Dickson County, Tennessee Eviction Risk: Very Low

Dickson County, Tennessee eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.2/10 (Low), placing it at rank 31 of 95 Tennessee counties, meaning 30 counties statewide carry higher risk and 64 are less risky. That puts Dickson County squarely in the higher-risk third of the state, so while the Low label is technically accurate, landlords should not mistake it for a fully permissive operating environment. Across the county's 6 cities, average rent sits at $1,006 per month, and renters make up 32.5% of households, a meaningful renter base for a rural-suburban county of roughly 25,407 residents.

The intra-county score range is tight, running from 2.6 to 2.8, which signals relatively consistent conditions across the county rather than sharp pockets of elevated risk. A rent burden of 23.8% of income going to housing costs is moderate, and a poverty rate of 11.5% suggests that some tenant financial stress is present but not outsized compared to comparable rural Tennessee eviction laws counties. Investors evaluating long-term buy-and-hold positions here should weigh that steady renter demand against the realistic probability of payment disruptions over a multi-year hold.

The cities inside Dickson County

The highest-risk cities in the county, each scoring 2.2/10, are Dickson (population 16,424), White Bluff (population 4,080), and Vanleer (population 666). Dickson eviction risk is the economic center of the county and the market where most landlord activity is concentrated, so its 2.8 score sets the practical benchmark for any investor underwriting deals in the area. White Bluff sits at the same score with a smaller renter pool, while Vanleer is a much smaller community where individual tenant circumstances can have an outsized effect on a single landlord's portfolio.

On the lower end, Charlotte and Burns each score 2.6/10, and Slayden comes in at 2.7/10. Charlotte (population 2,164) and Burns (population 1,884) represent the most landlord-favorable conditions in the county, though the difference between 2.6 and 2.8 is modest. Even within a small geographic footprint like Dickson County, risk is hyper-local: a four-unit portfolio in Charlotte operates under measurably different conditions than one in Dickson city proper, and deal-level underwriting should reflect that distinction.

State-level laws that apply here

Dickson County falls under Tennessee eviction laws's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (T.C.A. § 66-28). For nonpayment of rent in URLTA counties, landlords must serve a 7-day notice to pay or quit (TCA § 66-28-505, as amended by SB-1088); a material lease breach requires a 14-day cure notice under the same statute; and a non-curable breach triggers a 3-day notice under TCA § 66-28-517. For counties with a population under 75,000, TCA Title 29 Chapter 18 governs, and a 30-day notice is required. Once filed, an uncontested eviction runs 21 to 45 days from filing to lockout; contested cases stretch to 45 to 120 days. Court filing fees range from $200 to $300, sheriff lockout fees from $40 to $150, and attorney fees typically fall between $500 and $2,500. Landlords should review the full Tennessee eviction laws eviction process before assuming a quick resolution on a contested matter.

Tennessee offers landlords meaningful structural protections at the state level. Just-cause eviction requirements are not mandated by Tennessee state law, and Tennessee preempts any local rent control ordinance, so no municipality in the state can impose a rent cap. Source-of-income discrimination is not a protected class under Tennessee law. Retaliation protections for tenants are codified at T.C.A. § 66-28-514, and habitability obligations appear at T.C.A. § 66-28-304. For a detailed breakdown of what landlords may collect upfront, see Tennessee security deposit limits. For tenant-side protections that affect lease drafting and operations, Tennessee tenant protections is a useful starting point.

With a county poverty rate of 11.5% and renters comprising 32.5% of households, some baseline collection risk is present across all six cities; the city-by-city grid above breaks down exactly where that risk concentrates so you can size it into your underwriting.