2 census tracts · pop 8,336 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 6.9/10
· range 4.8–7.8
Defense Heights spans 2 census tracts of Bladensburg, MD and houses 8,336 people. That produces an Eviction Risk Score of 6.9/10, Elevated tier. Against a Bladensburg baseline of 36.9%, about half of renters here cross the 30%-of-income line.
The 2 tracts inside this boundary do not behave alike. Individual scores run 4.8 to 7.8, a 3-point gap wide enough that the area average misleads on any specific address. Severe burden reaches 22%. A tenant at that level absorbs no shock: one cut shift or one repair bill converts directly into arrears.
This is a renter market: 67% of occupied units are tenant-occupied. The strongest single driver of the headline number is tenant-organizing strength at 8.1/10.
Well under the midpoint is supply constraint, at 2.4/10. Food insecurity affects 30.4% of adults, 12.6 points above the national rate. Court records carry 12,021 eviction filings across its 2 observed tracts.
20.4% of adults carry no health insurance against 11.3% nationally, a common route into sudden unpayable debt. Sitting well above the midpoint is rent-regulation exposure at 7.2/10. Filing activity peaked in 2016 at 148.9% of renter households.
Judgments average 1.7% of renter households a year, the share of filings that actually convert to an order.
For a specific building, read the per-tract breakdown below rather than the 6.9 headline, because the internal range is too wide to average safely. Scores move when the ACS release, the court-record feed, or the statute ledger behind them moves.
Risk score
6.9
Elevated
2 tracts · population-weighted
Defense Heights vs BladensburgHow this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average
Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+
Racial/ethnic minority97%ile
Hispanic + non-white share of population
Housing & transport73%ile
Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle
Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab
Court-record eviction history in Defense Heights
Aggregated across 2 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.
Historic baseline (2000–2018)
12,021Total filings (sum)
107.94%Avg annual filing rate
148.9%Peak year (2016)
104.06%Latest filed (2016)
CDC PLACES 2023 · pop-weighted
Eviction-adjacent indicators in Defense Heights
Average across all constituent tracts, population-weighted. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh) crude prevalence.
26.5%Housing insecurity
15.9%Utility shutoff threat
31.1%Food insecurity
23.5%SNAP enrollment
18.8%No health insurance
30.7%Any disability
Frequently asked
About Defense Heights
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for Defense Heights?
Defense Heights scores 6.9/10 (Elevated tier) across 2 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.
Q2
How does Defense Heights compare to Bladensburg overall?
Defense Heights scores 0.3 points higher than Bladensburg overall (6.6/10). Renters spend 50% of income on rent vs 37% citywide. Average rent: $1,709 vs $1,656.
Q3
What is the average rent in Defense Heights?
Average gross rent in Defense Heights is $1,709/month (pop-weighted across 2 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 50% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q4
What percentage of Defense Heights residents are renters?
67% of Defense Heights households are renter-occupied (vs 79% in Bladensburg). The neighborhood has 8,336 residents.
Q5
Is Defense Heights a high social-vulnerability area?
Defense Heights sits in the 92nd percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (highly vulnerable). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.
Q6
Which tracts in Defense Heights have the highest eviction risk?
The highest-risk constituent tract in Defense Heights is census tract 24033804001 (score 7.8/10). Across the 2 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 4.8 to 7.8, a spread of 3 points.
Q7
How safe is Defense Heights for landlords?
Defense Heights carries a elevated-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (6.9/10). Pop-weighted across 2 constituent tracts, the score blends parent-city rent-control posture, county eviction-process timelines, and tract-specific rent-to-income / poverty signals. Compared to Bladensburg as a whole (6.6/10), this neighborhood is higher-risk.
Q8
What is the demographic breakdown of Defense Heights?
Defense Heights has 7,913 residents. Top groups: Black (non-Hispanic) (58.1%), Hispanic / Latino (34.6%), White (non-Hispanic) (3.8%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.
