Lawrence County, Mississippi Eviction Risk: Low

Lawrence County, Mississippi eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 3.3/10 (Low), placing it at rank 65 of 82 Mississippi counties, meaning 64 counties in the state carry higher risk and only 17 are less risky. For landlords and investors, that translates to operating in the lower-risk third of Mississippi eviction laws, with a renter base where the average rent burden sits at 22.2% of income and average rent runs $650 per month. Conditions here are meaningfully more stable than the majority of the state, though a poverty rate of 24.1% is a real underwriting consideration for vacancy and collections exposure.

Across the county's 3 tracked cities, scores range from 2.4 to 3.4, a full point of spread on a 10-point scale. That range is wide enough to matter: the city you select within Lawrence County changes your risk profile more than moving between many peer counties. Renter share sits at an average of 30.9% of households, keeping demand for rental units steady without the oversaturation pressures seen in larger markets.

The cities inside Lawrence County

Monticello, the county seat with a population of 1,351, scores 3.4/10, tying it with New Hebron (population 506) at the top of the local risk range. Both represent the county's upper bound and are consistent with the county average, suggesting modest but real tenant-side financial pressure in each market. At 1,351 residents, Monticello offers the deepest rental demand pool in the county, which matters for re-leasing speed.

Silver Creek stands clearly apart, scoring 2.4/10 with a population of 175. That score is the lowest in the county by a full point, pointing to a tighter, more stable tenant base, though the small population means thin liquidity for investors who rely on quick unit turns. Risk is genuinely hyper-local here: a single city line separates the county's most stable submarket from its highest-risk one.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord in Lawrence County operates under Miss. Code § 89-8 (Landlord and Tenant). For non-payment of rent, the notice period is 3 days. A lease-violation cure notice requires 14 days, and a no-cause end-of-term notice requires 30 days. Understanding the full Mississippi eviction laws eviction process before you need it is essential: an uncontested case resolves in 30 to 60 days, while a contested matter can run 60 to 120 days. Mississippi eviction costs add up from court filing fees of $75 to $150, sheriff lockout fees of $30 to $120, and attorney fees of $500 to $2,500, depending on complexity.

Mississippi eviction laws does not require just cause for non-renewal, and state law preempts any local rent-control ordinance, so no city within Lawrence County can impose a rent cap. Source-of-income is not a protected class under state fair housing rules, and there is no state-level retaliation statute on record, though federal protections still apply. Investors should review Mississippi security deposit limits and Mississippi tenant protections in full before placing a tenant to ensure their lease terms are compliant.

With a poverty rate of 24.1% and a renter share of 30.9%, Lawrence County's tenant pool is modest in size but carries meaningful income-side risk; review each city's individual score in the grid above before committing capital to a specific submarket.