In court-decided eviction outcomes for Sultana, CA, tenants prevail in roughly 44.7% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation — landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
287d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Sultana, CA until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 287 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$16.2–39.2k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Sultana, CA costs landlords $16,166 to $39,158 all-in — court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$850
25% stretched on rent
Median gross rent in Sultana, CA is $850 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 25% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent — the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
63.6%
of households
63.6% of occupied housing units in Sultana, CA 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
35.5%
13.0% unemp.
35.5% of Sultana, CA residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 13.0%. 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 +20.7% (2024)
5.9
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
5.9
State political climate
California legislature & governorship
6.8
Economic stress
35.5% poverty · 13.0% unemp.
9.4
Supply constraint
$850 average · 63.6% renters
7.4
Rent Control risk
25.0% of income on rent
4.6
Eviction process difficulty
287 days filing → judgment
6.3
Tenant organizing strength
63.6% renters
9.7
Housing court bias
County bench composition
7.0
Geographic context
Risk heat across Sultana and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Sultana compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Tulare County
Elevated
#19of 60 cities
#19 of 60 cities in Tulare County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in California
High
#379of 1,594 cities
#379 of 1,594 cities in California for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
6.1
/ 10 · ELEVATED
The verdict
A Elevated-tier market.
Composite 6.1/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+4.4 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
287d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $850/mo. A contested eviction takes 287 days and costs $16,166–$39,158 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
63.6%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 783 residents, 63.6% rent. 25% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 35.5% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
5.9
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 5.9 and 5.9 (GOP margin +20.7% (2024)). State climate at 6.8 — mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
6.8
State politics
The process
Long calendar, heavy friction.
State political climate 6.8/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies — and shows up in process. Eviction process difficulty reads 6.3, housing court bias 7.0, rent-control risk 4.6. The slow part is the calendar, not the motion practice.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +1.3 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
9.4
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the real risk.
Economic stress: 9.4. Supply constraint: 7.4. The numbers behind those: 35.5% poverty, 13.0% unemployment, 25% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Sultana sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Sultana · 287d · ~$27.7k all-in ($96/day) · score 6.1National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Sultana, California, presents an elevated-friction market where documented notices and proactive screening matter. The Eviction Risk Score is 6.1/10 (ELEVATED 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 Elevated-friction market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Sultana is a city of 783 residents where 63.6% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 25.0% of income on rent. At an average rent of $850/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 Sultana eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 6.3/10 — 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 Sultana closes 287 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 Sultana's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 7.0/10 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 Sultana runs $16,166 to $39,158 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 287 days of typical timeline and $850/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 9.7/10 in Sultana, and the city has limited rent control exposure (4.6/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5–3x 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 California, deposit cap and refund window are statute — exceed 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 Sultana: 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 ELEVATED tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one — 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 California's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $39,158 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Sultana
Trap · AB 1482
Compare Sultana to neighboring cities in Fresno County via the grid below. The 6.1/10 score is computed from nine sub-factors plus a state-law multiplier under AB 1482 + Costa-Hawkins. Fresno County 2020 presidential margin: D+7.8. Cross-reference the state overview link in the guides section for California statutory detail.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant in Sultana without a reason?
No, California has statewide just-cause eviction requirements. You generally need a legally recognized reason to terminate a tenancy, especially if the tenant has lived there for over 12 months. This could be non-payment of rent, lease violations, or specific "no-fault" reasons like owner move-in, which often require relocation assistance.
Q2
How long does it typically take to evict a tenant in Sultana?
The typical eviction timeline in Sultana is around 287 days, or nearly 10 months. This accounts for notice periods, court processing, potential delays, and sheriff lockout procedures. It's a long, drawn-out process in California.
Q3
What's the maximum security deposit I can charge in Sultana?
In Sultana, like the rest of California, the security deposit cap is 1.00 month's rent for unfurnished residential properties. For furnished properties, it can be up to two months' rent.
Q4
Do I have to accept Section 8 or other housing vouchers in Sultana?
Yes, California has statewide source-of-income protection. This means you cannot refuse to rent to a tenant simply because they use a Section 8 voucher or other legal forms of income assistance to pay rent.
Q5
What should I do if my tenant stops paying rent?
First, confirm non-payment. Then, promptly serve a 3-day pay-or-quit notice, ensuring it's correctly formatted and served. If they don't pay or move after three days, consult an eviction attorney immediately to file an unlawful detainer lawsuit. Do not try to self-help evict.
Q6
Is "cash for keys" a good option in Sultana?
Often, yes. Given the high costs ($16,166–$39,158) and long timelines (287 days) of evictions in Sultana, offering a tenant a sum of money to move out voluntarily and sign a mutual termination agreement can be a significantly cheaper and faster resolution than a full eviction lawsuit.
A 6.1/10 places Sultana in the 81th percentile of California cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1–10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has risen sharply 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 Sultana (6.1/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
