Boone County, Missouri Eviction Risk: Low

Boone County carries a county-average eviction-risk score of 2.8/10, placing it in the Low risk tier, but that headline figure warrants careful reading. Missouri's rank structure is 1-indexed with rank 1 representing the highest-risk county, and Boone County sits at rank 11 of 115 statewide. That means only 10 Missouri counties are riskier, putting Boone County firmly in the higher-risk third of the state despite its Low label. For a landlord sizing up a market, "Low" here is relative, not a guarantee of smooth operations.

Across all 11 cities within the county, scores range from 1.8 to 2.8, a spread that reflects meaningfully different rental environments sitting just miles apart. The average rent of $1,099 and a rent burden rate of 30.1% suggest tenants are stretching budgets, a factor that historically correlates with delinquency pressure. With 49.9% of the county's population renting, Boone County is a heavily renter-occupied market, which amplifies the operational stakes of getting tenant selection and lease management right.

The cities inside Boone County

At the top of the risk range sits Columbia, scoring 2.8/10, the single highest figure in the county. Its population of 231 is small, but any landlord holding rental property there faces the least favorable local conditions in Boone County. Ashland (population 4,914) and Hallsville (population 1,927) both score 2.3/10, as do Sturgeon and Harrisburg. Columbia, with a population of 128,548 and the dominant share of county rental units, scores 2.8/10, right at the county average.

At the lower end of the spectrum, Pierpont and Lupus each score 2.5/10, the most landlord-favorable readings in the county. Wooldridge at 2.2/10 and McBaine at 2.5/10 also sit well below the county average. These intra-county contrasts underscore that risk in Boone County is genuinely hyper-local: a landlord with units in Columbia and one in Rocheport is operating in meaningfully different environments, even sharing the same county courthouse.

State-level laws that apply here

Missouri state law under RSMo § 441 (Landlord and Tenant) governs every lease in Boone County. For nonpayment of rent, Missouri law 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, and ending a month-to-month tenancy requires 30 days under the same statute. Uncontested cases typically resolve in 21 to 45 days; contested matters can run 45 to 120 days. Understanding the full Missouri eviction process, including how notice requirements interact with court scheduling, is essential before signing leases in this market.

Direct costs under Missouri eviction costs include a court filing fee of $70 to $180, a sheriff lockout fee of $40 to $150, and attorney fees ranging from $500 to $3,000 depending on complexity. Missouri imposes no rent control, has no just-cause eviction requirement, and state law preempts any local jurisdiction from enacting rent caps, leaving landlords with significant flexibility on pricing but no shield from the time and cost of a contested removal. Source-of-income is not a protected class under Missouri state law.

A poverty rate of 19.1% across the county, combined with a renter share of 49.9%, means a large share of households are renters with limited financial cushion; the city-level grid above breaks down where that pressure is most concentrated so investors can calibrate screening and reserves accordingly.