Hampshire County, West Virginia Eviction Risk: Low

Hampshire County scores 3.5/10 on the eviction-risk scale, placing it in the Low risk tier, yet that average masks a meaningful spread across the county's 4 tracked cities, where individual scores run from 2.1 to 3.9. At rank 18 of 55 West Virginia counties, 17 counties in the state carry higher risk, which puts Hampshire County in the higher-risk third statewide despite the Low label. Landlords and investors here operate in a market with modest average rent of $749 and a rent-burden rate of 28%, conditions that generally support on-time payment but leave limited cushion when tenants absorb income shocks.

The county's total renter population is concentrated in a small geographic footprint, and with a 39.7% renter share across a total tracked population of 3,005, demand for rental housing is real but thinly distributed. West Virginia eviction laws state law governs the eviction framework for every unit here, so understanding that framework is as important as understanding the local numbers when sizing up a potential acquisition.

The cities inside Hampshire County

Romney is the county seat and its largest city at 1,922 residents, and it also carries the highest eviction-risk score in the county at 3.9/10. That combination of population concentration and elevated risk means Romney warrants closer due diligence on tenant screening and lease enforcement before committing capital. Capon Bridge, with a population of 497, sits at the county average of 3.5/10, a mid-point that reflects neither the county's best nor its worst operating environment.

At the lower end of the range, Green Spring scores 2.7/10 and Springfield scores 2.1/10, making Springfield the most landlord-friendly market in the county by a clear margin. The 1.8-point gap between Romney and Springfield is substantial enough to affect operating assumptions around vacancy, legal exposure, and collections, and it underscores how hyper-local risk can be even within a single county boundary.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord in Hampshire County operates under W. Va. Code § 37-6 (Landlord and Tenant). For non-payment of rent, West Virginia eviction laws requires no advance notice before filing, an important advantage for cash-flow-sensitive investors. A lease-violation cure notice requires 14 days, and a no-cause end-of-term termination requires 30 days. Understanding the full West Virginia eviction laws eviction process, from filing through lockout, is essential before underwriting any deal here. Court filing fees run $75 to $150, sheriff lockout fees add $30 to $125, and attorney fees for a contested matter can reach $500 to $2,500. An uncontested case resolves in roughly 21 to 45 days, while a contested case can stretch to 45 to 100 days. For a detailed breakdown of West Virginia eviction costs, investors should review those figures carefully before projecting worst-case holding costs.

West Virginia eviction laws does not require just cause for eviction and has a statewide preemption that bars local rent control ordinances, two statute-level facts that remain among the most landlord-favorable provisions in the region. Source-of-income is not a protected class under state law, giving landlords standard screening flexibility consistent with federal fair housing rules enforced by the West Virginia eviction laws Human Rights Commission.

Hampshire County's 26.8% poverty rate is a key underwriting input alongside the city-level scores in the grid above, as it shapes both tenant pool stability and the realistic likelihood of contested eviction proceedings.