Estimated values: The U.S. Census suppresses field-level data for small places. Estimated from county average, pop-weighted from real underlying ACS data.
Tenant beats landlord
53.1%
/ 100 outcomes
In court-decided eviction outcomes for Johnson City, OR, tenants prevail in roughly 53.1% 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
126d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Johnson City, OR until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 126 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$7.5–16.4k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Johnson City, OR costs landlords $7,517 to $16,391 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,709
32% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Johnson City, OR is $1,709 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 32% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
2.7%
of households
2.7% of occupied housing units in Johnson City, 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
11.4%
5.3% unemp.
11.4% of Johnson City, OR residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 5.3%. 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
Dem margin +62.1% (2024)
8.3
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
8.3
State political climate
Oregon legislature & governorship
7.2
Economic stress
11.4% poverty · 5.3% unemp.
4.9
Supply constraint
$1,709 average · 2.7% renters
3.2
Rent Control risk
32.1% of income on rent
5.3
Eviction process difficulty
126 days filing → judgment
6.6
Tenant organizing strength
2.7% renters
2.9
Housing court bias
County bench composition
5.2
Geographic context
Risk heat across Johnson City and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Johnson City compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Multnomah County
Elevated
#5of 10 cities
#5 of 10 cities in Multnomah County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Oregon
High
#72of 425 cities
#72 of 425 cities in Oregon for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
6.9
/ 10 · ELEVATED
The verdict
A Elevated-tier market.
Composite 6.9/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+3.9 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
126d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,709/mo. A contested eviction takes 126 days and costs $7,517–$16,391 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
2.7%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 499 residents, 2.7% rent. 32% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 11.4% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
8.3
Local + regional
The politics
Strong-tenant coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 8.3 and 8.3 (Dem margin +62.1% (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 6.6, housing court bias 5.2, rent-control risk 5.3. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +1.6 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
4.9
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 4.9. Supply constraint: 3.2. The numbers behind those: 11.4% poverty, 5.3% unemployment, 32% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Johnson City sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Johnson City · 126d · ~$12.0k all-in ($95/day) · score 6.9National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Johnson City, Oregon, presents an elevated-friction market where documented notices and proactive screening matter. The Eviction Risk Score is 6.9/10 (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.
Johnson City is a city of 499 residents where 2.7% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 32.1% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,709/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 Johnson City eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 6.6/10, 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 Johnson City closes 126 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 Johnson City's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 5.2/10 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 Johnson City runs $7,517 to $16,391 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 126 days of typical timeline and $1,709/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 2.9/10 in Johnson City, and the city has limited rent control exposure (5.3/10). 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 Johnson City: 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 $16,391 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Johnson City
Trap · OREGON
Multnomah County court applies Oregon statute uniformly. Filing fee, notice period, and trial-to-writ timeline are set at the state level. At 5.8/10 local risk, default judgment frequency is typical.
04Eviction filings
Live filings tracking · Eviction Lab
Princeton Eviction Lab Tracking System, county-level. Last update 2026-05-01.
In the most recent month, 1,374 eviction cases were filed across the tracker's coverage area, 1.43× the historical baseline (above baseline). Past 12 months: 17,735 filings. Pandemic-era cumulative: 66,218.
1,374Past month
17,735Past 12 months
1.43×vs baseline (past mo)
29.2%Repeat-tenant filings
Notice requirement: at least ten days notice. Filing fee: minimum $88 filing fee.
Last 36 months of filings2023-05-01 – 2026-04-01
Filings stayed roughly flat over the past 12 months.
Source: Eviction Lab Tracking System, Princeton University. Open Data Commons Attribution license.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
What is the biggest risk for landlords in Johnson City?
The biggest risk is the combination of Oregon's statewide just-cause eviction requirements and the long, expensive eviction process. You can't just end a tenancy without a specific, legal reason, and if you do need to evict, it will likely take over four months and cost you five figures.
Q2
Can I charge whatever I want for a security deposit?
No. In Oregon, you can charge a maximum of two months' rent for a security deposit. You also have strict rules about when and how to return it, and what deductions are permissible. Always provide an itemized list of deductions within 31 days.
Q3
Is rent control an issue in Johnson City?
Oregon has statewide rent control, so yes, it is an issue. Annual rent increases are capped at 7% plus the consumer price index (CPI). This applies to Johnson City. You can't raise rents arbitrarily. Check our Oregon rent control rules for the latest caps.
Q4
What should I do if my tenant has a housing voucher?
Oregon has source-of-income protection statewide. This means you cannot refuse to rent to someone solely because they are using a housing voucher or other lawful source of income. You must apply the same screening criteria to all applicants, regardless of their income source.
Q5
When should I hire an attorney for an eviction?
Immediately after the 10-day pay-or-quit notice expires and the tenant hasn't complied. In Oregon, trying to handle an FED action yourself is a common and costly mistake. An attorney will ensure proper filing, service, and court representation, which is crucial given the complexity and potential for delays.
A 6.9/10 places Johnson City in the 86th 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 risen sharply 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 Johnson City (6.9/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
