Jackson County, Mississippi Eviction Risk: Very Low

Jackson County, Mississippi eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.4/10 (Very Low) across its 14 incorporated places, placing it 43rd of 82 Mississippi eviction laws counties, meaning 42 counties statewide are riskier and 39 are more landlord-friendly. That middle-third position reflects genuinely mixed conditions: the county is not a worst-case market, but it is not a frictionless one either. With an average rent of $1,129 and an average rent-burden rate of 31.5%, a meaningful share of tenants is financially stretched, which matters when sizing up default risk on any new acquisition.

The intra-county spread from 1.9 to 2.8 tells the more important story. A landlord buying in the lowest-risk pocket of Jackson County is operating in a fundamentally different environment than one buying at the top of that range, even if both properties are a short drive apart. Underwriting at the county average alone understates how much city-level selection drives actual portfolio outcomes here.

The cities inside Jackson County

The highest-risk concentration sits along the Gulf Coast corridor. Pascagoula scores 2.6/10 with a population of 21,710, the largest city in the county and its riskiest. Gautier comes in at 2.4/10 (population 19,046), and Ocean Springs at 2.1/10 (population 18,646). These three cities account for a large share of the county's total population and drive much of the elevated end of the county range. Moss Point and Gulf Park Estates both score 1.9/10, while Gulf Hills sits at 2.2/10.

The lowest-risk city in the county is St. Martin, scoring 2.2/10 with a population of 8,139, well below even the county average. Latimer and Escatawpa both score 2.6/10. The spread between St. Martin and Pascagoula, nearly two full points, illustrates how hyper-local risk is inside a single county. Investors assembling a Gulf Coast portfolio should underwrite each city individually rather than treating Jackson County as a monolithic market.

State-level laws that apply here

All landlords in Jackson County operate under Mississippi state law, specifically Miss. Code § 89-8 (Landlord and Tenant). For non-payment of rent, the required notice period is 3 days. A lease-violation or cure notice requires 14 days, and a no-cause end-of-term notice requires 30 days. Mississippi eviction laws does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and the state preempts any local rent-control ordinance, so no city within Jackson County can impose its own rent cap. Reviewing the Mississippi eviction laws eviction process in detail is worthwhile before filing, because uncontested cases typically resolve in 30 to 60 days while contested cases can run 60 to 120 days.

On cost, expect court filing fees of $75 to $150, sheriff lockout fees of $30 to $120, and attorney fees ranging from $500 to $2,500 depending on complexity. Mississippi eviction costs therefore vary widely depending on whether the tenant contests the case. Mississippi eviction laws does not protect source of income as a fair-housing class, and enforcement of fair-housing complaints routes through the Mississippi eviction laws Attorney General, Consumer Protection division. Landlords should also note that Mississippi security deposit limits are governed under the same chapter, so reviewing those rules before a new lease is signed avoids disputes at move-out.

With a poverty rate averaging 15.9% and renters making up 31.3% of households, Jackson County's risk profile is shaped as much by tenant financial capacity as by legal framework; the city grid above breaks that picture down to the neighborhood level.