Franklin County sits in the southeastern corner of Idaho where the Cache Valley — a broad, fertile basin formed by ancient Lake Bonneville sediments — extends north from northern Utah across the state line. The county holds a distinction unique in Idaho: the town of Franklin, established on April 14, 1860, is Idaho’s oldest permanent non-native settlement. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints led by Thomas S. Smart founded the settlement believing they were in Utah Territory; it was not until 1872, when the Idaho-Utah boundary was finally surveyed, that Franklin’s residents discovered they had been in Idaho all along. The county itself was established in 1913 and named for Franklin D. Richards, an apostle of the LDS Church — making it the only Franklin County in the United States not named after Benjamin Franklin.
The county’s economy is rooted in Cache Valley agriculture: dairy farming, wheat, barley, hay, sugar beets, and alfalfa on the valley floor irrigated by the Bear River and its tributaries. Franklin County is part of the Logan, Utah-Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area, reflecting its functional economic integration with Logan, Utah, just south of the state line. Preston, the county seat and largest city at approximately 5,591 residents, gained a surprising degree of national cultural recognition as the filming location for the 2004 independent film Napoleon Dynamite — a cult classic that put Idaho’s rural LDS culture in front of a national audience. The county also contains the Bear River Massacre National Historic Landmark, commemorating the January 29, 1863 massacre in which U.S. Army forces killed an estimated 250–350 Northwestern Shoshone people in one of the deadliest attacks on Native Americans in U.S. history.
All landlord-tenant matters in Franklin County are governed by Idaho Code §§ 6-301 et seq. (evictions), §§ 6-320 and 6-321 (security deposits), and §§ 55-208 and 55-307 (tenancy and notice). Eviction actions are filed as Unlawful Detainer proceedings at the Franklin County District Court (Sixth Judicial District), 39 W. Oneida, Room 2, Preston, ID 83263, (208) 852-1090. Idaho prohibits rent control statewide.
Logan, UT-ID Metropolitan Statistical Area (economically integrated with Logan, UT)
LDS Character
Strongly LDS-settled and LDS-practicing community; young families; high birth rates; conservative values
Principal Economy
Dairy farming; wheat, barley, hay, sugar beets, alfalfa; Logan, UT commuters; county & school government; small retail & light manufacturing in Preston; Bear River watershed agriculture
Historic Landmarks
Franklin (Idaho’s first permanent settlement, 1860; Franklin Relic Hall, Idaho State Historical Society); Bear River Massacre National Historic Landmark (1863; estimated 250–350 Northwestern Shoshone killed)
Cultural Note
Napoleon Dynamite (2004) filmed entirely in Preston and Franklin County; Worm Creek Opera House; annual Napoleon Dynamite-themed events
Rent Control
Prohibited statewide (Idaho Code § 55-304)
Landlord Rating
5/10 — Stable agricultural community; growing young population; Logan metro integration provides employment stability; no local ordinances; modest rents; low crime
⚖️ Eviction At-a-Glance
Nonpayment Notice
3-Day Notice to Pay or Vacate
Lease Violation
3-Day Notice to Perform or Quit
No-Cause (Month-to-Month)
30-Day Written Notice
Court
Franklin County District Court — Magistrate Division (6th Judicial District)
Courthouse Address
39 W. Oneida, Room 2, Preston, ID 83263
Court Phone
Main: (208) 852-1090 — General: (208) 852-0877
Court Hours
Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Process Name
Unlawful Detainer
Post-Judgment
Writ of Possession; tenant has 72 hrs to vacate
Security Deposit
No cap; return within 21 days; 3× penalty for wrongful withholding
Avg Timeline
3–5 weeks typical
Franklin County Local Ordinances & Landlord Rules
Idaho state law governs landlord-tenant matters — no supplemental local ordinances in Franklin County
Category
Details
No Local Ordinances
Neither Franklin County nor any of its incorporated cities — Preston, Franklin, Clifton, Dayton, or Weston — has enacted local landlord-tenant ordinances supplementing Idaho state law. No rental registration, no source-of-income protections, no supplemental notice requirements. Idaho Code §§ 6-301 et seq. applies exclusively throughout the county.
Rent Control
Idaho Code § 55-304 prohibits rent control statewide. No jurisdiction in Franklin County may enact rent stabilization. Month-to-month rent increases require 30 days’ prior written notice before the rent due date.
Security Deposit
No statutory cap under Idaho law. Idaho Code § 6-321 requires return of the deposit or itemized written deductions within 21 days of tenancy end (up to 30 if lease specifies). Failure to comply forfeits the right to withhold and exposes the landlord to 3× damages plus attorney fees. Move-in and move-out documentation is essential regardless of rent level.
Logan Metro Integration
Franklin County is part of the Logan, Utah-Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area, which places it within a functioning labor market that extends south into Cache County, Utah. Many Franklin County residents commute south to Logan for employment at Utah State University, Cache Valley businesses, and Cache Valley’s manufacturing and retail economy. This cross-border integration provides employment diversity beyond what local Franklin County employers alone would support, stabilizing household incomes and rental demand in the county’s cities. Landlords should understand that a significant share of Franklin County tenants are Logan metro commuters — verifiable through employer documentation regardless of which state the employer is in.
LDS Community Culture
Franklin County is one of the most strongly LDS-affiliated communities in Idaho, with a cultural profile very similar to Cache County, Utah to the south. LDS community values — family orientation, sobriety, financial responsibility, and community cohesion — generally produce a stable and reliable tenant pool. Young families with children are the dominant household type. The county’s low crime rate and relatively low poverty rate reflect these community characteristics. Landlords should apply consistent fair housing screening criteria regardless of religious affiliation.
Agricultural Workforce
Cache Valley’s dairy and field crop industry provides agricultural employment across Franklin County. Dairy farm workers and field employees tend to have year-round employment (dairy), while crop workers may have seasonal income patterns. Franklin County’s Cache Valley dairy operations are generally long-established family farms with predictable annual income cycles. Landlords with agricultural worker tenants should request annual income documentation rather than relying solely on monthly pay stubs during peak seasons.
Idaho Code §§ 6-301 et seq. — statutes, notice requirements, and landlord rights that apply in Franklin County
⚡ Quick Overview
3
Days Notice (Nonpayment)
3
Days Notice (Violation)
15-30
Avg Total Days
$166
Filing Fee (Approx)
💰 Nonpayment of Rent
Notice Type3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit
Notice Period3 days
Tenant Can Cure?Yes
Days to Hearing5-12 days
Days to Writ3-5 days
Total Estimated Timeline15-30 days
Total Estimated Cost$200-$500
⚠️ Watch Out
Idaho is very landlord-friendly with fast timelines. 3-day notice is one of the shortest in the nation. No state-mandated cure period beyond the notice.
Serve the required notice based on the eviction reason (nonpayment or lease violation).
Wait for the notice period to expire. If tenant cures the issue (where allowed), the process stops.
File an eviction case with the Magistrate Court. Pay the filing fee (~$166).
Tenant is served with a summons and has the opportunity to respond.
Attend the court hearing and present your case.
If you prevail, obtain a writ of possession from the court.
Law enforcement executes the writ and removes the tenant if necessary.
⚠️ Disclaimer: This page provides general information about Idaho eviction laws and does not constitute legal advice.
Eviction procedures can vary by county and may change over time. Local jurisdictions may have additional requirements or tenant protections.
For specific legal guidance, consult a qualified Idaho attorney or local legal aid organization.
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⚠️ Disclaimer: These calculations are estimates based on state statutes and typical court timelines. Actual results vary by county, court backlog, and case specifics. Always verify current requirements with your local courthouse. This is not legal advice.
Underground Landlord
🏙️ Cities in Franklin County
Cache Valley communities — Idaho’s pioneer heartland
~14,194 residents; growing (high birth rates). Preston (county seat, ~5,591; Napoleon Dynamite (2004) filmed here). Franklin (~1,084; Idaho’s first permanent settlement, 1860). Cache Valley agriculture: dairy, wheat, barley, hay. Logan, UT metro integration. Strongly LDS community; young families. Bear River Massacre National Historic Landmark. Only Franklin County in U.S. not named for Benjamin Franklin. No local ordinances. 3-day nonpayment notice. No deposit cap; 21-day return. No rent control. 6th JD, 39 W. Oneida Rm 2, Preston, (208) 852-1090.
Franklin County
Screen Before You Sign
Best tenant profiles in Franklin County: Franklin County School District teachers and staff; county government employees; dairy operation workers with documented year-round wages; Logan metro commuters working at Utah State University or Cache Valley employers (verify employer letter); Preston School District staff; Bear River Valley agricultural operation employees. For young families (dominant demographic): verify income carefully — single-earner households with young children are common; 3x income-to-rent minimum is essential. Run Idaho court records. Apply fair housing criteria consistently.
Idaho’s First Settlement and Napoleon Dynamite Country: Landlording in Franklin County
On April 14, 1860, a group of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints led by Thomas S. Smart arrived at the confluence of the Cub River and established the settlement that would become Franklin — believing all the while that they were founding the seventh and northernmost community in Utah’s Cache Valley. They were wrong about the state, as a boundary survey twelve years later would reveal, but they were right about the land. The Cache Valley’s fertile alluvial floor, formed by sediments from ancient Lake Bonneville and watered by the Bear River and its tributaries, was productive ground for agriculture. Franklin became Idaho’s first permanent non-native settlement, and the county eventually established around it carries its name. Idaho Code §§ 6-301 et seq. governs all residential tenancies here today.
Franklin County was created in 1913 and named for Franklin D. Richards, an apostle of the LDS Church who played a significant role in the organization of the Cache Valley communities. It is, notably, the only Franklin County in the United States that is not named for Benjamin Franklin — a distinction that says something about the county’s deep roots in LDS pioneer history and the degree to which that history defines the community’s identity even 160 years later.
Preston and the Napoleon Dynamite Effect
Preston, the county seat, gained a degree of national and international cultural recognition that few rural Idaho towns of 5,000 people could have anticipated. In 2004, filmmaker Jared Hess — a Preston native — released Napoleon Dynamite, a low-budget independent comedy filmed entirely in Preston and the surrounding Franklin County landscape. The film depicted the awkward, sincere, and unmistakably Idaho-rural world of a high school student in a small LDS agricultural community with such specific cultural accuracy that it resonated far beyond Idaho. The film became one of the most widely quoted comedies of the 2000s, and Preston embraced its unexpected fame: the annual Napoleon Dynamite Festival, the Worm Creek Opera House, and Preston’s downtown bear markers to the filming locations have all become parts of the county’s identity. For landlords, the film is simply a cultural footnote — it generates some tourism but does not materially affect the rental market.
The Cache Valley Agricultural Economy
Franklin County’s agricultural economy is an extension of Cache Valley’s broader dairy and field crop industry, which stretches across the Utah-Idaho line with little concern for political boundaries. The valley’s rich soils produce dairy-quality alfalfa and hay, feed grains, sugar beets, barley, and wheat. Franklin County’s dairy farms are long-established family operations that contribute to the regional milk supply and associated processing industry. Agricultural employment in the county is predominantly year-round rather than seasonal — dairy requires daily attention 365 days a year — making farm-based tenants relatively stable candidates for year-round leases. The Bear River watershed provides the irrigation infrastructure that makes this agriculture possible, and the river’s management is a perennial policy concern for both Idaho and Utah agricultural interests downstream.
The Bear River Massacre
On the morning of January 29, 1863, U.S. Army soldiers under Colonel Patrick Connor attacked a winter encampment of Northwestern Shoshone people on the Bear River in what is now Franklin County. The attack was the deadliest military assault on Native Americans in the history of the American West — an estimated 250 to 350 men, women, and children were killed. The site, located a few miles northwest of Preston, is designated a National Historic Landmark and is now the site of ongoing memorialization efforts by the Northwestern Shoshone Nation. The massacre occurred less than three years after Franklin settlers established Idaho’s first permanent settlement — a juxtaposition that frames the full complexity of the region’s history.
Filing Evictions in Franklin County
The Franklin County District Court at 39 W. Oneida, Room 2, in Preston serves the Sixth Judicial District. Main: (208) 852-1090; General: (208) 852-0877. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Idaho’s 3-day notice period for nonpayment is among the most landlord-favorable in the Western United States. Following proper service of the notice and filing of the Unlawful Detainer complaint if the tenant fails to comply, the court process typically resolves within 3–5 weeks. Following a judgment, the tenant has 72 hours to vacate before the Franklin County Sheriff enforces a Writ of Possession.
Franklin County landlord-tenant matters governed by Idaho Code §§ 6-301 et seq. (evictions), §§ 6-320 and 6-321 (security deposits), and §§ 55-208 and 55-307 (tenancy and notice). Nonpayment: 3-day pay or vacate. Lease violation: 3-day perform or quit. No-cause termination (month-to-month): 30-day written notice. Security deposit: no cap; return within 21 days (up to 30 if lease specifies); 3x penalty for improper handling. No rent control (Idaho Code § 55-304). No local landlord-tenant ordinances. Eviction: Unlawful Detainer at Franklin County District Court (6th Judicial District), 39 W. Oneida, Room 2, Preston, ID 83263; Main (208) 852-1090; General (208) 852-0877; Mon–Fri 8am–5pm. 72-hour post-judgment vacate; Writ of Possession if tenant remains. Consult a licensed Idaho attorney before taking legal action. Last updated: May 2026.
Disclaimer: This page provides general information about landlord-tenant law in Franklin County, Idaho and is not legal advice. Laws change frequently. Always verify current requirements with a licensed Idaho attorney before taking legal action. Last updated: May 2026.
