St. Clair County, Illinois Eviction Risk: Elevated

St. Clair County carries an average eviction-risk score of 5.5/10, rated Elevated, placing it 3rd out of 102 Illinois counties by risk, meaning only 2 counties in the state present a more challenging environment for landlords. Spread across 27 cities and a total population of roughly 202,000, this is a county where operating conditions vary meaningfully by submarket, and landlords who treat it as a uniform market tend to underestimate exposure. Average rent runs $1,108 per month, with an average rent burden of 28.7% of household income, a combination that leaves relatively thin margin for tenants absorbing any income disruption.

Illinois state law sets the procedural floor, but the economic pressures on renters in St. Clair County are local. A 34.9% renter share means a substantial tenant base, and a 14.3% average poverty rate points to a segment of that base with limited financial cushion. For investors underwriting deals here, the score range of 4.6 to 5.8 across cities is wide enough that asset selection and submarket targeting matter far more than county-level averages suggest.

The cities inside St. Clair County

The highest-risk city in the county is Scott AFB at 5.8/10, topping a cluster of communities that all score in the mid-to-upper 5s. Close behind are Cahokia Heights (5.7/10, population roughly 17,106) and Brooklyn (5.7/10). Belleville, the county's largest city with a population of 41,370, scores 5.6/10, joined at that score by Fairview Heights (population 16,745), Shiloh (population 14,572), Lebanon, and Lenzburg.

The lower end of the range tells a different story. The county's floor sits at 4.6/10, and several smaller communities fall below the county average of 5.5/10, including East St. Louis at 5.3/10 and Swansea at 5.4/10. O'Fallon, the county's second-largest city at 32,262 residents, lands exactly at the county average of 5.5/10. Risk is genuinely hyper-local here: a decision to buy two blocks over in a different community can shift the operating environment by a full point or more.

State-level laws that apply here

Every eviction in St. Clair County proceeds under Illinois's Forcible Entry and Detainer statute, 735 ILCS 5/9. The Illinois eviction process begins with the correct notice: 5 days for nonpayment of rent (735 ILCS 5/9-209), 10 days for a material lease violation (735 ILCS 5/9-210), and 30 days to terminate a month-to-month tenancy (735 ILCS 5/9-207). No notice period is required at the natural end of a fixed-term lease under 735 ILCS 5/9-205. Once in court, an uncontested matter typically resolves in 30 to 60 days; a contested case can run 60 to 150 days.

Illinois eviction costs can add up quickly. Court filing fees run $200 to $400, sheriff lockout fees add $60 to $200, and attorney fees typically range from $750 to $3,500, depending on complexity. Illinois does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and state law preempts local rent control ordinances, so no municipality in St. Clair County may impose a rent cap. Source-of-income is a protected class under Illinois law, enforced by the Illinois Department of Human Rights. Landlords with questions about Illinois security deposit limits or Illinois tenant protections will find those rules set at the state level and applied uniformly across the county.

With a 14.3% average poverty rate and 34.9% of households renting, the financial fragility underlying St. Clair County's Elevated rating is not confined to one or two hot spots; it runs through much of the county's rental stock, which is why reviewing individual city scores in the grid above is the right starting point for any investment or management decision here.