Ellis County, Texas Eviction Risk: Very Low

Ellis County carries an average eviction-risk score of 2.2/10 (Low), placing it 12th of 254 Texas counties, meaning only 11 counties in the state carry higher risk. That ranking puts Ellis County in the higher-risk third of Texas despite its Low label, a gap investors should not overlook. Spread across 13 cities and a total population of roughly 140,682, the county's conditions vary enough that a landlord operating in one city can face a meaningfully different risk profile than one just a few miles away.

The county-wide score range runs from 2 to 3.3/10, a spread wide enough to matter for portfolio decisions. Average rent sits at $1,710 per month, and renters represent 29.8% of households, a relatively modest renter share that reflects Ellis County's predominantly owner-occupied suburban and exurban character. The average rent burden of 32.6% of income is moderate but not negligible, and it is a leading indicator of where rent-collection stress tends to build.

The cities inside Ellis County

The highest-risk addresses in the county are Waxahachie and Maypearl, both scoring 3.3/10. Waxahachie is the county's largest city at roughly 45,347 residents and drives a disproportionate share of the county's overall risk given its size. Bardwell follows at 3.2/10, and a cluster of smaller cities, including Ennis (population 22,588), Ferris, and Italy, all land at 2.2/10, matching the county average exactly.

The lowest-risk city in the county is Ovilla at 2/10, a full 1.3 points below the county average, reflecting a small, stable community (population 4,375) with a tenant profile that generates far fewer eviction-risk signals. Oak Leaf scores 2.7/10, and Midlothian (population 39,356) comes in at 2.9/10, making it one of the larger lower-risk markets in the county. Risk is genuinely hyper-local here: a landlord choosing between Waxahachie and Midlothian is effectively choosing between two different operating environments within the same county boundaries.

State-level laws that apply here

Every property in Ellis County operates under Texas state law, specifically Tex. Prop. Code § 91 and § 92. The notice period for non-payment, lease violation, end of lease, or holdover is uniformly 3 days. Unauthorized occupants and squatters can be addressed under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.011 with no required notice period. Understanding the full Texas eviction process matters here because even an uncontested case takes 21 to 30 days from filing to resolution, and contested cases stretch to 45 to 90 days. Landlords should budget accordingly: court filing fees run $54 to $125, sheriff lockout fees $50 to $175, and attorney fees typically $500 to $3,500 depending on case complexity. Reviewing Texas eviction costs before acquiring property is a sound underwriting step.

Texas does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and state law actively preempts any local rent-control ordinance under TX Local Gov Code § 214.902, meaning no city in Ellis County can impose rent caps. Source of income is not a protected class under state fair-housing statute, though landlords should always verify current guidance from the Texas Workforce Commission, Civil Rights Division. The retaliation statute, Tex. Prop. Code § 92.331, does apply statewide and limits a landlord's ability to take adverse action against a tenant who exercises protected rights.

With an average poverty rate of 8% and just under 30% of households renting, Ellis County's underlying tenant-base fundamentals are relatively stable, but the city-level scores in the grid above show that stability is not evenly distributed, and the specific city you choose will matter more than the county average suggests.