53.7% |
| Built before 2000 | 74.1% |
| Built since 2010 | 12.3% |
| Owner-occupied | 73.3% |
| Median home value | $204,400 |
| Single-family permits, 2014 to 2025 | 5,834 |
| Permits per 1,000 homes | 57.2 |
Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) and 25 to 30 years (architectural). Source: Census ACS 2019 to 2023 and Building Permits Survey.
Roofers and past disasters in Linn County
Roofing firms in Linn County
| Roofing contractor establishments, 2023 | 18 |
| Change since 2016 | +5 (+38%) |
| Homes per roofing firm | 5,666 |
| Median across counties | 5,189 |
| Employees, 2023 | 237 |
Source for Linn County: Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 238160. Full roofing-market page for Linn County.
FEMA disaster declarations naming Linn County since 2014
| Declarations naming Linn County | 3 |
| Storm / flood / winter / fire | 2 / 1 / 0 / 0 |
| Median IA county | 3 |
| Rank among 67 IA counties | 44 |
| Days from the latest to the data cutoff | 2,220 |
Source for Linn County: OpenFEMA, data to 2026-09-15.
Nearby counties
The closest counties that have a risk page, by distance between county centres. Loss is per $1 million of buildings; the columns marked "times here" divide the neighbour's loss by Linn County's.
| County | Miles | Overall | Hail loss | Hail, times here | Wind loss | Wind, times here | NOAA hail reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson County, IA | 30 | Relatively Moderate | $117 | 1.08 | $172 | 6.81 | 109 |
| Black Hawk County, IA | 45 | Relatively Low | $26 | 0.24 | $26 | 1.01 | 65 |
| Dubuque County, IA | 49 | Relatively Low | $103 | 0.94 | $37 | 1.45 | 63 |
| Scott County, IA | 60 | Relatively Moderate | $93 | 0.86 | $22 | 0.89 | 128 |
| Story County, IA | 96 | Relatively Low | $21 | 0.19 | $25 | 0.98 | 153 |
| Pottawattamie County, IA | 212 | Relatively Low | $127 | 1.16 | $55 | 2.18 | 83 |
More Iowa counties, nearest first
- Woodbury County 230 mi
Cities and ZIP areas in Linn County
1 city in this county is on PickARoofer. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are Census shapes that approximate ZIP codes; where we have a city’s ZIPs, the share is the part of each area’s land that lies in this county. 21 such areas have more than half their land here.
| City | ZIP areas (share of land in the county) | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| Cedar Rapids | 52401 (100%), 52403 (100%), 52404 (95%) | Roofers |
Storm hit your roof in Linn County? A free inspection tells you if there is damage. One local roofer answers, not five.
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How high is storm risk in Linn County?
FEMA's National Risk Index gives Linn County an overall score of 86.70 (Relatively Moderate), 419th of 3,144. Hail scores 97.61 (Relatively High), strong wind 98.44 (Very High) and tornado 95.48 (Relatively High).
In Linn County, how many hail reports has NOAA logged?
A report is one entry for one storm in one county, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell. NOAA has 175 for Linn County between 2014 and June 2026, on 25 days with hail of 1 inch or more; the largest stone was 2.75 inches.
What do hail and wind cost a home in Linn County each year, on average?
Applying FEMA's county rates to its median home value of $204,400: FEMA's estimate is about $22 a year for hail and $5.17 for wind, before any deductible, against $4.57 and $4.16 at the U.S. median county rates. This is an average over many years and all buildings, not a prediction for one roof; one bad storm costs far more than the average year.
How does Linn County compare with the rest of Iowa?
Per $1 million of buildings Linn County loses $109 to hail a year, against $51 in the median county of the state. Among 99 rated counties it is 2nd for hail, 3rd for strong wind and 4th for tornado.
How old are the roofs in Linn County?
The median home was built in 1977, 49 years ago, and 74.1% of the 101,989 housing units in Linn County date from before 2000. Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) or 25 to 30 years (architectural), so an original roof of either kind is past its rated life. The Census does not record when a roof was replaced.
What does expected annual loss mean?
It is FEMA's estimate of the average yearly loss from a hazard, in dollars, summed over the county. It is built for comparing counties at planning level, not for pricing one house.
Does a high rating mean my roof will be damaged?
No. The index compares counties and cannot say what will happen on your street. After a storm, a roof inspection is the only way to know.
Sources for Linn County: FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026; NOAA Storm Events Database hail reports for Linn County; Census Bureau ZCTA-to-county relationship file (2020); Census ACS and Building Permits Survey, homes in Linn County; Census County Business Patterns, roofing firms in Linn County; OpenFEMA, declarations naming Linn County. Planning-level information about Linn County, not an inspection and not insurance advice.
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).