Brown County, South Dakota Eviction Risk: Very Low

Brown County, South Dakota eviction laws carries a county-average eviction-risk score of 2/10, placing it in the Low risk tier on the national scale. That said, "low" is relative: at rank 12 of 66 South Dakota counties, only 11 counties in the state score higher, putting Brown County in the higher-risk third of South Dakota markets. For landlords and investors, the headline number signals that the tenant pool is comparatively stable, average rent sits at $800, and the rent-burden rate of 27% suggests most renters are not stretched to a breaking point. The county's renter share stands at 35.9%, a meaningful share of the 32,581 total residents who make up the local rental market.

Within Brown County, individual city scores range from 1.1 to 1.8 across 16 cities, a spread that matters when you are underwriting a specific address. The county average smooths over that variation, so landlords should not treat any single number as a proxy for a specific block or neighborhood. Conditions at the city level diverge enough to move a portfolio's net operating income in ways the county figure alone will not reveal.

The cities inside Brown County

Aberdeen anchors the county, accounting for the overwhelming share of its 32,581 residents with a city population of 28,189. It also carries the county's highest risk score at 2/10, matching the county average. For a market of its size it remains decidedly landlord-friendly by national standards, but investors operating in Aberdeen eviction risk should not assume the low score eliminates tenant-side pressures entirely. Groton, the second-largest city in the county at 1,691 residents, scores 1.7/10, a modest step down from Aberdeen. Mina, Warner, and Frederick each score 1.5/10, occupying the middle tier of the county's risk band.

The lowest-risk cities are Prairiewood Village at 1.1/10, Hecla and Columbia both at 1.2/10. These smaller communities, well below 500 residents each, represent the quietest corners of an already low-risk county. Risk is hyper-local in Brown County: Aberdeen and Prairiewood Village are both inside the same county line yet sit 0.7 points apart on the same 10-point scale.

State-level laws that apply here

South Dakota state law under SDCL § 43-32 (Lease of Real Property) sets the procedural floor for every landlord in Brown County. For non-payment of rent or a lease violation, the required notice period is 3 days. A no-cause termination at the end of a lease term requires 30 days notice. Understanding the full South Dakota eviction process matters here because timelines vary sharply by how a case unfolds: an uncontested eviction takes 21 to 40 days, while a contested case can run 45 to 100 days. South Dakota imposes no just-cause requirement for eviction and no rent cap formula, and state law preempts any local rent-control ordinance, so landlords in Brown County operate under a unified, landlord-accessible framework.

South Dakota eviction costs for a typical case run from the court filing fee of $95 to $180, the sheriff lockout fee of $40 to $150, and attorney fees of $500 to $2,500 if counsel is retained. Those ranges mean a fully litigated, attorney-assisted eviction can cost anywhere from roughly $635 on the low end to well above $2,800 on the high end. Reviewing South Dakota security deposit limits and South Dakota tenant protections before signing a new lease will help landlords document correctly and avoid procedural errors that extend those timelines.

With a poverty rate of 11.9% and a renter share of 35.9%, Brown County's rental market is active but not fragile; review the city grid above to identify which of the county's 16 cities best matches your risk tolerance before committing capital.