Within parent city
96
th percentile
Very High
Census Tract · Ranked #7,456 of 84,120 nationally
Fort Smith Eviction Risk: Elevated
Tract 05131000501 · Sebastian County, AR · pop 5,506
Fort Smith anchors census tract 05131000501, which lands at 4.7/10 on landlord eviction risk. That is riskier than about 30% of US census tracts.
About 56% of renters carry a rent burden of 30% of income or higher, a severe level, and 19% are severely burdened at 50% or more. The typical renter pays about $685 a month while the average household earns $35,754 a year, roughly 23% of income at the averages. About 45% of occupied units are renter-occupied.
Risk score
6.5
Elevated
Confidence 85% · 1–10 scale
Household mix · 100 hh
Burdened renters 25%
Stable renters 20%
Owners 55%
Tract context
Occupied units1,763
Renter share45.3%
SVI overall0.82
Poverty rate37.4%
Median income$35,754
Percentile rank
Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.Within county
93
th percentile
Very High
Within state
95
th percentile
Very High
National
91
th percentile
Very High
Geographic context
Risk heat across Fort Smith and the region
Centroid at 35.3943, -94.3916 · click any tract to drill in
Why Fort Smith scores 6.5
9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendlyLocal political climate
Inherited from Fort Smith
3.0
Regional political climate
2024 county presidential margin
3.2
State political climate
Arkansas legislature & governorship
1.5
Economic stress
37.4% poverty · this tract
9.4
Supply constraint
$685 rent vs county FMR
2.5
Rent control risk
Inherited from Fort Smith
1.0
Eviction process difficulty
State law sets the calendar
2.0
Tenant organizing strength
Inherited from Fort Smith
2.0
Housing court bias
Inherited from Fort Smith
1.5
How Fort Smith compares
Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.CDC Social Vulnerability Index
SVI percentile: 82
CDC/ATSDR 2022. Higher = more vulnerable. National percentile across 84k tracts.
- 82%Socioeconomic
- 97%Household composition
- 73%Racial/ethnic minority
- 37%Housing & transportation
Comparable tracts
Census tracts with similar eviction risk
Closest by Eviction Risk Score.
CDC PLACES 2023 · health & economic stress
Eviction-adjacent indicators
Crude prevalence of conditions linked to housing loss. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh), 2023 model-based small-area estimates.
- 32.0%Housing insecurity
- 24.7%Utility-shutoff threat
- 46.7%Food insecurity
- 36.9%SNAP enrollment
- 23.0%Transit barriers
- 30.3%No health insurance
- 23.7%Frequent mental distress
- 52.7%Any disability
Analysis
What drives eviction risk in Fort Smith
The heaviest input here is economic stress at 9.4/10. That part is specific to this tract, computed from its own rent, income, and poverty figures. Statewide and court-level factors such as eviction-process speed and rent-control exposure are inherited from Fort Smith eviction risk, while the economic and supply signals are measured at the tract level.
Set against its neighbors, this tract scores above the Sebastian County average of 4.0 and above the Arkansas statewide average of 4.1. Within its own county it reads on the riskier side for landlords.
In CDC survey modeling, about 32.0% of adults here said they could not pay rent or mortgage at some point in the past year, and 24.7% faced a utility shutoff threat, a common early warning before a filing.
The tract is Hispanic or Latino and White and ranks around the 82nd percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index, a measure of how exposed residents are to housing and economic shocks. High vulnerability tends to track with higher eviction-filing rates when rents climb.
For a landlord, conditions here are middle-of-the-road. Standard screening and prompt, documented notices usually keep cases short.
Frequently asked
About tract 05131000501
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 05131000501?
Census tract 05131000501 in Fort Smith scores 6.5/10 (Elevated tier). The Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income ratios + poverty signals.
Q2
What is the average rent in tract 05131000501?
Median gross rent is $685/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 56% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q3
What is the poverty rate in tract 05131000501?
37.4% of residents in tract 05131000501 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 5,506.
Q4
How socially vulnerable is tract 05131000501?
CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 82th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 82th, household 97th, minority 73th, housing 37th.
Q5
What share of households in tract 05131000501 struggle to pay rent?
About 32.0% of adults in this tract reported housing insecurity (could not pay rent or mortgage in the past 12 months), per the CDC PLACES 2023 model-based small-area estimate. 24.7% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.
Q6
How does tract 05131000501 compare to Fort Smith overall?
Tract 05131000501 scores 6.5/10, higher than the parent city of Fort Smith at 2.4/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from Fort Smith eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.
Sibling tracts
Highest-risk tracts in Fort Smith
Top eight tracts in Fort Smith ranked by composite eviction-risk score.
Tract · AR
05131000100
6.5
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
05131000400
6.5
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
05131000800
6.4
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
05131001001
6.3
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
South Fort Smith
6.3
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
05131000200
5.9
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
05131000300
5.8
/ 10 · Elevated
Tract · AR
South Fort Smith
5.5
/ 10 · Elevated
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