Barron County, Wisconsin Eviction Risk: Low

Barron County, Wisconsin scores 3/10 (Low risk) across its 10 municipalities, placing it 44th of 72 Wisconsin eviction laws counties by eviction risk. That ranking means 43 counties carry more risk for landlords, while 28 are more landlord-friendly, positioning Barron County squarely in the middle third of the state. With an average rent of $897 and a rent burden of 28.9%, most renters here are not financially stretched to an extreme, which keeps tenant-stability conditions relatively manageable for operators compared to Wisconsin eviction laws's urban markets.

That said, a county average of 3/10 spans a real range. Scores across Barron County's cities run from 2.7 to 3.8, a gap of 1.1 points that translates into meaningfully different operating environments depending on where a portfolio is concentrated. Investors treating the county as a monolith will underestimate risk in some spots and pass on genuinely low-risk opportunities in others.

The cities inside Barron County

The city of Barron, the county seat, carries the highest risk score at 3.8/10 among a population of roughly 3,681. Cumberland follows at 3.7/10 (population 2,282), and Chetek comes in at 3.5/10 (population 2,177). These three communities sit at or above the county average and warrant closer due diligence on tenant mix and local vacancy rates before acquiring rental units.

On the lower end, Prairie Farm scores 2.8/10, the most landlord-favorable reading in the county. Rice Lake, the most populous city at 9,030 residents, posts a 3/10, a solid mark for a market of its size. Cameron scores 3.1/10. The spread makes clear that risk in Barron County is hyper-local: a landlord operating in Prairie Farm and one operating in the city of Barron are functioning in materially different risk environments even though they share the same county address.

State-level laws that apply here

Under Wisconsin state law, landlords have a relatively efficient statutory framework. For non-payment of rent, Wisconsin requires only a 5-day notice before proceeding, one of the shorter cure windows in the Midwest. Lease violations carry a 14-day notice requirement, and no-cause or end-of-term terminations require 30 days. Uncontested eviction cases typically resolve in 21 to 45 days; contested cases can run 45 to 120 days. The Wisconsin eviction process also does not require just cause for termination, and the state preempts local rent control ordinances, so landlords in Barron County face no patchwork of city-level rent caps layered on top of state rules.

Cost exposure is worth modeling before any eviction. Court filing fees under Wisconsin state law range from $95 to $175, sheriff lockout fees run $50 to $150, and attorney fees commonly fall between $500 and $3,000, depending on whether the case is contested. For a full breakdown of what an eviction actually costs, see the Wisconsin eviction costs guide. Landlords unfamiliar with required notice timelines and tenant-rights obligations in the state should also review Wisconsin tenant protections before leasing in any county market.

With a poverty rate of 13.8% and a renter share of 36.6% across the county, Barron County presents a moderate but manageable risk profile; the city-level grid above is the fastest way to compare scores across all 10 municipalities and identify where within the county conditions are most favorable.