Clay County, Illinois Eviction Risk: Moderate

Clay County scores a 2.6/10 (Low risk) on the EvictionRiskMap scale, placing it among the most landlord-favorable markets in Illinois eviction laws. Ranked 101 of 102 Illinois eviction laws counties, only one county in the state presents a lower-risk operating environment, while 100 counties carry higher eviction risk. For landlords evaluating where to deploy capital across downstate Illinois eviction laws, that positioning is a meaningful signal: tenant disputes are relatively uncommon, courts are not backed up with contested cases, and the regulatory environment statewide leans toward landlord access rather than tenant protections.

Within the county itself, risk is contained in a narrow band. Scores across the 6 mapped cities run from 2.5 to 3/10, a half-point spread that reflects a genuinely uniform market rather than a county average masking outlier hot spots. Average rent sits at $696 per month and the average rent burden is 21.5% of income, meaning most renters here are not financially stretched to the point where non-payment becomes routine. A renter share of 27.1% of households keeps the rental pool manageable in scale.

The cities inside Clay County

The county seat Louisville and the village of Iola share the county high-water mark at 3/10, making them the least landlord-friendly spots in an otherwise forgiving market. Louisville, with a population of 1,163, is the second-largest city in the county and the logical hub for rental activity, so landlords there should track tenant trends more closely than the county average alone would suggest. Iola, with only 90 residents, is a micro-market where a single problem property can skew local patterns.

At the other end, Flora (population 4,475, the county's largest city) and Clay City (population 723) both score 2.5/10, the lowest in the county. Flora absorbs the majority of the county's rental units given its size, and its low score reflects stable landlord-tenant dynamics. Xenia comes in at 2.8/10. Even at the riskiest end, eviction risk here is Low by any statewide comparison. That said, risk is always hyper-local: a landlord in Louisville is operating in a materially different environment than one in Flora, and city-level data should drive underwriting rather than the county average alone.

State-level laws that apply here

Illinois eviction laws eviction law, governed by 735 ILCS 5/9 (Forcible Entry and Detainer), sets the procedural framework landlords must follow everywhere in the state, including Clay County. For nonpayment of rent, the required notice is 5 days. A material lease violation triggers a 10-day notice. Month-to-month tenants ending a tenancy require 30 days; fixed-term leases ending naturally require no additional notice beyond the contract. Once notice is served and a case is filed, uncontested matters typically resolve in 30 to 60 days; contested cases can run 60 to 150 days. The Illinois eviction laws eviction process does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and Illinois eviction laws state law preempts any local rent control ordinance, so landlords here face no local rent caps. Reviewing the Illinois eviction costs picture before filing is worthwhile: court filing fees range from $200 to $400, sheriff lockout fees add $60 to $200, and attorney fees typically run $750 to $3,500 depending on case complexity.

Illinois security deposit limits are not capped statewide, though landlords must follow interest and return rules. Source-of-income is a protected class under the Illinois Department of Human Rights, and retaliation against tenants for exercising legal rights is prohibited under 765 ILCS 720/1. Illinois tenant protections also include habitability standards under 765 ILCS 742, requiring that units remain fit for occupation throughout the tenancy.

With an average poverty rate of 16.7% and a renter share of 27.1%, Clay County presents a modest but real affordability gap that landlords should price into screening criteria; the city-level grid above shows where within the county that pressure is most concentrated.