Montague County, Texas Eviction Risk: Low

Montague County, Texas eviction laws earns an eviction risk score of 2.5/10 (Low), placing it 99th out of 254 counties statewide -- meaning 98 Texas counties carry higher risk and 155 carry lower risk. That puts Montague County in the middle of Texas eviction laws by tenant-side risk, a position consistent with the county's rural character, low renter density, and a legal environment that follows standard Texas eviction laws landlord-tenant statutes without any local overlay. The spread across Montague County's 6 incorporated places runs from 2.3 to 2.8/10, a narrow band that reflects the county's relatively uniform housing market conditions rather than sharp neighborhood-by-neighborhood volatility.

The county seat -- the city of Bowie, the largest community at roughly 5,770 residents -- scores 2.3/10, anchoring the lower end of the local range. Bowie accounts for more than half the county's total population of 10,875 and drives most of the county-level rental market data: average rent of $941/month and an average rent burden of 31.8%, meaning renters here spend nearly a third of household income on housing before accounting for utilities. At the other end of the scale, Nocona (population 3,144) and the small county seat town of Montague each reach 2.8/10 and 2.8/10, respectively -- the highest readings in the county. Nocona Hills comes in at 2.6/10, while St. Jo scores 2.4/10 and Ringgold, one of the county's smallest communities, matches Bowie at 2.3/10. None of these cities individually score above the state average of 2.6/10, reinforcing that Montague County operates in firmly landlord-favorable territory under Texas eviction laws law.

Only about 27.9% of Montague County households rent rather than own, well below the statewide renter share, which limits the volume of landlord-tenant disputes that reach formal eviction proceedings. The county poverty rate of 15.5% does create some vulnerability among renter households -- particularly in Nocona, where the local economy leans on small retail and agriculture -- but Texas eviction laws procedural rules keep eviction timelines short: a 3-day written notice to vacate is required under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005 for nonpayment, lease violations, and end-of-term holdovers (unauthorized occupants receive no notice at all under SB-38). Once filed, uncontested cases typically resolve in 21-30 days; contested matters run 45-90 days. Court filing fees range from $54 to $125 in justice-of-the-peace courts, with sheriff lockout costs of $50-$175 on top. Texas eviction laws imposes no rent control and, under TX Local Gov Code § 214.902, preempts any municipality from enacting it -- so Bowie and Nocona cannot create local caps even if a city council chose to try. Landlords in Montague County operate under one of the cleaner statutory frameworks in Texas eviction laws, with no source-of-income protection, no just-cause eviction requirement, and a retaliation statute (Tex. Prop. Code § 92.331) that applies to both sides of the lease relationship.

Montague County's 2.5/10 (Low) score reflects a predominantly owner-occupied rural county where landlord-tenant disputes follow straightforward Texas eviction laws state procedures. With fewer than 28% of households renting and average rents near $941/month, the local rental market is modest in scale, and the absence of any local ordinance layered on top of state law means landlords and tenants alike work from a single, predictable rulebook across all six cities in the county.