Neighborhood · Houston, TX

Gulf Palms Eviction Risk: Moderate

7 census tracts · pop 25,050 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 4.2/10 · range 3.1–5.1

Gulf Palms takes in 7 census tracts of Houston, TX, population 25,050. The Eviction Risk Score is 4.2/10, in the Moderate tier. Against a Houston baseline of 32.1%, about half of renters here cross the 30%-of-income line.

The clearest offset is rent-regulation exposure, at 1/10. Internally this is not one market. Tract scores span 3.1 to 5.1, so two buildings inside the same boundary can carry materially different risk. 20% are severely burdened, paying half their income or more in rent. That cohort has no absorption capacity for an unexpected bill, and it is where non-payment filings originate.

At $1,013 a month, rents sit 26% under what the rest of Houston commands. Running cool is housing-court posture, at 2.5/10.

The poverty rate is 20%, which shows up in this model as reduced rent-recovery odds after a judgment. Filings are well documented here: 1,787 across 3 observed tracts.

Filing activity peaked in 2014 at 21.9% of renter households. The most recent observed rate, 12.2% in 2015, is well off that peak. Among the 397 mapped neighborhoods of Houston, it ranks #121 by risk, the upper third.

For a like-for-like read, Royal Oaks Country Club and Westpark Village score within a fraction of it. Social vulnerability runs high at 8.6/10, concentrating the disaster- and displacement-exposure this model treats as a lagging risk input. Annual rent works out to 22% of average household income of $55,004.

For a specific building, read the per-tract breakdown below rather than the 4.2 headline, because the internal range is too wide to average safely. The number is rebuilt whenever its ACS, court-record, or statutory inputs change.

Risk score

4.2

Moderate

7 tracts · population-weighted

Gulf Palms vs Houston How this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average

% of income on rent

50.6% +58%

Houston: 32.1%

Average gross rent

$1,013 -26%

Houston: $1,361

Average HH income

$55,004 -13%

Houston: $62,894

Poverty rate

20.1% +2%

Houston: 19.7%

Renter share

50.5% -13%

Houston: 57.9%

Peer neighborhoods

Neighborhoods with similar eviction risk

Same county, closest by Eviction Risk Score.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Gulf Palms and the region

Click any tract to drill in · 7 tracts span score 3.1–5.1

Why Gulf Palms scores 4.2

9 axes · pop-weighted · 1 = landlord-friendly

State political climate

legislature & governorship · Range 1.5–1.5 across tracts

1.5

Regional political climate

County-level mix · 2024 presidential margin · Range 5.7–5.7 across tracts

5.7

Local political climate

Parent city governance · Range 5.5–5.5 across tracts

5.5

Rent control risk

51% of income on rent · Range 1.0–1.0 across tracts

1.0

Eviction process difficulty

State notice requirements & court backlog · Range 3.5–3.5 across tracts

3.5

Tenant organizing strength

51% renter households · Range 3.5–3.5 across tracts

3.5

Housing court bias

County bench composition · Range 2.5–2.5 across tracts

2.5

Economic stress

20.1% below poverty line · Range 1.8–9.4 across tracts

5.0

Supply constraint

Rent-to-FMR gap & zoning friction · Range 2.0–5.4 across tracts

3.2

Risk score comparison

Gulf Palms vs. parent city, state, U.S.

Eviction Risk Score (0–10 scale).

Variance across tracts

How uniformly does eviction risk play out in Gulf Palms?

Left: distribution of constituent tract scores. Right: every tract as a heat square. Click any square to drill in.

Score distribution

0246810

Spread of 2 points from 3.1 to 5.1. Moderate variation across constituent tracts.

Tracts as heat grid

5.1 5.1 5.1 4.6 3.5 3.1 3.1

Each square = one census tract. Color tracks the same green→red ramp as the chloropleth map above.

Census tracts

7 tracts in Gulf Palms

Ranked highest-risk first. Click for per-tract detail.

Tract↕	Score↕	Pop↕	% over 30% on rent↕	Average rent↕
48201321200	5.1	4,883	67%	$1,084
48201334001	5.1	3,413	65%	$1,351
48201321001	5.1	3,039	48%	$1,064
48201321302	4.6	2,148	31%	$1,105
48201321002	3.5	5,279	79%	$1,182
48201321102	3.1	4,012	0%	,
48201334002	3.1	2,276	40%	$1,594

Social Vulnerability Index

CDC SVI percentile: 85

Pop-weighted across 7 tracts. Higher = more vulnerable to disaster, displacement, and rent shocks. Source: CDC/ATSDR SVI 2022.

Socioeconomic status 91%ile

Poverty, unemployment, no-HS-diploma, housing cost burden

Household characteristics 80%ile

Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+

Racial/ethnic minority 92%ile

Hispanic + non-white share of population

Housing & transport 53%ile

Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle

Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab

Court-record eviction history in Gulf Palms

Aggregated across 3 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.

Historic baseline (2000–2018)

1,787Total filings (sum)
16.10%Avg annual filing rate
21.9%Peak year (2014)
13.14%Latest filed (2015)

Pandemic-era tracking (2020–2021)

2,931Total filings 2020-21
5.0Avg monthly observed
4.2Pre-pandemic baseline
1.20×Ratio to baseline

Pandemic filings ran near baseline. Tracked under Eviction Lab Eviction Tracking System (Houston, TX).

Frequently asked

About Gulf Palms

What is the eviction-risk score for Gulf Palms?

Gulf Palms scores 4.2/10 (Moderate tier) across 7 census tracts. The pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income and poverty signals.

How does Gulf Palms compare to Houston overall?

Gulf Palms scores 0.5 points higher than Houston overall (3.7/10). Renters spend 51% of income on rent vs 32% citywide. Average rent: $1,013 vs $1,361.

What is the average rent in Gulf Palms?

Average gross rent in Gulf Palms is $1,013/month (pop-weighted across 7 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 51% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What percentage of Gulf Palms residents are renters?

51% of Gulf Palms households are renter-occupied (vs 58% in Houston). The neighborhood has 25,050 residents.

Is Gulf Palms a high social-vulnerability area?

Gulf Palms sits in the 85th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (highly vulnerable). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.

Which tracts in Gulf Palms have the highest eviction risk?

The highest-risk constituent tract in Gulf Palms is census tract 48201321200 (score 5.1/10). Across the 7 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 3.1 to 5.1, a spread of 2 points.

How safe is Gulf Palms for landlords?

Gulf Palms carries a moderate-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (4.2/10). Pop-weighted across 7 constituent tracts, the score blends parent-city rent-control posture, county eviction-process timelines, and tract-specific rent-to-income / poverty signals. Compared to Houston as a whole (3.7/10), this neighborhood is higher-risk.

What is the demographic breakdown of Gulf Palms?

Gulf Palms has 24,529 residents. Top groups: Hispanic / Latino (73.7%), Black (non-Hispanic) (13.4%), White (non-Hispanic) (8.5%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.

Nearby

Other neighborhoods near Gulf Palms

4.5 Edgebrook 2 tracts · pop 8,838 4.6 East Haven 4 tracts · pop 15,273 3.6 Parkview South 5 tracts · pop 21,413 3.6 Humble Camp 4 tracts · pop 20,231 4.5 Southmore Plaza 4 tracts · pop 16,208 3.1 Skyscraper Shadows 3 tracts · pop 15,057

Sibling neighborhoods

Other neighborhoods inside Houston

Same parent city, ranked by score similarity to Gulf Palms.

4.2 Royal Oaks Country Club 4 tracts · pop 13,395 4.2 East Downtown 2 tracts · pop 5,266 4.2 Sundown 3 tracts · pop 11,707 4.2 Village of Oak Forest 5 tracts · pop 19,070 4.2 Central City 7 tracts · pop 17,141 4.2 Hunterwood 3 tracts · pop 13,856

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