Florence County, South Carolina Eviction Risk: Low

Florence County posts an average eviction-risk score of 2.5/10 (Low), placing it among the more landlord-friendly markets in South Carolina eviction laws. Ranked 42nd out of 46 counties statewide, only four counties carry less risk, while 41 are riskier, confirming Florence County sits firmly in the lower-risk third of the state. Across the county's 10 cities, that headline figure covers a meaningful spread from 3.5 to 5.3, so the aggregate tells only part of the story.

With an average rent of $937 and an average renter share of 42.9%, the rental base here is substantial. A rent-burden rate of 33.5% indicates a sizable share of tenants are stretching their budgets, which is the kind of structural pressure that can elevate default risk even in otherwise stable markets. Investors evaluating Florence County should weigh those dynamics alongside the low aggregate score.

The cities inside Florence County

The county anchor, Florence (population 40,408), scores 3.5/10, the lowest risk in the county. That single city accounts for the bulk of the rental inventory here and pulls the county average down considerably. Lake City (population 5,988) sits at 4.4/10, a moderate reading that still trails far behind the highest-risk communities.

The elevated end of the range belongs to smaller towns. Timmonsville scores 5.3/10 and Johnsonville scores 5.2/10, the two riskiest markets in the county by a notable margin. Pamplico follows at 5.1/10, with Coward at 4.8/10 and Quinby at 4.7/10 rounding out the upper tier. These towns have small renter populations, but landlords operating there face meaningfully different conditions than those concentrated in the city of Florence. Risk in Florence County is genuinely hyper-local, and city-level scores are the right unit of analysis before committing capital.

State-level laws that apply here

Under South Carolina state law, specifically S.C. Code § 27-40 (Residential Landlord and Tenant Act), landlords must serve a 5-day notice for non-payment of rent, a 14-day notice for a lease violation with an opportunity to cure, and a 30-day notice to terminate at end of term with no cause required. South Carolina eviction laws does not impose just-cause eviction requirements and, through state preemption, prohibits local rent-control ordinances, so Florence County landlords operate under a single consistent statewide framework. Understanding the full South Carolina eviction laws eviction process is essential before filing, because timelines run 21 to 45 days for uncontested cases and 45 to 100 days for contested ones.

On the cost side, court filing fees range from $110 to $200, sheriff lockout fees from $25 to $100, and attorney fees from $500 to $2,500, depending on case complexity. South Carolina eviction costs can therefore climb into the mid-thousands if a tenant contests. Landlords should also note that South Carolina security deposit limits and other tenant protections are codified statewide, giving investors a predictable compliance baseline regardless of which Florence County city they choose.

With an average poverty rate of 20% across the county, the economic backdrop warrants careful tenant screening, even in lower-scoring cities; the city-level grid above breaks out individual scores so you can pinpoint exactly where risk concentrates before you underwrite a deal.