Madison County, Tennessee Eviction Risk: Low
6 incorporated cities and unincorporated areas. The county Eviction Risk Score is held aloft by the city of Jackson (2.8) and a small number of dense urban cores. Rent-control coverage varies by city.
Ranked #4 of 95 TN counties
72k residents · 6 cities · 28 tracts
Madison County eviction risk score history
Key metrics
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Tenant beats landlord5.5%/ 100 outcomesIn court-decided eviction outcomes for Madison County, TN, tenants prevail in roughly 5.5% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses and longer calendars.
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Timeline31dfiling → judgmentFrom the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Madison County, TN until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 31 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent for landlords.
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Cost range$1.2–3.3klegal + lost rentA typical eviction in Madison County, TN costs landlords $1,154 to $3,268 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent.
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Average rent$1,15533% stretched on rentAverage gross rent in Madison County, TN is $1,155 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey. 33% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent.
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Renters47.1%of households47.1% of occupied housing units in Madison County, TN are renter-occupied. A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings and a more active rental market.
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Poverty21.8%8.4% unemp.21.8% of Madison County, TN residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 8.4%. Both feed the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model.
Scrub 50 years
Madison County's average eviction-risk score of 2.1/10 spans a range of 1.9 to 2.7 across its 6 cities, with Three Way and Medon anchoring the high end at 2.7/10. Ranked 78th out of 94 Tennessee counties, Madison County sits in the bottom quartile for eviction risk statewide.
How Madison County ranks in Tennessee
Landlord guides for Tennessee
| City↕ | Population↕ | Risk↕ | % income on rent↕ | Average rent↕ | Lean↕ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 001 | Jackson | 68,435 | 2.8 | 33.3% | $1,145 | Rep |
| 002 | Three Way | 2,008 | 2.4 | 38.3% | $1,646 | Rep |
| 003 | Pinson | 565 | 1.8 | 4.2% | $893 | Rep |
| 004 | Beech Bluff | 437 | 2.4 | 9.1% | $919 | Rep |
| 005 | Medon | 201 | 2.5 | 8.2% | $941 | Rep |
| 006 | Mercer | 128 | 2.0 | 32.9% | $1,163 | Rep |
County heatmap
One county, multiple regulatory regimes.
Madison County, Tennessee scores 2.8/10 on average across its 6 municipalities, placing it in the Low risk tier and ranking 82nd of 95 Tennessee eviction laws counties, meaning 81 counties in the state carry higher eviction risk. For landlords and investors evaluating Middle West Tennessee eviction laws markets, that ranking signals a genuinely favorable operating environment, one where tenant-stability indicators and state-law timelines combine to reduce exposure relative to most of the state. The county's average rent of $1,155 and an average renter share of 47.1% support meaningful rental demand without the concentrated distress metrics that drive high-risk readings elsewhere in Tennessee eviction laws.
The intra-county spread runs from 1.9 to 2.7, a range narrow enough to reflect consistent conditions but wide enough to matter when choosing a specific submarket. Landlords comparing Madison County to peers such as Coffee County (2.3/10) or Sevier County (2.43/10) will find it competitive, though the city-level variation described below means underwriting to the county average alone can still miss meaningful pockets of difference.
The cities inside Madison County
Jackson anchors the county by a wide margin, with a population of 68,435 and a score of 2.8/10. Because Jackson accounts for the overwhelming share of the county's 71,774 total residents, its risk profile effectively sets the county average. Investors concentrating on Jackson can largely rely on the county-wide read as a reliable proxy for local conditions.
At the higher end of the county's range, Three Way (2.7/10, population 2,008) and Medon (2.7/10) carry the most elevated risk scores in the county, though both remain well within the Low tier by statewide standards. Pinson and Mercer each score 2.2/10. The lowest-risk location in the county is Beech Bluff at 1.9/10. Even at the riskiest end of the local spectrum, the gap between Three Way's 2.7 and Beech Bluff's 1.9 underscores that eviction risk is hyper-local: operating in one Madison County community rather than another can meaningfully shift a portfolio's risk profile.
State-level laws that apply here
Tennessee eviction laws state law governs the eviction framework for all landlords in Madison County. Under the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (T.C.A. § 66-28), the required notice for nonpayment of rent is 7 days (TCA § 66-28-505, as amended by SB-1088), a material lease breach triggers a 14-day notice, and a non-curable breach carries a 3-day notice. Landlords should note that because Madison County's total population exceeds 75,000, it falls under URLTA, not the 30-day notice track that applies to smaller counties under TCA Title 29 Chapter 18. An uncontested case typically resolves in 21 to 45 days; a contested matter can run 45 to 120 days. Full out-of-pocket costs, covering court filing fees of $200 to $300, sheriff lockout fees of $40 to $150, and attorney fees of $500 to $2,500, mean a contested eviction can cost well into the thousands before a unit is recovered. Understanding the Tennessee eviction laws eviction process and budgeting for realistic Tennessee eviction costs should be standard practice for any investor entering this market. Tennessee eviction laws state law imposes no rent control and requires no just cause for termination, and state preemption prevents any local jurisdiction from imposing rent caps, a structural advantage for landlords that holds across every city in Madison County.
With an average poverty rate of 21.8% across the county's tracked areas, some degree of tenant financial stress is present and worth factoring into screening standards. The city-by-city grid above provides the granular scores you need to compare Jackson, Three Way, Beech Bluff, and the other communities before committing capital.
Eviction filings in Madison County
In February 2024, 42 eviction filings were recorded in Madison County, 66.1% of the historical average (below average).1
- 42Feb 2024
- 66.1%of historical avg
- 14,829Renter households
- 18.6%Poverty rate
How Madison County compares
Madison County's average eviction-risk score of 2.1/10 places it in line with peer counties such as Loudon County (2.11/10) and Jefferson County (2.1/10), and below Coffee County (2.3/10) and Sevier County (2.43/10), making it one of the lower-risk markets among similarly sized Tennessee counties.
Within Tennessee's 94 counties, Madison County ranks 78th in eviction risk, putting it in the bottom quartile statewide and signaling a relatively stable rental environment for landlords and investors evaluating Middle West Tennessee markets.