McCormick County, South Carolina Eviction Risk: Low

McCormick County sits in the western corner of South Carolina eviction laws along Lake Thurmond, and its eviction-risk profile reflects the realities of a small, rural county with a population of roughly 3,749. The county scores 3.8/10 (Low) on the Eviction Risk Map index, placing it 32nd out of 46 counties statewide. That ranking puts McCormick in the lower-risk tier for South Carolina - meaning 31 counties carry higher risk and 14 sit lower. Scores across the county's seven tracked communities span 3.1 to 5.9, a narrow range that reflects how uniformly low-density and economically consistent these small communities are.

The county seat, the City of McCormick (4/10), anchors the local rental market with roughly 2,506 residents and is home to most of the rental housing stock in the area. Average rent here runs $782 per month - well below South Carolina eviction laws's urban averages - yet a rent burden of 37.6% (the share of renter income consumed by rent) signals that affordability is still a real constraint for many households, particularly given a poverty rate near 30.3%. On the higher end of the local score range, Willington scores 5.9/10 and Mount Carmel scores 3.2/10 - both very small communities where even a handful of eviction filings can move the needle relative to total population. At the lower end, Modoc (3.1/10) and Bradley (3.2/10) carry the lightest risk profiles in the county, followed closely by Plum Branch at 3.1/10 and Parksville at 3.2/10. Taken together, the spread from 3.1 to 5.9 is narrower than what you see in larger, more economically stratified counties.

South Carolina eviction laws landlord-tenant law is governed entirely by the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, S.C. Code § 27-40, a framework that leans relatively landlord-accessible compared to many other states. There is no local rent control anywhere in South Carolina eviction laws - state law preempts it outright. Landlords are not required to show just cause before ending a tenancy. A 5-day pay-or-quit notice triggers nonpayment cases, a 14-day cure notice applies to lease violations, and a 30-day no-cause notice ends month-to-month tenancies. Court filing fees in McCormick run $110 to $200, with uncontested proceedings typically wrapping in 21 to 45 days. The state average for eviction risk sits at 3.8/10, and McCormick County falls below that figure - a meaningful data point for landlords evaluating property here relative to higher-risk markets along the coast or in the Midlands. For landlords and tenants alike, the legal structure here is predictable, driven by statute rather than local ordinance, and the relatively low density of the rental market means court dockets are far less congested than in Richland, Greenville eviction risk, or Charleston eviction risk counties.

McCormick County's 4/10 average sits in the lower-risk of South Carolina's 46 counties. With only about 32.5% of households renting and an average rent of $782, the local market is small and stable - but the 37.6% rent-burden rate and 30.3% poverty rate mean tenant financial stress is a real driver of eviction filings when they do occur. The county's low overall score reflects limited tenant-protection legislation and low filing volume rather than unusually strong landlord rights.