Moore County, Texas Eviction Risk: Very Low

Moore County scores 1.7/10 (Low risk) across its 3 cities, placing it at rank 156 of 254 Texas counties, where rank 1 is the highest-risk market. That means 155 Texas eviction laws counties carry more eviction risk than Moore County, while 98 are considered less risky. For landlords evaluating the Texas eviction laws Panhandle, that middle-third standing reflects a county where the structural pressures on landlord-tenant relationships are modest, though not absent. The average rent of $988 and an average rent burden of 22.6% suggest most renters here are not stretched to a dangerous threshold, which historically correlates with steadier payment records.

Conditions across the county are not uniform. City-level scores range from 1.3 to 1.9, a gap wide enough that a landlord with units in two different Moore County cities could be operating in meaningfully different risk environments. Investors should evaluate each city on its own footing rather than relying solely on the county average.

The cities inside Moore County

Cactus carries the highest risk score in the county at 1.9/10, serving a population of roughly 3,091. Even at 1.9, it remains in Low-risk territory by statewide standards, but landlords there should expect a slightly tighter margin for error compared to the rest of Moore County. Dumas, the county seat and largest city with a population of 14,452, scores 1.7/10, right at the county average, and offers the broadest inventory of rental properties and tenant demand in the area.

Sunray is the most landlord-favorable city in Moore County, scoring 1.3/10 with a population of 2,628. Its low score reflects conditions that historically favor stable landlord-tenant relationships. The spread between Sunray and Cactus illustrates how hyper-local eviction risk can be: two cities fewer than 20 miles apart can sit at opposite ends of a county's risk band.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord operating in Moore County operates under Texas eviction laws state law, specifically Tex. Prop. Code § 91 and § 92 (Residential Tenancies). Texas requires only a 3-day notice to vacate for non-payment of rent (whether a first-time or habitually delinquent tenant), lease violations, holdover tenants, and end-of-lease-term situations. Squatters and unauthorized occupants can be addressed with no advance notice under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.011 as added by SB-38. That short notice window is one of the most landlord-favorable in the country and keeps the Texas eviction process comparatively fast. An uncontested case typically resolves in 21 to 30 days; a contested case runs 45 to 90 days.

On the cost side, landlords should budget for a court filing fee of $54 to $125, a sheriff lockout fee of $50 to $175, and attorney fees ranging from $500 to $3,500 depending on case complexity. Texas imposes no rent control and no just-cause eviction requirement, and state law explicitly preempts any local attempt to impose rent caps under TX Local Gov Code § 214.902. For a full breakdown of what the process and Texas eviction costs look like in practice, and to understand Texas tenant protections that remain in force even in landlord-friendly markets, review those statewide guides before signing your next lease.

With a poverty rate of 16.1% and 39.5% of households renting, Moore County carries meaningful renter exposure for its size; review the city grid above to identify which of the three cities best aligns with your target risk tolerance before committing capital.