Robertson County, Texas Eviction Risk: Moderate

Robertson County sits in the east-central Texas Brazos River basin, covering roughly 854 square miles between Waco and Bryan-College Station. With a total population near 7,700 and an estimated 42.2% of households renting, the county's rental market is modest in scale but meaningful in stakes - particularly given that about 27.6% of residents live below the poverty line and average rents run around $740 per month. At that rent level, a single missed paycheck can tip a household toward eviction, and a rent burden of 38.8% (the share of renter income consumed by housing costs) means financial margin is thin for a large share of tenants. Against that backdrop, Robertson County scores 4/10 overall, a Moderate risk designation on the Eviction Risk Map scale, placing it 8th out of 254 Texas eviction laws counties - putting it in the higher-risk of the state, with 26 counties carrying higher risk and 227 carrying lower risk.

The four incorporated places in Robertson County span a range from 3.2 to 4.3 on the 10-point scale. Hearne, the county seat and largest city at roughly 4,555 residents, posts the highest city-level score at 4.3/10 - reflecting its denser rental stock, higher poverty concentration, and the faster court timelines that Texas eviction laws landlord-tenant law creates in urban-adjacent settings. Franklin, the second-largest community at about 1,530 residents, comes in at 4/10, a measurably lower figure that tracks with its smaller and more stable rental base. Bremond, a small agricultural community of roughly 855, scores 3.4/10, while Calvert - historically significant as a former cotton-shipping hub with a population near 760 - records the lowest score in the county at 3.2/10. The spread between Hearne and Calvert illustrates how much micro-level economic conditions and renter-population density can shift outcomes even across a rural county with a shared state legal framework.

That shared framework is worth understanding clearly. Texas operates under Tex. Prop. Code § 91 and § 92, which set the baseline rules for all residential tenancies statewide. Non-payment of rent, lease violations, and end-of-term holdovers all carry a 3-day notice requirement under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005 before a landlord can file for eviction. Once filed, uncontested cases typically resolve in 21 to 30 days from filing; contested proceedings generally run 45 to 90 days. Court filing fees range from $54 to $125 depending on the justice of the peace precinct, with sheriff lockout fees adding another $50 to $175 after judgment. Texas does not require just cause for non-renewal, does not protect source of income as a fair-housing category, and - critically - the state explicitly preempts local rent control ordinances under TX Local Gov Code §214.902, meaning no city or county in Texas can cap rent increases regardless of local conditions. Robertson County's Moderate score reflects all of these realities layered against its relatively rural, low-income renter base.

Robertson County's 4/10 score reflects a rural east-central Texas eviction laws county where Texas eviction laws's streamlined eviction process, 3-day notice requirements, and a 38.8% rent burden among renters converge with a 27.6% poverty rate. The county ranks 8th of 254 statewide - squarely in the higher-risk - with city scores ranging from 3.2 in Calvert to 4.3 in Hearne, the county's most populous city.