Sullivan County, Pennsylvania Eviction Risk: Low

Sullivan County, Pennsylvania eviction laws posts a county-wide average eviction-risk score of 3.5/10 (Low), placing it among the five least-risky counties in a state of 67. Sixty-one Pennsylvania eviction laws counties carry higher risk scores, so landlords and investors operating here face a notably favorable baseline: lower tenant-turnover pressure, modest rent burden, and a statutory framework that, while uniform across the state, plays out in a small-rental market where disputes tend to be straightforward. Average rent runs $784 per month, and the average rent-to-income burden sits at 24.8%, both figures pointing to a tenant pool that is, on balance, financially capable of meeting obligations.

Intra-county scores span a tight range of 2.8 to 4/10 across the county's seven tracked communities, a spread narrow enough that no single pocket of Sullivan County represents dramatic outlier risk. With a total covered population of roughly 1,601, this is one of Pennsylvania eviction laws's smallest rental markets by headcount, which cuts both ways: fewer tenants means fewer potential problem situations, but also a thinner pool of qualified applicants and limited comparable-rent data when setting rates.

The cities inside Sullivan County

The highest-risk communities in Sullivan County are Dushore (population 459, score 4/10) and Forksville (population 134, score 4/10), both sitting at the county ceiling. Laporte follows at 3.7/10 with a population of 272. These three communities account for the bulk of rental activity in the county, and their scores, while the highest locally, would still rank well into the low-risk tier against most Pennsylvania eviction laws counties statewide.

At the other end of the county, Elk Grove scores 2.8/10, Jamison City scores 2.9/10, and Mildred scores 3/10. Even the riskiest community here, Dushore, sits comfortably in territory that many landlords in higher-density Pennsylvania markets would consider favorable. The key takeaway for investors is that risk is hyper-local even within a small county: a landlord operating in Forksville faces materially different dynamics than one in Elk Grove, despite sharing the same county courthouse and the same state statutes.

State-level laws that apply here

All Sullivan County landlords operate under the Pennsylvania eviction laws Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 (68 P.S. § 250.101 et seq.). For nonpayment of rent, state law requires a 10-day written notice before filing. For material lease violations, the required notice is 15 days for tenancies under one year and 30 days for tenancies of one year or more. End-of-lease-term notices carry no mandatory waiting period under 68 P.S. § 250.501(c). Uncontested cases typically resolve in 30 to 60 days from filing; contested matters can run 60 to 150 days. A full walkthrough of the Pennsylvania eviction laws eviction process, including how to count notice days and file at the magisterial district court, is detailed in the statewide guides.

Filing fees in Pennsylvania eviction laws range from $130 to $250, sheriff lockout fees from $50 to $150, and attorney fees, when retained, from $500 to $3,000. Landlords evaluating true deal costs should model the high end of those ranges. Pennsylvania eviction laws does not impose just-cause eviction requirements, and state law preempts any local rent-control ordinance, so Sullivan County cannot impose rent caps independently. There is no source-of-income protection at the state level. Pennsylvania security deposit limits and Pennsylvania tenant protections are governed entirely at the state level, leaving local jurisdictions no authority to layer on additional obligations.

Sullivan County's 15.6% poverty rate and 30.6% renter share are worth factoring into tenant-screening standards; the city-level grid above breaks down how those conditions concentrate across the county's seven communities.