Audrain County, Missouri Eviction Risk: Low

Audrain County, Missouri eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.5/10 (Low), placing it 39th of 115 Missouri counties, where rank 1 is the highest-risk. That means 38 counties in Missouri eviction laws are riskier than Audrain, and 76 are more landlord-friendly, putting this market squarely in the middle third of the state. For investors, that translates to a market with manageable baseline risk and a renter population that spans 9 municipalities across a modest total population of 20,920. Average rent runs $695 per month, and renters account for 33.5% of households, with rent burden averaging 26.5% of income, a figure low enough that most tenants have room in their budget.

The county-wide picture is broadly stable, but the spread from a low of 1.8 to a high of 3.4 signals that sub-market selection matters. A landlord choosing properties in Audrain County is not choosing a single risk profile; the county contains both some of the most and least demanding tenant markets in its tier. Underwriting each city individually is the right approach.

The cities inside Audrain County

Centralia carries the highest risk score in the county at 2.7/10, and with a population of 4,690 it is a meaningful market, not a statistical outlier. Vandalia comes in at 2.2/10 with 3,140 residents, matching the county average exactly. Mexico, the county seat and largest city at 11,477 residents, scores 2.8/10, just a tick below the county average, making it the volume market with middling risk. These three cities account for the bulk of the county's rental stock and set the tone for portfolio-level performance.

On the lower end of the risk range, Vandiver posts the county's lowest score at 1.8/10, followed by Laddonia at 2.6/10 and Rush Hill at 2/10. These are small communities with limited inventory, but landlords already operating there face the lightest conditions in the county. The distance between Benton City's 1.8 and Centralia's 3.4 is a full 1.6 points, a gap wide enough to produce meaningfully different operating experiences under the same county roof.

State-level laws that apply here

All landlords in Audrain County operate under Missouri eviction laws state law, specifically RSMo § 441 (Landlord and Tenant). For nonpayment of rent, Missouri eviction laws requires no advance notice period before filing a rent-and-possession action under RSMo § 535.010. A material lease violation triggers a 10-day notice under RSMo § 441.060, while terminating a month-to-month tenancy requires 30 days notice under the same statute. Uncontested cases typically resolve in 21 to 45 days; contested proceedings can run 45 to 120 days. Understanding the full Missouri eviction laws eviction process before acquiring rental property here is essential, because an unexpected contested case adds months to an already costly cycle.

Filing fees run $70 to $180 in Missouri courts, sheriff lockout fees add $40 to $150, and attorney fees for an eviction action typically range from $500 to $3,000, meaning a single contested removal can exceed $3,000 before any lost rent is counted. Missouri imposes no just-cause eviction requirement and no rent control, and state law preempts local rent-control ordinances, so landlords here face no layered local restrictions. For a full breakdown of what a removal actually costs, the Missouri eviction costs guide covers the fee schedule in detail. Missouri security deposit limits and Missouri tenant protections also apply statewide and are worth confirming before leasing.

With a poverty rate of 15.7% and roughly one in three households renting, Audrain County presents a narrow but real income-sensitivity risk concentrated in its higher-scoring cities; the city grid above breaks out scores individually so you can weigh each submarket on its own merits.