Clinton County, Indiana Eviction Risk: Very Low

Clinton County, Indiana eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.3/10 (Very Low), yet that single number conceals real variation across the county's 11 cities, where individual scores run from 2.5 at the low end to 4 at the high end. Despite the Low label, the county sits at rank 16 of 92 in Indiana eviction laws, meaning only 15 counties in the state are riskier and 76 are more landlord-friendly. Investors considering Clinton County should treat it as a higher-risk third of the state rather than a genuinely low-risk market.

Average rent across the county is $894, renter households make up 35.8% of the housing stock, and rent burden averages 27.6% of income. Those numbers point to a tenant base that is financially stretched in places, which can translate to higher nonpayment rates in the rougher submarkets even when the countywide average looks manageable.

The cities inside Clinton County

The concentration of risk sits squarely in Frankfort, the county seat and by far the largest city with a population of 15,917. Frankfort scores 2.3/10, the highest in the county, and because it accounts for the bulk of the county's total population of 21,786 it pulls the countywide average up considerably. Landlords active in Frankfort are operating in a meaningfully different environment than the county average implies.

A tier below Frankfort, Mulberry, Colfax, and Michigantown each score 1.9/10, while Rossville scores 2.4/10 with a population of 1,565. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Hillisburg scores 1.8/10 and Forest scores 1.9/10, illustrating how sharply risk can diverge within a single county. A landlord who owns units in Hillisburg is operating in a substantially lower-risk environment than a Frankfort landlord, even though both portfolios fall under the same county header. Risk is hyper-local here, and underwriting based only on the county average would misrepresent exposure in either direction.

State-level laws that apply here

Indiana state law under Ind. Code § 32-31 (Landlord-Tenant Relations) sets the procedural framework for every landlord in Clinton County. For nonpayment of rent, the required notice period is 10 days under IC 32-31-1-6. A material lease violation requires a 30-day notice under IC 32-31-1-8, and ending a month-to-month tenancy also requires 30 days under IC 32-31-1-1. Once notices expire and a case proceeds to court, an uncontested eviction typically resolves in 21 to 45 days; a contested case can stretch to 45 to 100 days. Court filing fees run $150 to $200, sheriff lockout fees add $50 to $200, and attorney fees can range from $500 to $2,500 depending on case complexity. For a full breakdown of what a filing costs, the Indiana eviction costs guide covers each component in detail. Indiana eviction laws does not require just cause for nonpayment or lease-violation evictions, and the state preempts any local rent-control ordinance, so no Clinton County city can impose rent caps. Landlords researching the full procedural sequence should consult the Indiana eviction laws eviction process guide. Indiana eviction laws also does not protect source of income as a class under state fair housing law, though the Indiana eviction laws Civil Rights Commission administers other fair housing protections.

With a poverty rate of 11.1% and 35.8% of households renting, Clinton County has a meaningful tenant base but also pockets of financial stress concentrated in the cities with the highest scores; the city-by-city grid above is the most reliable tool for setting realistic expectations before acquiring or managing rental property here.