Neighborhood · Evanston, IL

Downtown Eviction Risk: Moderate

6 census tracts · pop 26,526 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 5.4/10 · range 3.2–8

Downtown takes in 6 census tracts of Evanston, IL and houses 26,526 people. It carries an Eviction Risk Score of 5.4/10, in the Moderate tier. Scores across the 6 constituent tracts range from 3.2 to 8. A 4.8-point internal spread means block-level underwriting beats area-level here.

55% of renters here are cost-burdened at the 30% threshold, far above the Evanston rate of 31.8%. The severe-burden share is 29%. Those renters are past the 50% mark, and they miss rent for reasons that have nothing to do with willingness to pay.

The strongest single driver of the headline number is rent-regulation exposure at 7.2/10. Filings are well documented here: 568 across 5 observed tracts.

The worst year on record was 2013, when filings touched 9.2% of renter households. The most recent observed rate, 2.4% in 2015, is well off that peak.

At $1,640 a month, rents sit 7% under what the rest of Evanston commands. That places it #7 of 7 neighborhoods in Evanston. Rent takes 16% of average household income, comfortably inside the 30% line and unusually low for a rental sub-market.

32% of occupied units are renter-occupied.

Underwrite the address, not the area: with 4.8 points between its best and worst tract, the per-tract table below is the operative number. The number is rebuilt whenever its ACS, court-record, or statutory inputs change.

Risk score

5.4

Moderate

6 tracts · population-weighted

Downtown vs Evanston How this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average

% of income on rent

55.2% +74%

Evanston: 31.8%

Average gross rent

$1,640 -7%

Evanston: $1,762

Average HH income

$123,241 +29%

Evanston: $95,766

Poverty rate

13.4% +13%

Evanston: 11.9%

Renter share

32.4% -26%

Evanston: 43.8%

Peer neighborhoods

Neighborhoods with similar eviction risk

Same county, closest by Eviction Risk Score.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Downtown and the region

Click any tract to drill in · 6 tracts span score 3.2–8

Why Downtown scores 5.4

9 axes · pop-weighted · 1 = landlord-friendly

State political climate

legislature & governorship · Range 5.2–5.2 across tracts

5.2

Regional political climate

County-level mix · 2024 presidential margin · Range 7.5–7.5 across tracts

7.5

Local political climate

Parent city governance · Range 7.8–7.8 across tracts

7.8

Rent control risk

55% of income on rent · Range 5.3–8.7 across tracts

7.2

Eviction process difficulty

State notice requirements & court backlog · Range 4.8–5.0 across tracts

4.9

Tenant organizing strength

32% renter households · Range 3.0–8.6 across tracts

6.1

Housing court bias

County bench composition · Range 4.6–6.1 across tracts

5.6

Economic stress

13.4% below poverty line · Range 1.0–9.7 across tracts

3.6

Supply constraint

Rent-to-FMR gap & zoning friction · Range 2.6–9.5 across tracts

4.3

Risk score comparison

Downtown vs. parent city, state, U.S.

Eviction Risk Score (0–10 scale).

Variance across tracts

How uniformly does eviction risk play out in Downtown?

Left: distribution of constituent tract scores. Right: every tract as a heat square. Click any square to drill in.

Score distribution

0246810

Spread of 4.8 points from 3.2 to 8. This neighborhood crosses multiple risk tiers, so block-by-block conditions vary substantially.

Tracts as heat grid

8.0 8.0 7.1 4.8 3.2 3.2

Each square = one census tract. Color tracks the same green→red ramp as the chloropleth map above.

Census tracts

6 tracts in Downtown

Ranked highest-risk first. Click for per-tract detail.

Tract↕	Score↕	Pop↕	% over 30% on rent↕	Average rent↕
17031808702	8	5,244	50%	$1,417
17031809402	8	2,713	55%	$2,548
17031809500	7.1	4,183	54%	$1,926
17031812302	4.8	2,818	20%	$1,333
17031811900	3.2	6,126	66%	$1,597
17031812000	3.2	5,442	67%	$1,392

Social Vulnerability Index

CDC SVI percentile: 37

Pop-weighted across 6 tracts. Higher = more vulnerable to disaster, displacement, and rent shocks. Source: CDC/ATSDR SVI 2022.

Socioeconomic status 34%ile

Poverty, unemployment, no-HS-diploma, housing cost burden

Household characteristics 24%ile

Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+

Racial/ethnic minority 44%ile

Hispanic + non-white share of population

Housing & transport 66%ile

Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle

Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab

Court-record eviction history in Downtown

Aggregated across 5 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.

Historic baseline (2000–2018)

568Total filings (sum)
2.63%Avg annual filing rate
9.2%Peak year (2013)
2.52%Latest filed (2015)

CDC PLACES 2023 · pop-weighted

Eviction-adjacent indicators in Downtown

Average across all constituent tracts, population-weighted. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh) crude prevalence.

8.9%Housing insecurity
5.0%Utility shutoff threat
11.2%Food insecurity
8.0%SNAP enrollment
6.0%No health insurance
21.5%Any disability

Frequently asked

About Downtown

What is the eviction-risk score for Downtown?

Downtown scores 5.4/10 (Moderate tier) across 6 census tracts. The pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income and poverty signals.

How does Downtown compare to Evanston overall?

Downtown scores 1.2 points lower than Evanston overall (6.6/10). Renters spend 55% of income on rent vs 32% citywide. Average rent: $1,640 vs $1,762.

What is the average rent in Downtown?

Average gross rent in Downtown is $1,640/month (pop-weighted across 6 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 55% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What percentage of Downtown residents are renters?

32% of Downtown households are renter-occupied (vs 44% in Evanston). The neighborhood has 26,526 residents.

Is Downtown a high social-vulnerability area?

Downtown sits in the 37th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (less vulnerable). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.

Which tracts in Downtown have the highest eviction risk?

The highest-risk constituent tract in Downtown is census tract 17031808702 (score 8/10). Across the 6 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 3.2 to 8, a spread of 4.8 points.

How safe is Downtown for landlords?

Downtown carries a moderate-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (5.4/10). Pop-weighted across 6 constituent tracts, the score blends parent-city rent-control posture, county eviction-process timelines, and tract-specific rent-to-income / poverty signals. Compared to Evanston as a whole (6.6/10), this neighborhood is lower-risk.

What is the demographic breakdown of Downtown?

Downtown has 26,553 residents. Top groups: White (non-Hispanic) (69.5%), Asian (non-Hispanic) (12.2%), Hispanic / Latino (7.9%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.

Nearby

Other neighborhoods near Downtown

5.7 Forest Glen 3 tracts · pop 12,466 7.1 Mayfair 7 tracts · pop 26,451 5.8 Montrose 4 tracts · pop 20,648 6.8 Brynford Park 2 tracts · pop 9,463 5.9 Gladstone Park 6 tracts · pop 28,802 6.5 Grayland 3 tracts · pop 8,916

Sibling neighborhoods

Other neighborhoods inside Evanston

Same parent city, ranked by score similarity to Downtown.

5.5 Evanston Lakeshore Historic District 2 tracts · pop 5,639 6 Ridgeville 6 tracts · pop 30,377 6.5 Ashland Arts District 3 tracts · pop 12,007 7 South Evanston 1 tracts · pop 2,776 3.8 West End 3 tracts · pop 12,794 7.2 Church and Dodge 2 tracts · pop 8,083

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