In court-decided eviction outcomes for Medford, OR, tenants prevail in roughly 55.4% 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
129d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Medford, OR until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 129 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$7.9–16.7k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Medford, OR costs landlords $7,914 to $16,662 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,376
33% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Medford, OR is $1,376 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 33% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
43.7%
of households
43.7% of occupied housing units in Medford, OR 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
12.5%
5.4% unemp.
12.5% of Medford, OR residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 5.4%. 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 +6.4% (2024)
5.3
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
5.3
State political climate
Oregon legislature & governorship
7.2
Economic stress
12.5% poverty · 5.4% unemp.
6.5
Supply constraint
$1,376 average · 43.7% renters
8.2
Rent Control risk
33.2% of income on rent
7.6
Eviction process difficulty
129 days filing → judgment
7.0
Tenant organizing strength
43.7% renters
8.7
Housing court bias
County bench composition
6.8
Geographic context
Risk heat across Medford and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Medford compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Jackson County
Moderate
#9of 17 cities
#9 of 17 cities in Jackson County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Oregon
Elevated
#166of 425 cities
#166 of 425 cities in Oregon for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
5.7
/ 10 · ELEVATED
The verdict
A Elevated-tier market.
Composite 5.7/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a slow, steady climb.
50-yr trend+0.1 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steady ratchet · no large swings
129d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,376/mo. A contested eviction takes 129 days and costs $7,914–$16,662 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
43.7%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 86,315 residents, 43.7% rent. 33% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 12.5% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
5.3
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 5.3 and 5.3 (GOP margin +6.4% (2024)). State climate at 7.2, a tenant-leaning legislature.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
7.2
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 7.2/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 7, housing court bias 6.8, rent-control risk 7.6. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +2.0 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
6.5
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 6.5. Supply constraint: 8.2. The numbers behind those: 12.5% poverty, 5.4% unemployment, 33% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Medford sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Medford · 129d · ~$12.3k all-in ($95/day) · score 5.7National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Medford, Oregon, presents an elevated-friction market where documented notices and proactive screening matter. The Eviction Risk Score is 5.7/10 (ELEVATED 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 Elevated-friction market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Medford is a city of 86,315 residents where 43.7% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 6.2% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,376/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 Medford eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 7/10, 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 Medford closes 129 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 Medford's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 6.8/10 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 Medford runs $7,914 to $16,662 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 129 days of typical timeline and $1,376/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 8.7/10 in Medford, and the city carries meaningful rent control exposure (7.6/10). 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 Oregon, 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 Medford: 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 ELEVATED 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 Oregon's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $16,662 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Medford
Trap · 43.7%
43.7% renter share against 86,315 residents produces roughly 37,711 rental occupants in Medford. Jackson County voted R 3.5% in 2020. Eviction filings tend to cluster in the multifamily rental corridor.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant for any reason after their first year in Medford?
No, Oregon is a statewide just-cause eviction state. After the first year of tenancy, you generally need a specific, legally defined reason to evict, such as non-payment of rent, lease violations, or specific owner-move-in scenarios. "No-cause" evictions are severely restricted.
Q2
How much can I charge for late fees in Medford?
Oregon law caps late fees. For rent due on the first of the month, you can charge either a flat fee of $50, or 5% of the monthly rent, or a per-day fee of $5 for each day rent is late (up to a maximum of $50 per month). Your lease must specify which method you use.
Q3
What if my tenant stops paying rent and damages the property?
You must pursue two separate legal actions. The eviction (FED) is solely to regain possession of the property. For damages beyond normal wear and tear and unpaid rent, you would need to file a separate small claims court case or pursue it through your attorney after the eviction is complete. Do not withhold the eviction process for damages.
Q4
Can I refuse to rent to someone using a Section 8 voucher in Medford?
No, Oregon has statewide source-of-income protection. You cannot refuse to rent to an applicant solely because they use a Section 8 voucher or other legal forms of income. You must apply your standard, non-discriminatory screening criteria to all applicants.
Q5
Should I offer "cash for keys" in Medford?
Often, yes. Given the high costs ($7,914, $16,662) and long timeline (129 days) of a formal eviction in Medford, offering a tenant a cash incentive to move out voluntarily and cleanly can be a financially smarter decision. It avoids legal fees, court time, and further lost rent, often saving you thousands.
A 5.7/10 places Medford in the 62nd percentile of Oregon 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.
Neighborhoods in Medford (1 with eviction-risk data)
Click a neighborhood to see its pop-weighted score, constituent census tracts, and demographics. Sorted by population.
