Clark County Arkansas Landlord-Tenant Law: A Guide for Rental Property Owners in Arkadelphia and the Ouachita Mountain Foothills
Clark County has earned a nickname that captures its character well: Arkadelphia has been called “the Athens of Arkansas” for the density and prominence of its educational institutions. Two universities — Henderson State University and Ouachita Baptist University — sit on opposite sides of a single highway in the heart of the county seat, their campuses separated by U.S. 67 and a small ravine that has given their football rivalry its name: “The Battle of the Ravine.” This dual-university identity shapes virtually every dimension of the Arkadelphia rental market, from the median age of 31.9 (among the lowest in the state) to the demand cycles that track the academic calendar, to the specific screening strategies landlords need for a tenant pool that skews heavily toward students, faculty, and university staff.
The Two Universities and What They Mean for Landlords
Henderson State University is a public liberal arts institution that joined the Arkansas State University System in 2021, with around 940 degrees awarded annually. Ouachita Baptist University is a private Baptist liberal arts institution affiliated with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, awarding around 477 degrees annually. Together they account for over 1,400 degrees per year from a city of 10,380 people — a ratio that is extraordinary and that means the university community is not a peripheral feature of Arkadelphia’s rental market but its central driver.
For landlords, this creates two distinct tenant profiles that require very different approaches. Students — particularly undergraduates — typically have no rental history, variable income from financial aid disbursements and part-time work, and high turnover rates. The practical answer is a co-signer requirement: require a creditworthy parent or guardian to co-sign any lease where the primary applicant cannot independently demonstrate income at your qualification threshold. This is standard practice in university markets and protects you without unfairly excluding the student tenant pool. Structure leases on a 12-month August-to-July cycle to align with the academic year, and build summer vacancy (May–August) into your annual financial projections for units near campus.
Faculty and staff at both universities are a completely different profile. These are salaried professionals, often long-term community members who have chosen Arkadelphia as their home regardless of institutional affiliation. Henderson faculty have the additional stability of state employment through the ASU System. OBU faculty, while at a private institution, benefit from the university’s strong Baptist denominational support. University employees who rent rather than buy are often in early-career positions or simply prefer the flexibility of renting in a smaller market. These are excellent tenant profiles — verify employment with the respective HR department and run standard credit and background checks.
Manufacturing: Georgia Pacific, Smucker, and Siplast
Beyond the university ecosystem, Clark County’s economy is anchored by three major manufacturers. Georgia Pacific has operated in the Arkadelphia area for decades, providing stable forestry-related manufacturing employment. J.M. Smucker, the consumer goods giant best known for its jams and jellies but with substantial food manufacturing operations, employs workers in the area. Siplast, a roofing and waterproofing company with a research and innovation center in Arkadelphia, represents a higher-skill technical and engineering workforce — the kind of tenants who earn professional salaries and have strong financial profiles.
Manufacturing workers from these companies are among the most straightforward to screen: they have consistent W-2 incomes, verifiable employment through HR departments, and stable employment histories. They tend to rent houses and larger units rather than the studio and one-bedroom apartments that dominate near-campus demand. If you own family-sized houses in Arkadelphia away from campus, manufacturing workers and their families are your primary non-university tenant pool.
DeGray Lake and the Scenic Byway 7 Corridor
DeGray Lake Resort State Park, 8 miles northwest of Arkadelphia along Arkansas Scenic Byway 7, is Arkansas’s only resort state park — a distinction that reflects its scale and the quality of its recreational infrastructure. The 13,800-acre lake offers fishing, boating, swimming, golf, and resort lodging, drawing visitors from across the state year-round with peaks in spring and summer. Scenic Byway 7 continues north through the Ouachita Mountains toward Hot Springs (about 30 miles) and the Ouachita National Forest, making the corridor a genuine outdoor recreation destination. Properties near DeGray Lake, in the Bismarck area, or along Byway 7 with lake access or mountain views have real short-term rental potential. Verify any STR registration requirements with Clark County before listing.
Arkansas Landlord-Tenant Law in Clark County
All Arkansas landlord-tenant law applies statewide — there are no local ordinances, rent control measures, or just-cause eviction requirements in Clark County or Arkadelphia beyond state law. The governing statutes are A.C.A. §§ 18-16-101 through 18-16-108 and the Arkansas Residential Landlord-Tenant Act of 2007, A.C.A. §§ 18-17-101 et seq. Arkansas caps security deposits at two months’ rent, returnable with itemized deductions within 60 days (applies to landlords with 6+ units). Arkansas does not impose a strong implied warranty of habitability by default. Tenants have no repair-and-deduct remedy. Abandoned property may be disposed of immediately upon lease termination. There is no rent control anywhere in Arkansas.
The Eviction Process in Clark County
All Clark County evictions are filed in the 9th East Judicial Circuit Court. The Circuit Clerk’s office is at 401 Clay Street, 2nd Floor, Arkadelphia, AR 71923, reachable at (870) 246-4281 (fax: (870) 246-1419), open Monday–Friday 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. The filing fee is $165. For nonpayment, wait at least 5 days past the due date, then serve a written 3-day notice to vacate. For lease violations, serve a 14-day notice to cure or quit. After notice expiration, file an Unlawful Detainer complaint with copies of the lease, notice, and documentation. The tenant has 5 days after service to object in writing. If no objection, you may receive a default judgment. If the tenant objects, a hearing is scheduled. Upon judgment, a Writ of Possession authorizes the sheriff to enforce removal. Never attempt self-help eviction.
In a university market, the practical reality is that student evictions are uncommon when co-signers are in place — parents who have co-signed a lease generally pay when their student child defaults rather than face an eviction on their own credit record. This is precisely why co-signer requirements work well in university rental markets. For non-student tenants, the same Arkansas eviction process applies with no special provisions.
This guide is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Arkansas landlord-tenant law is governed by the Arkansas Code Annotated and applies statewide, with no local rent control or just-cause eviction requirements in Clark County. Consult a licensed Arkansas attorney or contact the 9th East Judicial Circuit Court Clerk at (870) 246-4281 for guidance specific to your situation. Last updated: March 2026.
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