Karnes County, Texas Eviction Risk: Low

Karnes County sits in the rolling south-central Texas eviction laws plains roughly 60 miles southeast of San Antonio eviction risk, straddling the Eagle Ford Shale corridor that reshaped local housing demand during the oil boom years of the 2010s. With a total population of around 9,241 and an owner-dominated housing stock -- just 44.2% of occupied units are rentals -- the rental market here is thin but not friction-free. The county carries a composite eviction-risk score of 3.7/10 (Low), placing it at 82nd of 254 Texas counties, meaning 182 counties across the state carry higher risk scores. That puts Karnes firmly in the higher-risk of the Texas distribution, and well below the Texas state average of 3.6/10.

Scores across the county's six incorporated places span a narrow band from 3.1 to 4.3/10, which reflects the relative uniformity of a small, rural market rather than any dramatic pockets of tenant stress. The county seat, Karnes City (population 3,605), scores 3.2/10 -- matching the county average almost exactly. Kenedy (population 3,430), the second-largest city and a key commercial hub along U.S. 181, comes in at 4.3/10. Runge, the smallest of the three significant population centers at 1,108 residents, posts the lowest reading in the county at 4/10, suggesting an even more landlord-favorable environment there. At the other end of the local spectrum, Nordheim scores 3.2/10 -- the highest in the county -- followed by Falls City at 3.2/10 and Pawnee at 3.1/10. None of these outliers represent a dramatic shift; the spread of 3.1 to 4.3 across all six places is one of the tightest ranges you will find anywhere in rural Texas.

What drives the reading this low? Several structural factors converge. Texas operates under a statewide preemption statute (TX Local Gov. Code §214.902) that bars any municipality from enacting rent control, so there is no patchwork of local ordinances layered on top of state law. The state requires only a 3-day written notice before filing for eviction -- whether the cause is non-payment, a lease violation, or end of term under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005 -- and an uncontested case typically wraps in 21 to 30 days. Court filing fees run $54 to $125, and sheriff lockout fees add another $50 to $175. Average rents in Karnes County stand at roughly $848 per month, a rent burden of 24.3% -- below the 30% threshold generally considered cost-stressed -- and a poverty rate of 25.3%. That elevated poverty figure is worth watching: it is a sign that a meaningful share of tenants operate with thin financial buffers, which can translate into higher late-payment frequency even in a legally landlord-friendly market. Combined with a high vacancy tolerance common in rural counties, Karnes still checks out as one of the more accessible eviction environments in the state.

Karnes County's 3.7/10 score reflects a baseline landlord-favorable environment shaped by Texas eviction laws's minimal statutory protections, a thin rental market, and rents well within affordability thresholds for most working households. The narrow 3.1-to-4.3 spread across all six cities signals consistent conditions throughout the county rather than localized hotspots of tenant distress or legal complexity.