Jefferson County, Kansas Eviction Risk: Very Low

Jefferson County sits in northeastern Kansas as a largely rural county of 5,301 residents, where the rental market stays modest and tenant-landlord disputes remain comparatively rare. The county earns a Low eviction risk score of 2.1/10 under the Eviction Risk Map model, placing it 60th out of 105 Kansas eviction laws counties - meaning 59 counties carry higher eviction pressure and 45 are less risky. That puts Jefferson squarely in the middle third of the state, with conditions that are neither the most landlord-friendly nor the most contentious in Kansas eviction laws.

The rental landscape here reflects the county's rural character. Average rent runs $848 per month, and renters represent 27.2% of all households - a share well below typical urban counties. The average rent burden sits at 25.3% of income, which falls under the conventional 30% threshold that housing economists use to flag affordability stress. Average poverty runs at 8.6%, lower than many Kansas peer counties. Together these figures explain why the eviction risk score stays low: tenants are generally not stretched to a breaking point, and the pool of renters is relatively small. Scores across the county's 6 tracked cities range from a low of 1.8/10 in Ozawkie to a high of 2.2/10 in both Oskaloosa and Meriden, a tight band that signals consistent conditions rather than pockets of acute distress.

Kansas law governs the eviction process under K.S.A. § 58-2540 et seq. (Residential Landlord and Tenant Act), and Jefferson County landlords operate entirely within that statewide framework - there is no local rent control or just-cause ordinance, and Kansas law preempts any municipality from enacting one. A non-payment of rent situation requires a 3-day notice before filing; lease violations carry a 14-day cure notice; and no-cause terminations require 30 days. Once in court, an uncontested case typically resolves in 21 to 45 days, while a contested hearing can stretch to 45 to 100 days. Court filing fees run $120 to $200, sheriff lockout fees add $40 to $150, and attorney fees - if retained - typically range from $500 to $2,500. The county seat is Oskaloosa (population 1,113), which carries the county's highest city-level score at 2.2/10 alongside Meriden (population 716). Valley Falls, the largest city at 1,382 residents, scores 2.1/10, as do Perry and Winchester. Ozawkie, with 604 residents, scores the lowest in the county at 1.8/10 - reflecting the lightest rental market pressure of any tracked city here.

Jefferson County's Low risk score reflects a small, affordable rental market where rent burden stays below the stress threshold and eviction filings are infrequent relative to the renter population.