Lafayette County, Wisconsin Eviction Risk: Low

Lafayette County sits in the rolling hills of southwestern Wisconsin eviction laws, a thinly settled agricultural county of roughly 7,269 residents where only about 25.7% of households rent. That low renter share sets the stage for the county's eviction environment: with relatively few rental units in circulation, landlord-tenant disputes are less frequent than in Wisconsin eviction laws's denser urban markets, and the local legal machinery for resolving them tends to move quickly. The county carries an eviction risk score of 2.9/10 (Low) on the Eviction Risk Map, placing it 29th out of 72 Wisconsin eviction laws counties -- a position in the middle of the state, with 28 counties carrying higher risk and 43 carrying lower.

The score range across Lafayette County's eight incorporated places is notably tight -- from a low of 2.7/10 to a high of 3.2/10 -- reflecting the county's consistent socioeconomic profile rather than the sharp within-county divergence seen in larger Wisconsin metros. Darlington, the county seat and by far the largest community with a population of 2,409, scores 2.9/10. Shullsburg, the second-largest city at 1,184 residents and a former lead-mining town, posts the county's highest risk reading at 3.2/10 -- driven partly by a higher share of aging rental housing stock and relatively constrained household incomes. At the other end of the range, Benton (pop. 1,054) logs the county's lowest score at 2.7/10. Belmont (2.8/10, pop. 949) and Argyle (2.8/10, pop. 877) cluster near the county average, while the smaller communities of South Wayne (3/10), Gratiot (3.1/10), and Wiota (3.1/10) occupy the upper half of the county's range without approaching levels common in Wisconsin's larger cities.

Wisconsin landlord-tenant law is governed by Wis. Stat. § 704 (Landlord and Tenant), which sets the procedural framework for every county in the state. In Lafayette County, that framework translates into court filing fees of $95 to $175 and, for uncontested cases, resolution timelines of 21 to 45 days from filing -- among the faster outcomes available under Wisconsin procedure. A contested eviction can extend to 45 to 120 days and draw attorney fees typically ranging $500 to $3,000 depending on complexity. Non-payment cases require a 5-day notice before filing; lease-violation cases require a 14-day cure notice; and month-to-month no-cause terminations require a 30-day notice under Wis. Stat. § 704. The state does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and Wisconsin's statewide preemption statute bars municipalities from enacting local rent control -- meaning neither Darlington nor any other Lafayette County community can layer additional tenant protections on top of the state baseline. Average rent in the county runs about $819 per month, and renters direct roughly 29.8% of household income toward housing costs on average -- a burden level that is moderate by Wisconsin standards and one of the factors keeping the overall risk profile contained. The average poverty rate of 12.3% does introduce some baseline financial fragility among tenants, but the county's small rental market and efficient court processing keep that pressure from translating into elevated eviction outcomes.

Lafayette County's Low risk rating (2.9/10) reflects a rural Wisconsin eviction laws rental market with low renter density (25.7%), moderate average rent of $819, and a statutory framework under Wis. Stat. § 704 that resolves uncontested evictions in as few as 21 days with filing fees starting at $95. There is no local rent control and no just-cause requirement, giving landlords clear procedural pathways while keeping systemic tenant displacement risk low relative to the state average of 3.1/10.