Chatham County, Georgia Eviction Risk: Low

Chatham County, Georgia scores 2.8/10 (Low) on the eviction-risk index, placing it in the higher-risk third of the state: only 32 of Georgia eviction laws's 159 counties carry a higher score, meaning 126 are less risky for landlords. Across the county's 17 cities, conditions are uneven, with individual city scores ranging from 2 to 3.2. With 45.3% of residents renting and average rent sitting at $1,556, the tenant base is substantial, but a rent burden of 33.5% signals that a meaningful share of renters are stretched thin, a dynamic that has direct bearing on collection stability.

Investors evaluating the Savannah metro should weigh that county-level average carefully. Operating conditions are not uniform across the county's jurisdictions, and the gap between the most and least landlord-friendly cities is wide enough to materially affect turnover costs, vacancy exposure, and enforcement timelines.

The cities inside Chatham County

The highest-risk cities cluster well above the county average. Georgetown and Thunderbolt both score 2.7/10, tied for the riskiest positions in the county. Georgetown has a population of 11,158. Pooler, the county's second-largest city at 28,466 residents, scores 5.4/10, followed by Henderson (5.3) and Port Wentworth (5.2, pop. 12,892). Whitemarsh Island (5.2), Wilmington Island (5.1, pop. 13,905), and Montgomery (5.1) round out the upper tier.

The county seat, Savannah, presents a different picture. The city's 147,898 residents make it by far the largest market in the county, and its score of 4.4/10 sits notably below the county average. Skidaway Island, at 2.5/10, also comes in below the county average. The spread between Savannah's 4.4 and Georgetown's 5.6 underscores how localized risk is inside a single county boundary: a landlord holding units in Savannah faces materially different conditions than one operating in Georgetown or Pooler eviction risk.

State-level laws that apply here

Georgia eviction laws state law governs every landlord-tenant relationship in Chatham County. Under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50, landlords may serve a 3-day notice for nonpayment of rent or a material lease violation. Holdover tenants on a no-cause termination require a 60-day notice under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7; an expired lease with no holdover clause requires no advance notice. The full Georgia eviction laws eviction process, from notice through a judgment in an uncontested case, typically takes 14 to 30 days, while a contested matter can run 45 to 90 days. Court filing fees run $60 to $250, sheriff lockout fees add $25 to $100, and attorney fees typically range from $500 to $3,000. Landlords should budget Georgia eviction costs at the high end when a tenant contests the action.

Georgia does not require just cause for non-renewal and, under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19, state law preempts any local attempt to impose rent control, so no cap on rents applies anywhere in Chatham County. Source-of-income is not a protected class under Georgia state law, though federal fair housing rules still apply. For a full breakdown of tenant rights that can affect how proceedings unfold, Georgia tenant protections are worth reviewing before structuring a lease or initiating a notice.

With a poverty rate of 14.4% and nearly half of all residents renting, Chatham County's risk profile is driven by a broad, financially pressured tenant pool; the city-by-city grid above is the fastest way to pinpoint where within the county that pressure is highest.