Crittenden County, Arkansas Eviction Risk: Low

Crittenden County carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.5/10 (Low) across its 15 mapped cities, yet that county-wide average masks meaningful variation: individual city scores range from 2 to 3 out of 10. On the surface, a Low label sounds reassuring, but Arkansas ranks Crittenden County 3rd out of 75 counties statewide for eviction risk, meaning only two Arkansas eviction laws counties are riskier, and 72 are more landlord-friendly. Landlords evaluating this market should weigh that distinction carefully before assuming a smooth operating environment.

The economic backdrop sharpens the picture. With a county-wide average rent of $942, a rent burden averaging 28.1% of income, a renter share of 44.4%, and a poverty rate of 20.9%, a significant share of tenants here are financially stretched. These conditions do not make eviction inevitable, but they do make rent collection less predictable than the Low risk label might suggest on first read.

The cities inside Crittenden County

Risk is genuinely hyper-local in Crittenden County. At the top of the scale, West Memphis (population 23,929) and Earle (population 1,520) both score 2.9/10, the highest in the county, joined by Edmondson and Sunset at the same mark. West Memphis eviction risk dominates the county's rental economy simply by size: it alone accounts for more than half of the county's total population of 42,557, so conditions there effectively set the tone for the county average. Marion, the second-largest city at 13,623 residents, scores a somewhat lower 2.6/10, reflecting a marginally more stable tenant base.

At the other end of the spectrum, Clarkedale scores 2/10, the lowest in the county, while Crawfordsville and Horseshoe Lake each come in at 2.2/10. For investors comparing submarkets, the gap between a 1.9 in Clarkedale and a 2.8 in West Memphis is not enormous in absolute terms, but it does represent real differences in tenant-payment stability and likely eviction frequency across the portfolio.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord in Crittenden County operates under Ark. Code § 18-17 (Residential Landlord-Tenant Act). The notice structure is straightforward: 3 days for non-payment of rent, 14 days for a lease violation with an opportunity to cure, and 30 days for an end-of-term or no-cause termination. Arkansas eviction laws does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and state law preempts any local rent-control ordinance, so there is no patchwork of municipal restrictions to navigate. Details on the full notice-to-writ workflow are covered in the Arkansas eviction laws eviction process guide.

Cost exposure on an eviction action runs from a court filing fee of $165 to $250, a sheriff's lockout fee of $40 to $120, and attorney fees of $500 to $2,500 for represented cases. Uncontested matters typically resolve in 30 to 60 days; contested proceedings can stretch to 90 to 150 days. Investors used to faster markets should factor that timeline into vacancy underwriting. A full breakdown of out-of-pocket expenses is available in the Arkansas eviction costs guide. Arkansas security deposit limits and Arkansas tenant protections are set at the state level and apply uniformly across all 75 counties.

With a poverty rate of 20.9% and renters making up 44.4% of households, landlord exposure in Crittenden County is concentrated in a financially vulnerable tenant pool; the city-by-city grid above shows exactly where that pressure is highest, from West Memphis eviction risk at 2.7/10 down to Clarkedale at 2/10.