Crawford County, Illinois Eviction Risk: Low

Crawford County, Illinois eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.9/10 (Low) across its 8 incorporated cities, placing it at rank 87 of 102 Illinois counties, meaning 86 counties are riskier and only 15 are less risky than Crawford County. For landlords and investors, that standing puts this market firmly in the lower-risk third of the state, with average rent sitting at $808 per month, a rent-burden rate of 22.2%, and a renter share of 25.9% of households. Conditions across the county are broadly stable, though intra-county variation matters: individual city scores range from 2.5 to 3.1, so site selection within the county still carries real consequence.

The total county population of 11,302 reflects a small, rural market where vacancy dynamics and tenant pools are tighter than in metro Illinois eviction laws. Landlords operating here typically face lower demand pressure but also fewer competing rental units, which keeps renter turnover manageable. With a poverty rate of 11.5%, tenant financial stress exists but is not at the elevated levels seen in higher-risk Illinois eviction laws counties, making underwriting more straightforward for investors who know the local submarkets.

The cities inside Crawford County

The highest-risk city in the county is Robinson, the county seat and by far its largest city, with a population of 7,084 and a risk score of 3.1/10. Stoy shares that same score of 3.1/10, though its population of just 90 means its rental market is extremely limited. Hutsonville and West York both score 3/10, sitting just below Robinson and Stoy. Investors should treat Robinson as the dominant submarket: it concentrates the largest tenant pool and, correspondingly, the highest relative risk in the county.

On the lower-risk end, Oblong scores 2.5/10 with a population of 1,634, making it the county's most landlord-favorable city of meaningful size. Palestine and Flat Rock each score 2.6/10, with populations of 1,430 and 337 respectively. Risk is genuinely hyper-local here: a landlord operating in Oblong faces a measurably different risk profile than one operating just miles away in Robinson, even though both sit inside the same county average.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord in Crawford County operates under Illinois eviction laws state law, specifically the Forcible Entry and Detainer Act at 735 ILCS 5/9. Notice requirements depend on the reason for termination: nonpayment of rent requires a 5-day notice, a material lease violation triggers a 10-day notice, and ending a month-to-month tenancy requires 30 days. Fixed-term leases that expire require no additional notice. Understanding the full Illinois eviction laws eviction process is essential before serving any notice, as procedural errors can reset the clock entirely.

Uncontested cases typically resolve in 30 to 60 days; contested matters can run 60 to 150 days. Court filing fees range from $200 to $400, sheriff lockout fees from $60 to $200, and attorney fees from $750 to $3,500, so a fully litigated eviction can reach several thousand dollars all-in. Landlords should review Illinois eviction costs carefully before acquiring rentals in this market. On the regulatory side, Illinois eviction laws does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and state law preempts local rent control, so no city in Crawford County may impose rent caps. Source-of-income discrimination is protected under state law through the Illinois Department of Human Rights.

With a poverty rate of 11.5% and a renter share of 25.9%, Crawford County's tenant base is modest in size, and the city-by-city breakdown in the grid above shows that Oblong and Palestine offer the county's most favorable risk profiles for landlords seeking lower-risk entry points.