Long County, Georgia Eviction Risk: Low

Long County is a small, rural county in southeastern Georgia with a total population of roughly 2,942 and an eviction risk score of 2.5/10 (Low). That places it 79th out of Georgia eviction laws's 159 counties, meaning 78 counties carry higher risk for landlords and 80 are more landlord-friendly - a position solidly in the middle third of the state. The three incorporated places - Ludowici (the county seat, population 1,897), Allenhurst (804), and Gumbranch (241) - all cluster tightly in the 2.4-2.6 range, so risk is uniform across the county rather than driven by a single outlier city.

The economic picture warrants attention despite the low eviction score. Average rent runs $856 per month, and the average rent burden sits at 29.6% of household income - near the conventional 30% threshold that housing researchers use to flag affordability stress. Approximately 50% of Long County residents are renters, an unusually high renter share for a rural Georgia county, and the average poverty rate is 25.3%. That combination - high renter share, near-threshold rent burden, and elevated poverty - means individual tenants have limited financial cushion even though the county's legal environment is relatively straightforward for landlords. Allenhurst carries the highest individual score at 2.6/10, while Ludowici comes in slightly lower at 2.4/10.

Georgia landlord-tenant law is governed by O.C.G.A. § 44-7 (Landlord and Tenant). For nonpayment of rent or a material lease violation, landlords must serve a 3-day notice under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50 before filing a dispossessory action. A no-cause holdover requires a longer 60-day notice under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-7. Court filing fees run $60 to $250, sheriff lockout fees add another $25 to $100, and contested cases can involve attorney costs of $500 to $3,000. Uncontested cases typically resolve in 14 to 30 days; contested matters stretch to 45 to 90 days. Georgia has no rent control - O.C.G.A. § 44-7-19 expressly preempts local rent caps - and no just-cause eviction requirement statewide. Fair housing complaints are handled by the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity. Retaliation against tenants who exercise legal rights is prohibited under O.C.G.A. § 44-7-24, and landlords must maintain habitable conditions per O.C.G.A. § 44-7-13. Source-of-income is not a protected class under Georgia law, so landlords may lawfully screen on that basis. These legal parameters were last reviewed on 2026-05-29.

Long County's low eviction risk reflects a landlord-friendly legal framework under O.C.G.A. § 44-7, short dispossessory timelines, and the absence of local rent control - though a 25.3% poverty rate and near-30% rent burden mean financial stress among renters is real and payment disputes are plausible.