Monroe County, Tennessee Eviction Risk: Low

Monroe County carries a county-wide average eviction-risk score of 2.7/10, placing it in the Low risk tier across its 6 incorporated places. For landlords evaluating Tennessee eviction laws markets, that number signals a population where forced evictions are relatively infrequent and tenant turnover tends to be driven by economics rather than dispute, though average rent of $728 and a rent-burden rate of 31.5% mean a meaningful share of renters are stretched thin. The county ranks 37 of 95 Tennessee eviction laws counties for eviction risk, putting it in the middle third of the state: 36 counties are riskier and 58 are less risky, so Monroe County is neither a worst-case scenario nor an especially easy market.

Scores inside the county run a narrow band, from 2 to 2.8, which reflects broadly similar economic and demographic conditions across communities, all of them small. The renter share of 39.5% and poverty rate of 16.6% are worth keeping in mind: properties here attract a working-class tenant base, and qualifying standards matter more than in wealthier suburban corridors.

The cities inside Monroe County

Sweetwater is the county seat of risk, scoring 2.8/10 and home to 6,532 residents, making it both the largest and the highest-risk city in the county. Madisonville, the county seat of government with a population of 5,241, and Vonore, with 2,191 residents, each score 2.7/10, grouping them just behind Sweetwater. Tellico Plains comes in at 2.6/10. These four cities account for the great majority of the county's rental housing stock, and even a half-point difference in score can reflect meaningfully different filing rates, income stability, and tenant turnover patterns at street level.

At the lower end of the range, Coker Creek scores 2.2/10 and Kahite scores 2/10, though both are very small communities with limited rental inventory. Risk is genuinely hyper-local here: a landlord operating in Sweetwater faces a materially different environment than one holding units in Kahite, even though both sit inside the same county boundary and the county average reads Low.

State-level laws that apply here

Tennessee state law governs the eviction process throughout Monroe County under T.C.A. § 66-28 (Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act). Because Monroe County's population falls under the 75,000 threshold, landlords should note that non-URLTA procedures under TCA Title 29 Chapter 18 may apply, requiring a 30-day notice in certain situations. Within URLTA-covered arrangements, nonpayment of rent triggers a 7-day notice under TCA § 66-28-505 (as amended by SB-1088), a material breach draws a 14-day cure notice under TCA § 66-28-505, and a non-curable breach requires only a 3-day notice under TCA § 66-28-517. Understanding the Tennessee eviction process is essential because timeline diverges sharply between contested and uncontested cases: uncontested matters resolve in 21 to 45 days while contested cases can stretch 45 to 120 days.

On costs, Tennessee eviction costs stack up as a court filing fee of $200 to $300, a sheriff lockout fee of $40 to $150, and attorney fees of $500 to $2,500 when counsel is retained. Tennessee imposes no rent control and no just-cause-required eviction standard, and state law preempts any local rent-control ordinance. Tennessee security deposit limits and retaliation protections under T.C.A. § 66-28-514 still apply and should be reviewed before drafting any lease.

With a poverty rate of 16.6% and roughly 39.5% of households renting, Monroe County's tenant base is real and active, but concentrated in a small number of cities; the city-level scores in the grid above are the sharpest tool for deciding where inside the county to commit capital.