In court-decided eviction outcomes for Windham, OH, tenants prevail in roughly 25.8% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
38d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Windham, OH until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 38 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$1.7–3.6k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Windham, OH costs landlords $1,695 to $3,559 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$898
51% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Windham, OH is $898 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 51% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
32.0%
of households
32.0% of occupied housing units in Windham, OH are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
30.3%
10.7% unemp.
30.3% of Windham, OH residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 10.7%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
GOP margin +15.5% (2024)
4.9
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
4.9
State political climate
Ohio legislature & governorship
2.4
Economic stress
30.3% poverty · 10.7% unemp.
9.0
Supply constraint
$898 average · 32.0% renters
6.8
Rent Control risk
51.0% of income on rent
9.6
Eviction process difficulty
38 days filing → judgment
2.6
Tenant organizing strength
32.0% renters
8.2
Housing court bias
County bench composition
9.3
Geographic context
Risk heat across Windham and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Windham compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Portage County
High
#3of 17 cities
#3 of 17 cities in Portage County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Ohio
Very High
#30of 1,251 cities
#30 of 1,251 cities in Ohio for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
3.1
/ 10 · LOW
The verdict
A Low-tier market.
Composite 3.1/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a slow, steady climb.
50-yr trend+0.5 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steady ratchet · no large swings
38d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $898/mo. A contested eviction takes 38 days and costs $1,695–$3,559 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
32.0%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 2,020 residents, 32.0% rent. 51% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 30.3% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
4.9
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 4.9 and 4.9 (GOP margin +15.5% (2024)). State climate at 2.4, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
2.4
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 2.4/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 2.6, housing court bias 9.3, rent-control risk 9.6. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-2.4 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
9
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the real risk.
Economic stress: 9. Supply constraint: 6.8. The numbers behind those: 30.3% poverty, 10.7% unemployment, 51% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Windham sits in the quick & cheap quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Windham · 38d · ~$2.6k all-in ($69/day) · score 3.1National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Windham, Ohio, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 3.1/10 (LOW tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Mid-tier market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Windham is a city of 2,020 residents where 32.0% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 51.0% of income on rent. At an average rent of $898/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How Windham eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 2.6/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in Windham closes 38 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of Windham's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 9.3/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in Windham runs $1,695 to $3,559 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 38 days of typical timeline and $898/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 8.2/10 in Windham, and the city sits at the top of the rent control risk spectrum (9.6/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In Ohio, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in Windham: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a LOW tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match Ohio's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $3,559 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Windham
Trap · 30.3%
Local poverty rate is 30.3%, and the rent-burden distribution skews the eviction-filings curve toward higher volume in Portage County. Rent-control-risk sub-score: 9.6/10. Tenant organizing is most active in the rental concentration corridors.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
What if my tenant pays part of the rent after the 3-day notice?
If a tenant pays partial rent after you've issued a 3-day notice, you have a choice. Accepting partial payment can sometimes "waive" your right to proceed with the eviction based on that specific notice, essentially restarting the clock. It's usually better to refuse partial payment if your goal is eviction, or accept it with a clear written agreement that it doesn't waive your right to evict for the remaining balance. Consult an attorney before accepting partial payment if you're already committed to eviction.
Q2
Can I evict a tenant for property damage in Windham?
Yes, if the property damage is a violation of your lease agreement or Ohio law (e.g., ORC § 5321.05, tenant obligations). For a lease violation that isn't non-payment, you would typically issue a notice to cure or quit, giving the tenant a reasonable amount of time to fix the damage. If they don't, then you can proceed with an eviction filing. Make sure you have clear documentation of the damage.
Q3
Does Ohio have rent control?
No, Ohio does not have statewide rent control. Cities in Ohio are also prohibited from enacting rent control measures. This is reflected in Windham's low rent-control-risk sub-score of 9.6/10 (meaning high risk of rent control *not* being an issue for landlords). You generally have the ability to set and adjust rents according to market conditions, following proper notice requirements for increases. For more, see our Ohio rent control rules.
Q4
What if my tenant refuses to leave after the sheriff's lockout order?
Once a Writ of Restitution is issued and the sheriff schedules a lockout, the tenant legally must leave. If they refuse to leave at the time of the scheduled lockout, the sheriff will physically remove them. You should not engage with the tenant yourself during this process. This is why you involve the sheriff; it's their job to enforce the court order.
Q5
Can I charge late fees in Windham?
Yes, you can charge late fees in Ohio, provided they are reasonable and clearly stated in your lease agreement. Ohio law doesn't specify a maximum late fee, but courts generally consider fees between 5-10% of the monthly rent to be reasonable. Don't try to charge exorbitant late fees; a judge might reduce them or invalidate the clause entirely.
A 3.1/10 places Windham in the 99th percentile of Ohio cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has climbed steadily since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to Windham (3.1/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
