Fayette County, Texas Eviction Risk: Low

Fayette County sits in the rolling post-oak prairies of south-central Texas, roughly halfway between Austin and Houston along US-77 and US-90. With a total population of about 10,054 and a renter share of 36.3%, this is a lightly urbanized county where most rental activity clusters in a handful of small towns rather than any single dominant city. The county carries an eviction risk score of 3.7/10 (Low), placing it 88th out of 254 Texas counties -- a position that puts it in the middle of the state. By that measure, 87 Texas counties carry higher risk and 166 are rated lower.

Scores across Fayette County's eight tracked cities span a narrow band -- from 3.1 to 4 on a 10-point scale -- which reflects the relatively uniform legal and economic conditions that apply countywide. Schulenburg (3.7/10, pop. 2,768) and Carmine (3.4/10, pop. 173) sit at the upper end of that range. La Grange (4/10, pop. 4,452), the county seat and largest city, falls close behind. On the lower end, Flatonia (3.1/10), Ellinger (3.1/10), and Round Top (3.1/10) are among the most landlord-accessible communities in the county by this metric. That spread of 3.1 to 4 is narrow by Texas standards, indicating that Fayette County operates with notable consistency across its communities -- a landlord faces roughly similar conditions whether leasing in the county seat or in a small rural crossroads.

Financially, the picture is modest but stable. Average asking rent runs $908 per month, and renters spend an average of 26.7% of income on housing -- below the 30% stress threshold that HUD uses as a benchmark for cost burden. The poverty rate stands at 11.9%, which is in line with rural Texas broadly. Texas law governs this market entirely: Fayette County has no local rent control ordinance, and Texas state law under TX Local Gov Code §214.902 actively preempts any municipality from enacting one. Landlords are not required to show just cause for non-renewal, and there is no source-of-income protection under state statute. The legal baseline is set by Tex. Prop. Code § 91 and § 92, with notice requirements and court procedures that are among the more landlord-favorable in the country.

Fayette County's Low risk score of 3.7/10 reflects a legal environment anchored by short statutory notice periods -- just 3 days for nonpayment of rent under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005 -- combined with relatively low renter housing cost burden (26.7%) and the absence of local tenant-protection ordinances. Court filing fees for eviction run $54 to $125, and uncontested cases typically resolve in 21 to 30 days. These conditions place Fayette County comfortably in the lower-risk tier for Texas landlords.