Neighborhood · Ranked #46,312 of 84,120 nationally

Third Ward Eviction Risk: Lower , Grand Rapids

Tract 26081004400 · Kent County, MI · pop 7,222 · neighborhood within 1.0 mi

Census tract 26081004400 covers Third Ward in Grand Rapids, home to 7,222 residents. For landlords it grades 5.6/10, a moderate reading. That is riskier than roughly 61% of the 84,120 US census tracts we score.

About 47% of renters carry a rent burden of 30% of income or higher, a severe level, and 22% are severely burdened at 50% or more. Average gross rent is $1,165 monthly, set against $82,216 in average yearly household income, roughly 17% of income at the averages. About 39% of occupied units are renter-occupied.

Risk score

3.7

Lower

Confidence 100% · 1–10 scale

Household mix · 100 hh

Burdened renters 18% Stable renters 21% Owners 61%

Tract context

Occupied units2,335

Renter share38.8%

SVI overall0.24

Poverty rate8.6%

Median income$82,216

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Grand Rapids and the region

Centroid at 42.9218, -85.5961 · click any tract to drill in

Why Third Ward scores 3.7

9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendly

Local political climate

Inherited from Grand Rapids

5.5

Regional political climate

2024 county presidential margin

5.3

State political climate

Michigan legislature & governorship

3.3

Economic stress

8.6% poverty · this tract

2.1

Supply constraint

$1,165 rent vs county FMR

3.1

Rent control risk

Inherited from Grand Rapids

1.5

Eviction process difficulty

State law sets the calendar

4.5

Tenant organizing strength

Inherited from Grand Rapids

4.5

Housing court bias

Inherited from Grand Rapids

4.5

How Third Ward compares

Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.

CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 24

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

28%Socioeconomic
8%Household composition
25%Racial/ethnic minority
56%Housing & transportation

Historical context · 1930s redlining

HOLC grade: C: Definitely Declining

This tract sits within an area graded by the Home Owners' Loan Corporation in the 1930s. Grade C meant mixed-race / working-class neighborhoods rated as risky. These designations suppressed minority homeownership for generations and remain a documented predictor of present-day eviction filings and rent burden.

2%Grade A
0%Grade B
62%Grade C
0%Grade D · redlined

Source: Mapping Inequality (americanpanorama.org), 1935-1940 HOLC residential security maps, aggregated to 2020 census tracts by area share. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

Comparable tracts

Census tracts with similar eviction risk

Within Third Ward. 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.

8.0%Housing insecurity
5.4%Utility-shutoff threat
10.2%Food insecurity
7.6%SNAP enrollment
6.8%Transit barriers
5.3%No health insurance
17.2%Frequent mental distress
28.1%Any disability

Analysis

What drives eviction risk in Third Ward

What moves this score most is eviction process difficulty at 4.5/10. 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 Grand Rapids 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 Kent County average of 5.7 and in line with the Michigan statewide average of 5.7. Within its own county it reads on the safer side for landlords.

The tract is predominantly White and ranks around the 24th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index, a measure of how exposed residents are to housing and economic shocks. That is a relatively low-vulnerability reading.

HOLC surveyors mapped this tract in the 1930s with a dominant grade of C ("Declining"), above the redlined D tier. The grading still shaped decades of lending and development in the surrounding area.

For a landlord, conditions here are middle-of-the-road. Standard screening and prompt, documented notices usually keep cases short.

Frequently asked

About tract 26081004400

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 26081004400?

Census tract 26081004400 in the Third Ward neighborhood scores 3.7/10 (Lower 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 26081004400?

Median gross rent is $1,165/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 47% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What is the poverty rate in tract 26081004400?

8.6% of residents in tract 26081004400 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 7,222.

How socially vulnerable is tract 26081004400?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 24th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 28th, household 8th, minority 25th, housing 56th.

Is tract 26081004400 considered part of Third Ward?

Yes. Per Census Bureau 2020 Block Assignment Files, the plurality of blocks in tract 26081004400 fall within Third Ward (neighborhood centroid within 1.0 miles, OSM data).

What share of households in tract 26081004400 struggle to pay rent?

About 8.0% 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. 5.4% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.

How does tract 26081004400 compare to Grand Rapids overall?

Tract 26081004400 scores 3.7/10, right in line with the parent city of Grand Rapids at 3.5/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from Grand Rapids eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.

Was tract 26081004400 historically redlined?

Yes. This tract sits inside an area graded by the Home Owners' Loan Corporation in the 1930s, with a dominant grade of C. 0% of the tract's area was rated D ("Hazardous"), the redlined tier. HOLC redlining systematically denied mortgage credit to Black, immigrant, and working-class neighborhoods and remains a documented predictor of present-day eviction filings, rent burden, and homeownership gaps. Source: Mapping Inequality (americanpanorama.org), Robert K. Nelson et al.

Sibling tracts

Highest-risk tracts in Grand Rapids

Top eight tracts in Grand Rapids ranked by composite eviction-risk score.