Wood County, Wisconsin Eviction Risk: Low

Wood County, Wisconsin eviction laws carries an average eviction-risk score of 3.8/10, earning a low overall label, but that countywide average can obscure meaningful variation on the ground. Across the county's 14 cities, individual scores stretch from 3 to 4.5, a spread wide enough to shift a landlord's operating calculus significantly depending on exactly where a property sits. At rank 10 of 72 Wisconsin counties, Wood County falls in the higher-risk third of the state, meaning only 9 counties carry more risk, while 62 are less risky for landlords.

The broader operating picture is relatively stable. An average rent of $837 and a rent-burden rate of 26.7% suggest tenants are not severely overextended on housing costs, which correlates with fewer distressed-tenant eviction situations. With 37.2% of households renting, the county supports a real rental market without the density pressures that push risk scores higher in Wisconsin eviction laws's larger metros. Investors who understand the intra-county variation can position accordingly.

The cities inside Wood County

The riskiest address in Wood County is Port Edwards, which scores 3.4/10 and has a population of 1,881. It is followed closely by Wisconsin Rapids, the county's most populous city at 18,722 residents, with a score of 4/10. Nekoosa comes in next at 4/10 with a population of 2,420. Landlords concentrating holdings in these three communities should price their underwriting assumptions for a meaningfully higher claims environment than the countywide average would suggest.

The other end of the spectrum tells a different story. Auburndale scores just 3.2/10, and Pittsville reaches only 3.4/10. Even Marshfield, the county's second-largest city with 18,700 residents, sits at a measured 3.7/10, making it one of the lower-risk substantial rental markets in the county. Risk here is genuinely hyper-local: two properties separated by a few miles can sit in meaningfully different eviction-risk environments.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord in Wood County operates under Wis. Stat. § 704 (Landlord and Tenant), Wisconsin eviction laws's primary landlord-tenant statute. For nonpayment of rent, state law requires only a 5-day notice to the tenant before a filing can proceed. A lease-violation notice allowing cure carries a 14-day window, and a no-cause end-of-term termination requires 30 days. Understanding the Wisconsin eviction laws eviction process from notice through lockout matters here because the timeline adds up fast: uncontested cases run 21 to 45 days, while contested cases stretch to 45 to 120 days. Wisconsin eviction costs add another layer of exposure, with court filing fees of $95 to $175, sheriff lockout fees of $50 to $150, and attorney fees that can range from $500 to $3,000 depending on complexity.

Wisconsin eviction laws state law does not require just cause to terminate a tenancy, and the state preempts local rent-control ordinances, so Wood County landlords face no local rent caps on top of the statewide framework. The retaliation prohibition under Wis. Stat. § 704.45 and habitability standards under Wis. Stat. § 704.07 apply uniformly across the county. Entry requires at least 12 hours advance notice to tenants.

A 12.4% poverty rate across the county is a useful baseline when stress-testing tenant pools in any of the 14 cities shown in the grid above, as it varies by municipality and affects the underlying risk profile of each submarket.