Throckmorton County, Texas Eviction Risk: Low

Throckmorton County sits in the rolling ranch country of north-central Texas, roughly midway between Abilene and Wichita Falls. With a total population of about 1,158 and only three incorporated communities, the rental market here is as compact as the landscape is wide -- but that small scale does not mean landlords can treat the local regulatory picture as an afterthought. The county's eviction risk score comes in at 3.4/10 (Low), placing it 158th of 254 Texas eviction laws counties when ranked from highest to lowest eviction risk. That position means 157 counties statewide carry more tenant-protective conditions than Throckmorton, and only 96 counties are rated lower-risk. The spread across the county's three cities -- from 3.1 up to 3.6 -- reflects the modest but real variation that even a small rural county can show between its communities.

The county seat, Throckmorton, is the largest community at roughly 649 residents and scores 3.6/10, the highest local reading in the county. That elevation is consistent with a small county seat where a concentration of rental housing -- relative to the surrounding ranch parcels -- tends to attract the kind of tenant advocacy visibility that nudges scores upward. Woodson, the second community, holds a population near 504 and lands at 3.2/10, a noticeably softer reading that reflects a quieter rental inventory and fewer active enforcement touchpoints. Elbert, the smallest of the three with only 5 residents in the incorporated limits, scores 3.1/10 -- the lowest in the county and consistent with a near-uninhabited municipality where eviction filing activity is essentially zero. Average rent across Throckmorton County sits at $943 per month, and the average rent burden is 24.4% of household income -- both moderate by Texas eviction laws standards -- but 17.6% of residents fall below the poverty line, a share that landlords should weigh when underwriting turnover risk and legal costs.

About 38.9% of Throckmorton County households are renters, a figure higher than many neighboring ranch counties, which points to a meaningful tenant base despite the county's small total population. Texas eviction laws landlord-tenant law (Tex. Prop. Code § 91 and § 92) sets a 3-day notice requirement for non-payment of rent and most other lease violations, one of the shortest statutory timelines in the country, and state law under TX Local Gov Code §214.902 expressly preempts any local government from imposing rent control -- meaning no city or county in Texas eviction laws, including Throckmorton, can cap rent increases. There is no just-cause eviction requirement, and source-of-income protection does not apply. For landlords evaluating exposure, Throckmorton County's combination of a Low score, short notice periods, and a pro-landlord legal framework makes it one of the more operationally straightforward counties in a state already friendly to property owners.

Throckmorton County's 3.6/10 score reflects a rural north-central Texas eviction laws market with low regulatory density, a $943 average rent, and a 3-day statutory notice period that moves eviction timelines quickly. The county ranks 158th of 254 in Texas -- firmly in the middle of the state -- with city-level scores running from 3.1 to 3.6 across its three communities.