Census Tract · Ranked #42,763 of 84,120 nationally

Charleston Eviction Risk: Lower

Tract 54039011000 · Kanawha County, WV · pop 4,366 · 16% of tract blocks fall in Charleston

Charleston anchors census tract 54039011000, which lands at 4.1/10 on landlord eviction risk. That is riskier than roughly 13% of the 84,120 US census tracts we score.

Rent eats 30% or more of income for 71% of renter households, a severe level, and 32% are severely burdened at 50% or more. Average gross rent is $741 monthly, set against $64,130 in average yearly household income, roughly 14% of income at the averages. Renters make up 27% of occupied homes.

Risk score

3.9

Lower

Confidence 85% · 1–10 scale

Household mix · 100 hh

Burdened renters 19% Stable renters 8% Owners 73%

Tract context

Occupied units2,239

Renter share27.1%

SVI overall0.37

Poverty rate11.1%

Median income$64,130

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Charleston and the region

Centroid at 38.4054, -81.5639 · click any tract to drill in

Why Charleston scores 3.9

9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendly

Local political climate

Inherited from Charleston

3.5

Regional political climate

2024 county presidential margin

4.3

State political climate

West Virginia legislature & governorship

1.8

Economic stress

11.1% poverty · this tract

2.8

Supply constraint

$741 rent vs county FMR

2.0

Rent control risk

Inherited from Charleston

1.0

Eviction process difficulty

State law sets the calendar

2.0

Tenant organizing strength

Inherited from Charleston

2.5

Housing court bias

Inherited from Charleston

2.5

How Charleston compares

Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.

CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 37

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

38%Socioeconomic
28%Household composition
16%Racial/ethnic minority
58%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.

0%Grade A
0%Grade B
1%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

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.

10.0%Housing insecurity
8.8%Utility-shutoff threat
12.0%Food insecurity
11.4%SNAP enrollment
6.5%Transit barriers
6.1%No health insurance
19.3%Frequent mental distress
35.6%Any disability

Analysis

What drives eviction risk in Charleston

The heaviest input here is economic stress at 2.8/10. 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 Charleston 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 Kanawha County average of 4.3 and in line with the West Virginia statewide average of 4.3. Within its own county it reads on the safer side for landlords.

The tract is predominantly White and ranks around the 37th 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 54039011000

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 54039011000?

Census tract 54039011000 in Charleston scores 3.9/10 (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 54039011000?

Median gross rent is $741/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 71% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What is the poverty rate in tract 54039011000?

11.1% of residents in tract 54039011000 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 4,366.

How socially vulnerable is tract 54039011000?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 37th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 38th, household 28th, minority 16th, housing 58th.

What share of households in tract 54039011000 struggle to pay rent?

About 10.0% 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. 8.8% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.

How does tract 54039011000 compare to Charleston overall?

Tract 54039011000 scores 3.9/10, higher than the parent city of Charleston at 3/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from Charleston eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.

Was tract 54039011000 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 Charleston

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