Johnson County, Georgia Eviction Risk: Low

Johnson County, Georgia eviction laws receives an eviction risk score of 2.6/10 - a Low rating that places it 48th out of 159 Georgia counties. That ranking puts 47 counties at higher risk and 111 at lower risk, landing Johnson County in the higher-risk third of the state. For landlords and property managers operating here, the Low score offers relative comfort, but a handful of local stress indicators deserve close attention before dismissing risk entirely.

The county's total population sits at 4,133, spread across three communities: Wrightsville (population 3,487), Harrison (458), and Kite (188). Wrightsville is both the largest and the riskiest, scoring 2.7/10, while Kite logs the county's floor at 2.2/10. Average monthly rent across the county is $677, and the average rent burden - the share of income going to housing costs - runs at 44%. That burden figure is high by any standard; housing economists typically flag anything above 30% as cost-stressed. Combine that with a 25.9% poverty rate and a renter share of 37.7% of households, and the picture is of a small, rural county where a meaningful portion of tenants are already stretched thin.

On the legal side, Georgia eviction laws's landlord-tenant framework is governed by O.C.G.A. § 44-7 (Landlord and Tenant). Nonpayment of rent triggers a 3-day notice under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50, and material lease violations carry the same 3-day window. Holdover or no-cause terminations require a 60-day notice under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7. If an eviction reaches court, filing fees run $60 to $250, with sheriff lockout fees between $25 and $100. An uncontested case typically resolves in 14 to 30 days; a contested matter can stretch 45 to 90 days. Attorney fees for eviction work range from $500 to $3,000. Georgia eviction laws does not require just cause for eviction and, critically, O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19 preempts any local rent control ordinance, so no city or county in Georgia eviction laws - including Wrightsville - can impose rent caps. That preemption removes a layer of regulatory risk that landlords in some other states must track.

Johnson County is a small rural county in central Georgia eviction laws where high rent burdens and elevated poverty create tenant financial stress even under a Low overall eviction risk score.