Aurora County, South Dakota Eviction Risk: Very Low

Aurora County, South Dakota eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 1.5/10, placing it in the Low risk tier across its 6 incorporated cities. With scores ranging from 1 to 1.7 within the county, landlords and investors here are operating in some of the most stable rental conditions in the state. The county ranks 26 of 66 South Dakota counties, meaning 25 counties are riskier and 40 are less risky, putting Aurora County squarely in the middle third of the state rather than at either extreme.

The rental market here is small but steady. A total county population of roughly 1,376 supports an average rent of $838, with renters spending an average of 24.1% of income on housing, a burden rate that sits comfortably below the conventional stress threshold. About 27.8% of households rent, a relatively thin renter pool that keeps competition for units manageable and tends to limit the adversarial tenant dynamics that inflate risk scores in denser markets.

The cities inside Aurora County

Risk varies meaningfully from one community to the next, and that intra-county spread matters for anyone deciding where to hold property. White Lake, the county's second-largest city with a population of 469, posts the highest local score at 1.7/10. Stickney follows at 1.5/10 with a population of 284. Even at those levels, both communities sit well into Low-risk territory by any statewide benchmark.

On the other end, Plankinton, the largest city in the county at 603 residents, scores a relatively landlord-friendly 1.4/10. Aurora Center and Cedar Grove Colony each score 1.1/10, and Storla, at the floor of the county range, scores 1/10

State-level laws that apply here

All landlord-tenant relationships in Aurora County are governed by South Dakota eviction laws state law under SDCL § 43-32 (Lease of Real Property). For non-payment of rent or a lease violation, the required notice period is just 3 days. A no-cause or end-of-term termination requires 30 days notice. South Dakota eviction laws does not require just cause for eviction and state law preempts any local rent-control ordinances, so landlords here operate without rent caps. Understanding the full South Dakota eviction laws eviction process is still essential: uncontested cases resolve in 21 to 40 days, while contested cases can run 45 to 100 days.

On costs, South Dakota eviction costs include a court filing fee of $95 to $180, a sheriff lockout fee of $40 to $150, and attorney fees typically running $500 to $2,500, making even a straightforward case a meaningful expense. South Dakota security deposit limits and South Dakota tenant protections are set at the state level, with no local overlay in Aurora County, so the statewide rules apply uniformly across all six cities here.