In court-decided eviction outcomes for Hawthorne, FL, tenants prevail in roughly 16.9% 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
30d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Hawthorne, FL until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 30 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$1.3–3.0k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Hawthorne, FL costs landlords $1,338 to $3,027 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$727
27% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Hawthorne, FL is $727 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 27% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
31.8%
of households
31.8% of occupied housing units in Hawthorne, FL 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
14.3%
1.4% unemp.
14.3% of Hawthorne, FL residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 1.4%. 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
Dem margin +21.0% (2024)
6.7
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
6.7
State political climate
Florida legislature & governorship
1.5
Economic stress
14.3% poverty · 1.4% unemp.
5.1
Supply constraint
$727 average · 31.8% renters
4.8
Rent Control risk
27.0% of income on rent
4.4
Eviction process difficulty
30 days filing → judgment
1.4
Tenant organizing strength
31.8% renters
6.9
Housing court bias
County bench composition
5.5
Geographic context
Risk heat across Hawthorne and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Hawthorne compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Alachua County
Very Low
#9of 10 cities
#9 of 10 cities in Alachua County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Florida
Low
#691of 949 cities
#691 of 949 cities in Florida for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
2.1
/ 10 · VERY LOW
The verdict
A Very low-tier market.
Composite 2.1/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a slow, steady climb.
50-yr trend-0.4 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steady ratchet · no large swings
30d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $727/mo. A contested eviction takes 30 days and costs $1,338–$3,027 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
31.8%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 1,625 residents, 31.8% rent. 27% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 14.3% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
6.7
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 6.7 and 6.7 (Dem margin +21.0% (2024)). State climate at 1.5, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
1.5
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 1.5/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 1.4, housing court bias 5.5, rent-control risk 4.4. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-3.6 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5.1
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 5.1. Supply constraint: 4.8. The numbers behind those: 14.3% poverty, 1.4% unemployment, 27% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Hawthorne sits in the quick & cheap quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Hawthorne · 30d · ~$2.2k all-in ($73/day) · score 2.1National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Hawthorne, Florida, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 2.1/10 (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.
Hawthorne is a city of 1,625 residents where 31.8% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 27.0% of income on rent. At an average rent of $727/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 Hawthorne eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 1.4/10, 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 Hawthorne closes 30 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 Hawthorne's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 5.5/10 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 Hawthorne runs $1,338 to $3,027 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 30 days of typical timeline and $727/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 6.9/10 in Hawthorne, and the city has limited rent control exposure (4.4/10). 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 Florida, 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 Hawthorne: 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 Florida's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $3,027 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Hawthorne
Trap · 4.4/10
Comparative benchmarking matters in markets like this. Hawthorne's 4.4/10 is below the Florida state average. Rent-control-risk sub-score: 4.4/10. See the nearby cities grid below for direct A-vs-B comparison.
04Eviction filings
Live filings tracking · Eviction Lab
Princeton Eviction Lab Tracking System, county-level. Last update 2026-01-01.
In the most recent month, 222 eviction cases were filed across the tracker's coverage area, 1.35× the historical baseline (above baseline). Past 12 months: 2,263 filings. Pandemic-era cumulative: 10,711.
222Past month
2,263Past 12 months
1.35×vs baseline (past mo)
7.7%Repeat-tenant filings
Notice requirement: at least three days notice (in some cases more). Filing fee: $185 filing fee.
Last 36 months of filings2023-01-01 – 2025-12-01
Filings stayed roughly flat over the past 12 months.
Source: Eviction Lab Tracking System, Princeton University. Open Data Commons Attribution license.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant in Hawthorne without a reason?
In Florida, there is no statewide "just cause" requirement for terminating a tenancy. For a month-to-month lease, you can issue a 15-day notice to terminate without stating a specific reason, as long as it's not discriminatory or retaliatory. For a fixed-term lease, you generally need a lease violation to evict before the term ends, unless the lease specifies otherwise.
Q2
How long does a tenant have to pay rent after I give them a notice?
For non-payment of rent in Hawthorne, Florida, you must provide a 3-day pay-or-quit notice. This means the tenant has three full business days (excluding weekends and legal holidays) to either pay the overdue rent in full or vacate the property. If they don't, you can proceed with filing an eviction lawsuit.
Q3
What if my tenant claims they can't pay due to a job loss?
While unfortunate, a tenant's financial hardship, such as job loss, generally does not negate their obligation to pay rent under Florida law. You must still follow the proper eviction procedures, starting with the 3-day notice. You can choose to be flexible and work out a payment plan, but you are not legally required to do so. Any agreement should be in writing.
Q4
Can I keep the security deposit for unpaid rent in Hawthorne?
Yes, under Florida law, you can claim a portion or all of the security deposit for unpaid rent, as well as for damages beyond normal wear and tear. However, you must follow the strict notification rules. Within 30 days of the tenant vacating, you must send a written notice of your intent to impose a claim on the deposit, detailing the reasons. The tenant then has 15 days to object.
Q5
When should I get a lawyer for an eviction in Alachua County?
It's always a good idea to consult a lawyer early in the eviction process, especially if you're unfamiliar with the specific court procedures in Alachua County. Definitely involve an attorney if the tenant disputes the eviction, files a counterclaim, or you anticipate any complications. Proper legal guidance can save you time, money, and stress in the long run. The eviction-process-difficulty sub-score of 1.4 for Florida suggests it's generally straightforward, but mistakes can still be costly.
A 2.1/10 places Hawthorne in the 30th percentile of Florida 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 Hawthorne (2.1/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
