In court-decided eviction outcomes for Pullman, WA, tenants prevail in roughly 45.2% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
172d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Pullman, WA until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 172 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$8.2–17.1k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Pullman, WA costs landlords $8,195 to $17,065 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,062
44% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Pullman, WA is $1,062 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 44% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
68.0%
of households
68.0% of occupied housing units in Pullman, WA are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
32.1%
7.5% unemp.
32.1% of Pullman, WA residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 7.5%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
Dem margin +9.0% (2024)
6.0
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
6.0
State political climate
Washington legislature & governorship
6.0
Economic stress
32.1% poverty · 7.5% unemp.
8.7
Supply constraint
$1,062 average · 68.0% renters
7.9
Rent Control risk
43.5% of income on rent
9.2
Eviction process difficulty
172 days filing → judgment
5.6
Tenant organizing strength
68.0% renters
9.8
Housing court bias
County bench composition
9.2
Geographic context
Risk heat across Pullman and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Pullman compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Whitman County
Very High
#2of 15 cities
#2 of 15 cities in Whitman County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Washington
Very High
#16of 637 cities
#16 of 637 cities in Washington for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
7.3
/ 10 · HIGH
The verdict
A High-tier market.
Composite 7.3/10. High statutory friction with active tenant counsel, so assume defenses on every filing. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+4.7 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
172d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,062/mo. A contested eviction takes 172 days and costs $8,195–$17,065 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
68.0%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 32,229 residents, 68.0% rent. 44% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 32.1% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
6
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 6 and 6 (Dem margin +9.0% (2024)). State climate at 6, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
6
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 6/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 5.6, housing court bias 9.2, rent-control risk 9.2. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +0.6 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
8.7
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the real risk.
Economic stress: 8.7. Supply constraint: 7.9. The numbers behind those: 32.1% poverty, 7.5% unemployment, 44% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Pullman sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Pullman · 172d · ~$12.6k all-in ($73/day) · score 7.3National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Pullman, Washington, presents a high-friction environment where attorney involvement on every filing is the norm. The Eviction Risk Score is 7.3/10 (HIGH tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a High-friction landlord market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Pullman is a city of 32,229 residents where 68.0% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 43.5% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,062/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How Pullman eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 5.6/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in Pullman closes 172 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of Pullman's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 9.2/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in Pullman runs $8,195 to $17,065 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 172 days of typical timeline and $1,062/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 9.8/10 in Pullman, and the city sits at the top of the rent control risk spectrum (9.2/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In Washington, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in Pullman: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a HIGH tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match Washington's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $17,065 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Pullman
Trap · 68.0%
68.0% renter share against 32,229 residents produces roughly 21,912 rental occupants in Pullman. Whitman County voted D 10% in 2020. Eviction filings tend to cluster in the multifamily rental corridor.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a student tenant in Pullman if they go home for the summer and stop paying?
No, not just because they leave. If they stop paying rent, you must follow the standard 14-day pay-or-quit notice process under RCW § 59.18. Their status as a student or their physical absence doesn't change the legal requirements for eviction.
Q2
What if my tenant claims they lost their job and can't pay rent?
Sympathy is natural, but legally, you still need to follow the process. Washington has source-of-income protection, but this typically refers to things like housing vouchers, not a sudden job loss. You can offer a payment plan or suggest they seek rental assistance programs, but if rent isn't paid, you must serve the 14-day notice to protect your interests.
Q3
How often can I raise the rent in Pullman?
Washington doesn't have statewide rent control, but it does require 60 days' written notice for any rent increase for month-to-month tenancies. For fixed-term leases, you can only raise rent at the end of the lease term unless the lease specifically allows for it. Keep an eye on Washington rent control rules, as these can change.
Q4
Can I ask for a last month's rent in addition to a security deposit?
Yes, you can. Washington law allows for a security deposit up to 1.00 month's rent. You can also collect the last month's rent upfront, but it must be clearly designated as such in the lease agreement, and you must pay interest on it. It's separate from the security deposit cap.
Q5
My tenant is damaging the property. How do I evict them?
This falls under a "for-cause" eviction. You'll need to serve a notice to cure or quit, giving the tenant a specific amount of time (usually 10 or 30 days, depending on the lease and severity) to fix the damage or move out. If they don't comply, then you can proceed with an unlawful detainer action. Document all damage thoroughly with photos and dates.
Q6
What happens if I try to evict a tenant without a lawyer?
You risk making critical procedural errors that can lead to your case being dismissed, forcing you to start over, or even facing counterclaims from the tenant. Given the high eviction-process-difficulty (5.6) and housing-court-bias (9.2) in Washington, going it alone is a high-stakes gamble that almost always costs more in the long run. Consider consulting a lawyer even for initial advice, or for the full Whitman County eviction guide.
A 7.3/10 places Pullman in the 100th percentile of Washington cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has risen sharply since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to Pullman (7.3/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
