De Baca County, New Mexico Eviction Risk: Moderate

De Baca County, New Mexico eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 3.3/10, placing it in the Low risk tier and ranking 29th of 34 New Mexico eviction laws counties, meaning 28 counties in the state are riskier for landlords and only 5 are more landlord-friendly. Across all 3 incorporated places in the county, conditions are broadly favorable for operators willing to work in a small, rural market, with a renter share of just 21.6% of households and an average asking rent of $387 per month.

The intra-county range runs from 2.9 to 3.4 out of 10, which is a narrow spread and signals relatively consistent operating conditions throughout the county. That said, a poverty rate of 22.6% and a rent burden averaging 42.7% of income across renter households are meaningful underwriting signals: tenants in this market are stretched, which historically correlates with higher delinquency frequency even in otherwise low-risk jurisdictions.

The cities inside De Baca County

Fort Sumner is the county seat and by far the largest community, with a population of 938 and the county's highest risk score at 3.4/10. While that score remains squarely in the Low tier, it reflects the concentration of the county's rental stock and nearly all of the eviction activity. Investors acquiring multi-unit or single-family rentals in Fort Sumner should underwrite with the rent-burden figure in mind, and budget for the full statutory eviction timeline described below.

The two smaller communities, House (3.0/10, population 91) and Lake Sumner (2.9/10, population 86), represent extremely thin rental markets with the county's lowest risk readings. Very few rental units exist in either location, so the scores should be read as indicative rather than statistically robust. Risk genuinely is hyper-local in De Baca County: the gap between Fort Sumner and Lake Sumner, though modest in absolute terms, can matter at the transaction level when a single vacancy or delinquency constitutes your entire portfolio exposure in that community.

State-level laws that apply here

All residential tenancies in De Baca County are governed by the New Mexico Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act, NMSA § 47-8. For non-payment of rent, landlords must serve a 3-day notice before filing; a lease-violation cure notice requires 7 days; a no-cause end-of-tenancy notice requires 30 days. New Mexico eviction laws state law does not require just cause for termination, and there is no rent-control cap applicable to this county. Understanding the New Mexico eviction laws eviction process matters here because even an uncontested case runs 21 to 45 days to resolution, while a contested matter can extend to 45 to 120 days.

On the cost side, court filing fees range from $132 to $200, sheriff lockout fees from $50 to $175, and attorney fees, if retained, from $500 to $3,000. Even in a favorable county like this one, a contested eviction can realistically cost several hundred dollars in hard fees before legal representation is added. For a full breakdown of those components, the New Mexico eviction costs guide covers every fee category statewide. Landlords should also review New Mexico security deposit limits and New Mexico tenant protections before drafting leases, as NMSA § 47-8 governs both habitability standards and retaliation protections for tenants.

With a poverty rate of 22.6% and only about 21.6% of households renting, De Baca County's rental market is small and concentrated almost entirely in Fort Sumner; the city-level scores in the grid above give a more precise picture of risk at the address level than the county average alone.