Neighborhood · Ranked #35,899 of 84,120 nationally

Merrick Eviction Risk: Moderate , West Springfield Town

Tract 25013812403 · Hampden County, MA · pop 3,960 · neighborhood within 1.3 mi

Census tract 25013812403 belongs to the Merrick area of West Springfield Town, Massachusetts. It is home to 3,960 residents and scores 6.4/10, an elevated reading for landlords. That is riskier than roughly 85% of the 84,120 US census tracts we score.

Rent eats 30% or more of income for 60% of renter households, a severe level, and 22% are severely burdened at 50% or more. Average gross rent is $1,085 monthly, set against $59,648 in average yearly household income, roughly 22% of income at the averages. Renters make up 44% of occupied homes.

Risk score

4.3

Moderate

Confidence 100% · 1–10 scale

Household mix · 100 hh

Burdened renters 27% Stable renters 18% Owners 55%

Tract context

Occupied units1,866

Renter share44.4%

SVI overall0.66

Poverty rate8.7%

Median income$59,648

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.

Geographic context

Risk heat across West Springfield Town and the region

Centroid at 42.1068, -72.6452 · click any tract to drill in

Why Merrick scores 4.3

9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendly

Local political climate

Inherited from West Springfield Town

6.3

Regional political climate

2024 county presidential margin

5.9

State political climate

Massachusetts legislature & governorship

6.2

Economic stress

8.7% poverty · this tract

2.2

Supply constraint

$1,085 rent vs county FMR

2.3

Rent control risk

Inherited from West Springfield Town

5.4

Eviction process difficulty

State law sets the calendar

6.0

Tenant organizing strength

Inherited from West Springfield Town

4.9

Housing court bias

Inherited from West Springfield Town

5.7

How Merrick compares

Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.

CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 66

CDC/ATSDR 2022. Higher = more vulnerable. National percentile across 84k tracts.

49%Socioeconomic
73%Household composition
46%Racial/ethnic minority
77%Housing & transportation

Comparable tracts

Census tracts with similar eviction risk

Within Merrick. 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.

12.1%Housing insecurity
7.9%Utility-shutoff threat
13.6%Food insecurity
16.8%SNAP enrollment
8.1%Transit barriers
5.6%No health insurance
18.2%Frequent mental distress
32.6%Any disability

Analysis

What drives eviction risk in Merrick

The heaviest input here is eviction process difficulty at $1/10. That part comes from the wider legal climate rather than the tract itself. Statewide and court-level factors such as eviction-process speed and rent-control exposure are inherited from West Springfield Town eviction risk, while the economic and supply signals are measured at the tract level.

Set against its neighbors, this tract scores about the same as the Hampden County average of 6.6 and above the Massachusetts statewide average of 5.9. Within its own county it reads on the safer side for landlords.

The tract is predominantly White and ranks around the 66th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index, a measure of how exposed residents are to housing and economic shocks. That is a middle-of-the-pack reading for social vulnerability.

In CDC survey modeling, about 12.1% of adults here said they could not pay rent or mortgage at some point in the past year, and 7.9% faced a utility shutoff threat, a common early warning before a filing.

For a landlord, this is a tract where process discipline pays off. Clean paperwork and steady screening keep the elevated risk manageable.

Frequently asked

About tract 25013812403

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 25013812403?

Census tract 25013812403 in the Merrick neighborhood scores 4.3/10 (Moderate tier). The Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income ratios + poverty signals.

What is the average rent in tract 25013812403?

Median gross rent is $1,085/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 60% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What is the poverty rate in tract 25013812403?

8.7% of residents in tract 25013812403 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 3,960.

How socially vulnerable is tract 25013812403?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 66th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 49th, household 73th, minority 46th, housing 77th.

Is tract 25013812403 considered part of Merrick?

Yes. Per Census Bureau 2020 Block Assignment Files, the plurality of blocks in tract 25013812403 fall within Merrick (neighborhood centroid within 1.3 miles, OSM data).

What share of households in tract 25013812403 struggle to pay rent?

About 12.1% 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. 7.9% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.

How does tract 25013812403 compare to West Springfield Town overall?

Tract 25013812403 scores 4.3/10, lower than the parent city of West Springfield Town at 5.9/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from West Springfield Town eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.

Sibling tracts

Highest-risk tracts in West Springfield Town

Top eight tracts in West Springfield Town ranked by composite eviction-risk score.