3 census tracts · pop 16,381 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 8.1/10
· range 8–8.3
Top Hat spans 3 census tracts of White Center, WA and houses 16,381 people. Scored across those inputs it reaches 8.1/10, placing it in the High tier. Cost burden runs 59% against 33.5% citywide, putting Top Hat 25.7% over its own city.
The main counterweight is supply constraint, at 1.3/10. Severe burden reaches 25%. A tenant at that level absorbs no shock: one cut shift or one repair bill converts directly into arrears.
On the high side is tenant-organizing strength at 8.7/10. The poverty rate is 23%. Judgments in high-poverty tracts are collectible far less often than the filing statistics suggest.
Running hot is rent-regulation exposure at 8/10. Court records carry 1,218 eviction filings across its 3 observed tracts. The worst year on record was 2013, when filings touched 7.6% of renter households.
Judgments average 1.9% of renter households a year, the share of filings that actually convert to an order. Social vulnerability runs high at 9.1/10, concentrating the disaster- and displacement-exposure this model treats as a lagging risk input. Its 3 tracts score within 0.3 points of one another, so the area figure travels well to individual addresses.
Average gross rent runs $1,662, close to the White Center average.
With little internal variation, 8.1/10 is a fair proxy for any address inside the boundary. The number is rebuilt whenever its ACS, court-record, or statutory inputs change.
Risk score
8.1
High
3 tracts · population-weighted
Top Hat vs White CenterHow this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average
Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+
Racial/ethnic minority75%ile
Hispanic + non-white share of population
Housing & transport79%ile
Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle
Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab
Court-record eviction history in Top Hat
Aggregated across 3 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.
Historic baseline (2000–2018)
1,218Total filings (sum)
3.90%Avg annual filing rate
7.6%Peak year (2013)
2.38%Latest filed (2013)
Frequently asked
About Top Hat
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for Top Hat?
Top Hat scores 8.1/10 (High tier) across 3 census tracts. The pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income and poverty signals.
Q2
How does Top Hat compare to White Center overall?
Top Hat scores 1.5 points higher than White Center overall (6.6/10). Renters spend 59% of income on rent vs 34% citywide. Average rent: $1,662 vs $1,595.
Q3
What is the average rent in Top Hat?
Average gross rent in Top Hat is $1,662/month (pop-weighted across 3 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 59% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q4
What percentage of Top Hat residents are renters?
53% of Top Hat households are renter-occupied (vs 45% in White Center). The neighborhood has 16,381 residents.
Q5
Is Top Hat a high social-vulnerability area?
Top Hat sits in the 90th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (highly vulnerable). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.
Q6
Which tracts in Top Hat have the highest eviction risk?
The highest-risk constituent tract in Top Hat is census tract 53033026400 (score 8.3/10). Across the 3 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 8 to 8.3, a spread of 0.3 points.
Q7
How safe is Top Hat for landlords?
Top Hat carries a high-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (8.1/10). Pop-weighted across 3 constituent tracts, the score blends parent-city rent-control posture, county eviction-process timelines, and tract-specific rent-to-income / poverty signals. Compared to White Center as a whole (6.6/10), this neighborhood is higher-risk.
Q8
What is the demographic breakdown of Top Hat?
Top Hat has 16,432 residents. Top groups: White (non-Hispanic) (32.3%), Hispanic / Latino (29.9%), Black (non-Hispanic) (17.1%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.
