Alamosa County, Colorado Eviction Risk: Moderate

Alamosa County sits in the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado, home to 11,329 residents across three tracked jurisdictions: the City of Alamosa (population 9,879), Alamosa East (1,298), and the small agricultural community of Hooper (152). The county's eviction risk score of 4.2/10 places it 45th of 64 Colorado counties, which means 44 counties carry higher risk - putting Alamosa in the lower-risk third statewide. That ranking reflects a rental market that is under real pressure but has not yet accumulated the layered tenant protections found in Colorado's urban cores.

Renters make up 52.1% of the county's households - a majority-renter market unusual for a rural Colorado county. The average rent of $888 per month may look accessible compared to Denver eviction risk or Boulder eviction risk, but an average rent burden of 24.9% and a poverty rate of 19.6% signal that a meaningful share of tenants are operating close to their financial limit. Alamosa East carries the county's highest individual score at 4.3/10, just ahead of the City of Alamosa at 4.2/10 and Hooper at 4.1/10 - a tight band suggesting the whole county operates under similar conditions rather than having one concentrated pressure point. Landlords in any of these three areas face the same Colorado statutory framework, so the difference in scores reflects local demographic and economic signals rather than divergent legal exposure.

Colorado's landlord-tenant statute (C.R.S. § 38-12) governs all activity in Alamosa County, and recent legislative changes have added meaningful complexity. Just cause is now required before ending most tenancies, and no-fault terminations for owner move-in or renovation require a 90-day notice under HB24-1098 (C.R.S. 13-40-104). Non-payment of rent and material lease violations each carry a 10-day cure notice (C.R.S. 13-40-104(1)(d) and (e)), while a substantial lease violation triggers a shorter 3-day notice under C.R.S. 13-40-107.5. Landlords must give 48 hours notice before entering a unit. If an uncontested case does reach court, resolution typically runs 21 to 45 days; a contested case stretches to 60 to 120 days. Court filing fees in Colorado run $105 to $200, and if a sheriff's lockout is required after judgment, that adds another $50 to $200. Attorney fees for a full eviction action typically fall between $750 and $3,500. Source-of-income discrimination is prohibited under state law, meaning landlords cannot reject an otherwise qualified applicant solely on the basis of housing vouchers or other assistance programs - a protection administered through the Colorado Civil Rights Division. Colorado does not preempt local rent control, so local ordinances could theoretically apply, though none are currently in effect in Alamosa County.

With a majority-renter population carrying a 19.6% poverty rate and average rents of $888/month, Alamosa County's moderate score reflects real tenant financial strain even though the county sits in the lower-risk third of Colorado eviction laws's 64 counties.