Estimated values: The U.S. Census suppresses field-level data for small places. Estimated from county average, pop-weighted from real underlying ACS data.
Tenant beats landlord
12.0%
/ 100 outcomes
In court-decided eviction outcomes for St. Stephens, AL, tenants prevail in roughly 12.0% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
29d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in St. Stephens, AL until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 29 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$1.0–2.5k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in St. Stephens, AL costs landlords $1,044 to $2,456 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$744
19% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in St. Stephens, AL is $744 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 19% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
4.4%
of households
4.4% of occupied housing units in St. Stephens, AL are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
25.2%
5.6% unemp.
25.2% of St. Stephens, AL residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 5.6%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
GOP margin +55.4% (2024)
3.3
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
3.3
State political climate
Alabama legislature & governorship
1.8
Economic stress
25.2% poverty · 5.6% unemp.
5.8
Supply constraint
$744 average · 4.4% renters
3.0
Rent Control risk
18.8% of income on rent
1.0
Eviction process difficulty
29 days filing → judgment
1.5
Tenant organizing strength
4.4% renters
1.2
Housing court bias
County bench composition
1.0
Geographic context
Risk heat across St. Stephens and the region
Click any city to see its score
How St. Stephens compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Washington County
High
#4of 15 cities
#4 of 15 cities in Washington County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Alabama
Moderate
#313of 593 cities
#313 of 593 cities in Alabama for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
2.2
/ 10 · VERY LOW
The verdict
A Very low-tier market.
Composite 2.2/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a slow, steady climb.
50-yr trend-1.2 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steady ratchet · no large swings
29d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $744/mo. A contested eviction takes 29 days and costs $1,044–$2,456 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
4.4%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 297 residents, 4.4% rent. 19% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 25.2% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
3.3
Local + regional
The politics
Light-statute interior market.
Local & regional political climate score 3.3 and 3.3 (GOP margin +55.4% (2024)). State climate at 1.8, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
1.8
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 1.8/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 1.5, housing court bias 1, rent-control risk 1. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-3.5 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5.8
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 5.8. Supply constraint: 3. The numbers behind those: 25.2% poverty, 5.6% unemployment, 19% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
St. Stephens sits in the quick & cheap quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
St. Stephens · 29d · ~$1.8k all-in ($60/day) · score 2.2National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in St. Stephens, Alabama, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 2.2/10 (VERY LOW tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Mid-tier market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
St. Stephens is a city of 297 residents where 4.4% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 18.8% of income on rent. At an average rent of $744/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How St. Stephens eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 1.5/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in St. Stephens closes 29 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of St. Stephens's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 1/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in St. Stephens runs $1,044 to $2,456 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 29 days of typical timeline and $744/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 1.2/10 in St. Stephens, and the city has limited rent control exposure (1/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In Alabama, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in St. Stephens: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a VERY LOW tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match Alabama's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $2,456 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in St. Stephens
Trap · ALA. CODE 35-9A AURLTA
Compare St. Stephens to nearby cities in Washington County via the related-cities grid below. Each municipality scores separately on the same nine sub-factors. State context: Ala. Code 35-9A AURLTA.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
What if my St. Stephens tenant just disappears?
If a tenant abandons the property and leaves personal belongings, Alabama law (Ala. Code § 35-9A-40) has specific rules. You generally need to send notice to their last known address, giving them time to claim their property. After a certain period (usually 14 days after the notice, or 48 hours if rent is unpaid and the tenant is gone), you can dispose of the property. Always document everything with photos and written records before you clear out the unit.
Q2
Can I raise the rent in St. Stephens?
Yes, there are no rent control laws in St. Stephens or anywhere else in Alabama. You can raise the rent as long as you provide proper notice as specified in your lease agreement or, for month-to-month tenancies, typically 30 days' written notice before the rent increase takes effect. Alabama has a rent control risk score of 0.6, indicating almost no chance of it being enacted. Learn more at our Alabama rent control rules page.
Q3
Do I need a rental license in St. Stephens?
Generally, no. St. Stephens, like most small towns in Alabama, does not require landlords to obtain a specific rental license. However, you should always check with the St. Stephens town clerk or Washington County for any local business licenses or specific ordinances that might apply to your rental property. It's rare, but some small municipalities have their own rules.
Q4
What are common landlord mistakes in Alabama evictions?
The most common mistakes include improper notice (wrong dates, wrong amounts), accepting partial rent without a clear agreement, attempting self-help evictions (like changing locks or shutting off utilities), and failing to properly serve court documents. These errors can get your case dismissed and force you to start over, costing you time and money. Always follow the letter of the law.
Q5
Are there strong tenant protection laws in St. Stephens?
Compared to states like California or New York, Alabama has relatively few statewide tenant protections. Our tenant-organizing-strength score of 1.2 reflects this. There's no statewide just-cause eviction, no source-of-income protection, and no rent control. The laws primarily focus on the basics of habitability, security deposits, and proper notice periods for lease termination. For details, see our Alabama tenant protections guide.
A 2.2/10 places St. Stephens in the 56th percentile of Alabama cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has climbed steadily since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to St. Stephens (2.2/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
