3 census tracts · pop 14,653 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 6.2/10
· range 5.6–7
Ruston Way takes in 3 census tracts of Tacoma, WA and houses 14,653 people. That produces an Eviction Risk Score of 6.2/10, Elevated tier. Pulling the other way is economic stress, at 1.6/10.
Internally this is not one market. Tract scores span 5.6 to 7, so two buildings inside the same boundary can carry materially different risk. Well under the midpoint is supply constraint, at 2.2/10.
Cost burden runs about a quarter against 32.4% citywide, putting Ruston Way 6.2% under its own city. The severe-burden share is 12%. Those renters are past the 50% mark, and they miss rent for reasons that have nothing to do with willingness to pay.
Court records carry 202 eviction filings across its 3 observed tracts. Sitting well above the midpoint is rent-regulation exposure at 7.5/10.
At $1,474 a month, rents sit 12% under what the rest of Tacoma commands. Filing activity peaked in 2015 at 2.2% of renter households.
That places it #22 of 23 neighborhoods in Tacoma. Judgments average 0.5% of renter households a year, the share of filings that actually convert to an order.
The closest comparables inside the same city are Proctor and Northeast Tacoma. Against average income of $132,274, annual rent is only 13%, a wide affordability cushion. Poverty sits at 6%, low enough that arrears here usually reflect a specific shock rather than a structural income gap.
Underwrite the address, not the area: with 1.4 points between its best and worst tract, the per-tract table below is the operative number. Scores move when the ACS release, the court-record feed, or the statute ledger behind them moves.
Risk score
6.2
Elevated
3 tracts · population-weighted
Ruston Way vs TacomaHow this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average
Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+
Racial/ethnic minority32%ile
Hispanic + non-white share of population
Housing & transport30%ile
Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle
Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab
Court-record eviction history in Ruston Way
Aggregated across 3 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.
Historic baseline (2000–2018)
202Total filings (sum)
0.87%Avg annual filing rate
2.2%Peak year (2015)
0.70%Latest filed (2015)
Pandemic-era tracking (2020–2021)
68Total filings 2020-21
0.4Avg monthly observed
0.7Pre-pandemic baseline
0.71×Ratio to baseline
Pandemic filings ran below baseline. Tracked under Eviction Lab Eviction Tracking System (St Louis, MO).
Frequently asked
About Ruston Way
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for Ruston Way?
Ruston Way scores 6.2/10 (Elevated 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 Ruston Way compare to Tacoma overall?
Ruston Way scores 0.8 points lower than Tacoma overall (7/10). Renters spend 26% of income on rent vs 32% citywide. Average rent: $1,474 vs $1,676.
Q3
What is the average rent in Ruston Way?
Average gross rent in Ruston Way is $1,474/month (pop-weighted across 3 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 26% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q4
What percentage of Ruston Way residents are renters?
29% of Ruston Way households are renter-occupied (vs 44% in Tacoma). The neighborhood has 14,653 residents.
Q5
Is Ruston Way a high social-vulnerability area?
Ruston Way sits in the 14th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (low vulnerability). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.
Q6
Which tracts in Ruston Way have the highest eviction risk?
The highest-risk constituent tract in Ruston Way is census tract 53053060600 (score 7/10). Across the 3 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 5.6 to 7, a spread of 1.4 points.
Q7
How safe is Ruston Way for landlords?
Ruston Way carries a elevated-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (6.2/10). 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 Tacoma as a whole (7/10), this neighborhood is lower-risk.
Q8
What is the demographic breakdown of Ruston Way?
Ruston Way has 14,260 residents. Top groups: White (non-Hispanic) (79.9%), Other / Multiracial (9.5%), Hispanic / Latino (4.7%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.
