Estimated values: The U.S. Census suppresses field-level data for small places. Estimated from constituent census tracts, pop-weighted from real underlying ACS data.
Tenant beats landlord
15.9%
/ 100 outcomes
In court-decided eviction outcomes for Wildwood, GA, tenants prevail in roughly 15.9% 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
37d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Wildwood, GA until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 37 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$1.5–3.7k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Wildwood, GA costs landlords $1,499 to $3,749 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$687
4% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Wildwood, GA is $687 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 4% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
30.2%
of households
30.2% of occupied housing units in Wildwood, GA 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
27.1%
43.8% unemp.
27.1% of Wildwood, GA residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 43.8%. 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 +66.6% (2024)
2.6
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
2.6
State political climate
Georgia legislature & governorship
2.0
Economic stress
27.1% poverty · 43.8% unemp.
9.4
Supply constraint
$687 average · 30.2% renters
6.4
Rent Control risk
4.4% of income on rent
1.0
Eviction process difficulty
37 days filing → judgment
1.9
Tenant organizing strength
30.2% renters
6.4
Housing court bias
County bench composition
1.6
Geographic context
Risk heat across Wildwood and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Wildwood compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Dade County
Very High
#1of 4 cities
#1 of 4 cities in Dade County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Georgia
High
#102of 673 cities
#102 of 673 cities in Georgia for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
2.8
/ 10 · LOW
The verdict
A Low-tier market.
Composite 2.8/10. 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
37d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $687/mo. A contested eviction takes 37 days and costs $1,499–$3,749 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
30.2%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 368 residents, 30.2% rent. 4% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 27.1% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
2.6
Local + regional
The politics
Light-statute interior market.
Local & regional political climate score 2.6 and 2.6 (GOP margin +66.6% (2024)). State climate at 2, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
2
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 2/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 1.9, housing court bias 1.6, rent-control risk 1. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-3.1 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: 6.4. The numbers behind those: 27.1% poverty, 43.8% unemployment, 4% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Wildwood sits in the quick & cheap quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Wildwood · 37d · ~$2.6k all-in ($71/day) · score 2.8National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Wildwood, Georgia, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 2.8/10 (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.
Wildwood is a city of 368 residents where 30.2% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 4.4% of income on rent. At an average rent of $687/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 Wildwood eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 1.9/10, 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 Wildwood closes 37 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 Wildwood's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 1.6/10 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 Wildwood runs $1,499 to $3,749 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 37 days of typical timeline and $687/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 6.4/10 in Wildwood, and the city has limited rent control exposure (1/10). 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 Georgia, 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 Wildwood: 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 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 Georgia's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $3,749 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Wildwood
Trap · 64.6 POINTS
Dade County voted Republican by 64.6 points in 2020, a baseline that correlates with landlord-neutral statutory bias under O.C.G.A. 44-7.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
What's the fastest way to get a tenant out who isn't paying?
The fastest legal way is to immediately serve the 3-day pay-or-quit notice once rent is late, then file the Dispossessory Affidavit if they don't comply. Cash for keys can also be very fast if the tenant agrees, often avoiding court entirely.
Q2
Can I just change the locks if a tenant stops paying?
Absolutely not. In Georgia, self-help evictions (like changing locks, turning off utilities, or removing property) are illegal. You must follow the court process. Doing so can lead to lawsuits and significant penalties.
Q3
How much notice do I need to give to end a month-to-month lease?
For a month-to-month tenancy, you must give at least 60 days' notice to terminate the lease, provided there's no specific lease violation. This is for no-cause termination.
Q4
What if my tenant claims I haven't fixed something?
Tenants in Georgia generally cannot withhold rent for repairs. They must notify you in writing of the issue. If you fail to make repairs, they might have grounds to sue you or terminate the lease, but not to stop paying rent. Address repair requests promptly and document everything.
Q5
Are there any rent control laws in Wildwood?
No, Georgia has a statewide prohibition against rent control. You won't find any rent control ordinances in Wildwood or anywhere else in the state. For details, see our Georgia rent control rules.
Q6
What's the biggest mistake landlords make in Wildwood?
The biggest mistake is delaying action when rent is late. Every day you wait to serve notice or file paperwork prolongs the problem and increases your financial loss. The second is not having a clear, Georgia-specific lease agreement. You can also find more information on Georgia tenant protections.
A 2.8/10 places Wildwood in the 92nd percentile of Georgia 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 Wildwood (2.8/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
