Hettinger County, North Dakota Eviction Risk: Very Low

Hettinger County sits in the southwestern corner of North Dakota, a sparsely populated agricultural county of roughly 1,487 residents spread across the county seat of Mott and two smaller towns. For landlords operating rental housing here, the county earns a composite eviction risk score of 2/10 (Very Low) - placing it 8th of 53 counties statewide and firmly in the higher-risk of North Dakota's risk distribution. Seven counties across the state carry higher risk scores; 45 carry lower ones. Within the county itself, scores span from 1.7 to 2.2, a narrow spread that reflects the consistency of a small, rural rental market with limited regulatory variation between communities.

The county's three incorporated communities each carry their own risk profile. New England (pop. 564) posts the highest local score at 2.2/10, driven largely by its position as the county's second-largest rental market and slightly higher rent burden among tenants. Mott (pop. 742), the county seat, comes in at 2/10 - the most active market for landlords given its concentration of county services, the school district, and modest commercial activity. Regent (pop. 181) records the lowest risk in the county at 1.7/10, consistent with an extremely thin rental market where most households are long-term owner-occupants. Compared to the North Dakota statewide average of 1.8/10, Hettinger County comes in at roughly the same level, reflecting conditions typical of rural western North Dakota rather than the more tenant-protective environments found near larger metros.

The rental landscape here is defined by affordability and limited regulatory burden. Average gross rent runs approximately $648 per month - well below state and national averages - and the average rent burden sits at 24.3% of household income, below the commonly cited 30% threshold that signals housing cost stress. About 32.8% of occupied housing units are renter-occupied, a share consistent with other small agricultural counties. Poverty sits at 13.1%, somewhat elevated relative to surrounding counties, which can affect tenant payment reliability but does not meaningfully shift the regulatory risk calculus given North Dakota's landlord-favorable statute structure. The eviction process under N.D.C.C. § 47-16 (Leasing of Real Property) is among the more direct in the Great Plains: a 3-day written notice for nonpayment or lease violations, a 30-day notice for end-of-term or no-cause terminations, court filing fees of $75 to $150, and uncontested cases resolving in as few as 21 to 40 days. There is no rent control, no just-cause eviction requirement, and state law preempts any local municipality from enacting rent stabilization. Landlords do not face source-of-income discrimination protections either. These characteristics, taken together, explain why Hettinger County scores at the low end of the risk range despite its modestly elevated poverty rate.

Hettinger County's 2/10 eviction risk score reflects a rural western North Dakota eviction laws rental market where state law strongly favors landlord remedies, rents remain well below statewide averages, and tenant-protective regulations - rent caps, just-cause requirements, right-to-counsel programs - are absent. The score covers all 3 incorporated cities in the county, with individual scores ranging from 1.7 to 2.2 depending on local rent burden and tenant demographics.