Wayne County, New York Eviction Risk: High

Wayne County scores 7.6/10 (High risk) across its 16 cities, placing it at rank 46 of 60 New York counties, meaning 45 counties carry greater eviction risk and only 14 are more landlord-friendly. That positions Wayne County in the lower-risk third of the state, a relative advantage, but the High label is earned: with an average rent of $929 and a rent burden averaging 32.7% of renter income, a meaningful share of tenants in Wayne County are financially stretched thin. Investors entering this market should factor that pressure into their underwriting, even if the county compares favorably against much of New York.

The county's intra-market spread runs from 7.2 to 8.1 out of 10, a one-point gap that translates into meaningfully different operating realities depending on where exactly a rental property sits. Landlords who treat the county as a single uniform market will misprice risk: the city-level breakdown below is the relevant unit of analysis.

The cities inside Wayne County

Clyde leads the county at 8.1/10, the lone city at the top of the range, followed by a cluster at 7.5/10: Newark (population 8,991), Macedon (population 2,157), and Ontario (population 2,044). Newark is the county's most populous city, and its elevated score reflects the combination of tenant financial stress and New York eviction risk's comparatively tenant-protective statutory framework. Lyons (population 3,738) and Sodus both score 7.8/10, putting them in the same elevated tier.

At the other end of the spectrum, Williamson scores 7.3/10 (population 2,387), the only city in the county at the floor of the range, and Gananda comes in at 7.8/10 (population 6,273). For investors comparing specific submarkets, the difference between Williamson and Palmyra is not trivial: it represents meaningfully different eviction frequency risk and tenant-stability profiles. Risk inside Wayne County is genuinely hyper-local.

State-level laws that apply here

Every Wayne County landlord operates under New York eviction risk state law, principally N.Y. RPL § 226 et seq. and RPAPL § 711. Notice requirements scale with both the reason for eviction and tenancy length. A nonpayment case requires a 14-day notice under RPAPL § 711(2); a material lease violation triggers a 10-day notice under RPAPL § 711(1). Holdover notices under RPL § 226-c depend on how long the tenant has occupied the unit: 30 days for tenancies under one year, 60 days for one to two years, and 90 days for two years or more. Just cause for eviction is required statewide. Understanding the full New York eviction process before a problem tenant arises is essential, because these timelines compound quickly once a case is contested.

On the cost side, court filing fees run $45 to $210, sheriff lockout fees add $50 to $200, and attorney fees typically range from $1,000 to $4,000. Uncontested cases resolve in 30 to 90 days; contested matters can stretch to 210 days. Rent control applies in some localities (the formula varies by jurisdiction), and the state does not preempt local rent control, so lease structures and renewal terms deserve careful attention. For a full breakdown of what landlords pay to remove a non-compliant tenant, see New York eviction costs before closing on any Wayne County investment.

With a poverty rate of 13.4% and renters making up 29.9% of households countywide, the financial fragility that drives eviction filings is present across the county, not concentrated in a single city. The city-by-city grid above shows where that pressure is highest.