Dawes County, Nebraska Eviction Risk: Low

Dawes County sits in the northwestern Panhandle of Nebraska, anchored by Chadron -- home to Chadron State College and the bulk of the county's roughly 6,084 residents. The county carries an eviction risk score of 2.7/10 (Low), ranking 27th of 93 Nebraska counties. That places it in the higher-risk of the state, with 26 counties posting higher risk scores and 66 posting lower ones. Risk scores across Dawes County's three tracked cities range from 2.4 to 2.7, a tight band that reflects how consistently the same state statutes and rental market conditions apply across this lightly populated corner of the Panhandle.

Chadron is the county seat and its largest city by a wide margin, accounting for roughly 5,160 of the county's residents. Its eviction risk score of 2.7/10 effectively sets the county average. Renters here face average monthly rents of $844 against a rent burden of 31.2% -- meaning the typical renter household spends nearly a third of gross income on housing costs, a figure that sits meaningfully above the standard affordability threshold of 30%. With a poverty rate of 13.1% and a renter share of 39.9%, the population most vulnerable to displacement is sizable relative to the county's total size. Crawford, the county's second city at 878 residents, scores 2.6/10 -- slightly below Chadron -- reflecting its smaller rental stock and somewhat different household mix. Whitney, with only 46 residents, rounds out the tracked cities at 2.4/10, the lowest score in the county.

Nebraska's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-1401 et seq.) governs every tenancy in Dawes County. The law requires a 7-day pay-or-quit notice for nonpayment of rent, 14 days to cure a lease violation, and 30 days for a no-cause end-of-term termination. Landlords must give 24 hours notice before entry. Court filing fees run $85 to $200, with uncontested evictions typically resolving in 21 to 45 days and contested cases extending to 45 to 100 days. Nebraska does not require just cause for eviction and preempts any local rent control ordinance, so Dawes County has no additional tenant protections beyond state law. Source-of-income discrimination is not a protected class under Nebraska statute. For landlords weighing risk across the state, Dawes County's combination of a Low-tier score, low absolute rents, and a straightforward statutory framework makes it one of the more manageable rental markets in Nebraska.

Dawes County's 2.7/10 score reflects its rural Panhandle character: rents average $844/month, rent burden sits at 31.2%, the poverty rate is 13.1%, and the county operates entirely under Nebraska eviction laws's state eviction statute with no local overlays. The score spread from 2.4 to 2.7 across its three cities is among the tightest in the state.