Cameron Parish is Louisiana’s southernmost and most hurricane-exposed parish — a vast, flat coastal parish of approximately 6,800 people that stretches from the edge of Calcasieu Parish south to the Gulf of Mexico, covering more than 1,400 square miles of coastal marsh, cheniere ridges, and barrier islands. The parish seat of Cameron sits directly on the Gulf Coast at the mouth of the Calcasieu Ship Channel, and the entire parish lies within a few feet of sea level. Cameron Parish has been struck or severely impacted by more named hurricanes than any other Louisiana parish, including Hurricane Audrey (1957), Hurricane Rita (2005), Hurricane Ike (2008), and Hurricane Laura (2020), which made its historic Category 4 landfall directly over Cameron. The parish’s permanent population has declined significantly since the mid-20th century as repeated storm devastation has made year-round coastal habitation increasingly difficult for all but the most committed residents.
The Cameron Parish economy is built on offshore oil and gas production, commercial fishing, trapping, and the LNG export terminals under development along the Calcasieu Ship Channel — including the Venture Global Calcasieu Pass terminal, which represents one of the largest energy infrastructure investments in American history. The rental market in Cameron Parish is among Louisiana’s most unusual: very small permanent population, significant transient worker housing demand from LNG construction and energy sector employees, and a coastal environment where conventional residential property management must account for hurricane and flood risk as a fundamental baseline rather than an exceptional concern.
No parish-level rental license required. Louisiana has no statewide landlord licensing statute. Cameron Parish has no incorporated municipalities with local rental codes. Verify with the Cameron Parish Police Jury for any applicable local ordinances.
Rent Control
None. Louisiana has no statewide rent control and Cameron Parish has no local rent control ordinance. Lessors may raise rent freely at lease renewal with proper notice.
Security Deposit
Capped at 2 months’ rent (R.S. 9:3251). Must be returned with itemized deductions within 30 days of lease termination or surrender, whichever is later (R.S. 9:3252). Permissible deductions: unpaid rent, damage beyond normal wear and tear, unpaid utilities owed by lessee.
Eviction Court — 38th Judicial District
All Cameron Parish eviction proceedings are filed in the 38th Judicial District Court, Cameron Parish Courthouse, 119 Smith Circle, Cameron, LA 70631. Phone: (337) 775-5316. Hours: Monday–Friday 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Note: The Cameron Parish Courthouse has been rebuilt following hurricane damage. Confirm current operating status and address with the clerk before filing.
Notice to Vacate
Written 5-day notice to vacate required before filing for eviction (CCP Art. 4701–4703). Serve personally, by domiciliary service, or by door-posting plus first class mail. Retain all service documentation.
Month-to-Month Termination
10-day written notice required to terminate a month-to-month lease (CC Art. 2687, 2728). Notice must be given at least 10 days before the end of the monthly rental period.
Tacit Reconduction
Accepting rent after a fixed-term lease expires automatically creates a new month-to-month tenancy (CC Art. 2686). Give written notice before lease expiration if renewal is not intended.
No Statutory Cure Period
Louisiana provides no statutory cure period for lease violations. After the 5-day notice expires, the lessor may file a Rule to Show Cause immediately.
⚠️ Hurricane Risk — Mandatory Lease Provisions
Cameron Parish is the most hurricane-exposed parish in Louisiana. Every lease for property in Cameron Parish should include: (1) flood zone disclosure — verify current FEMA flood map status at msc.fema.gov; virtually every property in Cameron Parish is in a Special Flood Hazard Area; (2) mandatory renter’s insurance covering personal property; (3) explicit tenant obligation to comply with all mandatory evacuation orders; (4) storm damage reporting requirements directing immediate notification to the lessor; (5) acknowledgment that the property may be inaccessible for extended periods following a hurricane. Carry separate flood insurance on the structure — standard policies never cover flood damage. Louisiana CC Art. 2696: total destruction of the leased premises terminates the lease automatically.
LNG & Energy Sector Employment
The Venture Global Calcasieu Pass LNG terminal and related energy infrastructure projects along the Calcasieu Ship Channel represent massive construction and operational employment. LNG construction workers may be transient employees earning project-scale wages for the duration of a specific construction phase. Screen these applicants for project longevity: confirm current employer, project expected completion date, and whether local permanent employment is anticipated. Prior-year tax returns alongside recent pay stubs provide a more reliable annual income picture than a single stub from a high-wage project period.
Oil & Gas / Commercial Fishing
Offshore oil and gas workers based in Cameron Parish work rotation schedules with variable overtime. Use three months of pay stubs averaged. Commercial fishing income is seasonal and highly variable — request prior-year tax returns or 12 months of bank statements for commercial fishing households.
Post-Hurricane Lease Interruption
When a hurricane causes total destruction of the leased premises, the lease terminates by operation of Louisiana law (CC Art. 2696). When premises are partially damaged, the lessee may seek rent reduction proportional to diminished use, or may terminate if the damage is substantial. Landlords should carry flood and wind insurance with limits sufficient to cover full replacement cost and potential loss of rental income during reconstruction.
Self-Help Eviction
Prohibited. Lessors may not take possession by any means other than lawful judicial process (CCP Art. 4736). Lockouts, utility shutoffs, or removal of tenant belongings without a court order expose the lessor to liability for damages and attorney fees.
Tenant Can Cure?No - Louisiana notices are unconditional. No right to cure by paying rent. However, tenant can negotiate with landlord. Notice can be waived entirely in lease.
Days to Hearing2-7 days
Days to Writ1-3 days
Total Estimated Timeline14-30 days
Total Estimated Cost$100-$400
⚠️ Watch Out
VERY landlord-friendly state. 5-day notice is UNCONDITIONAL - no cure right, tenant must vacate. Notice can be WAIVED in lease - if waived, landlord can file immediately without any notice. No grace period. No statewide late fee cap. No security deposit cap. Tenant gets only 24 hours to appeal after judgment. Lease term notice: 10-day for month-to-month, 30-day for year lease. Do not count weekends/holidays in 5-day period.
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 Justice of the Peace Court / City Court / District Court. Pay the filing fee (~$50-150).
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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana attorney or local legal aid organization.
🔍 Reduce Your Risk Before Signing a Lease:
Louisiana landlords who screen tenants carefully before signing a lease significantly
reduce their risk of ending up in eviction court. Understanding
tenant screening in Louisiana —
including background checks, credit history, income verification, and rental references — is one of the most
cost-effective steps you can take to protect your rental property. Before you ever need Louisiana's
eviction process, proper tenant screening can help
you identify red flags early and avoid problem tenancies altogether.
Ready to File?
Generate Louisiana-Compliant Legal Documents
AI-generated, state-specific eviction notices, pay-or-quit letters, lease termination documents, and more — pre-filled with your tenant's information and built to Louisiana requirements.
Select your state, eviction reason, and the date you plan to serve notice. We'll calculate your earliest filing date and key milestones.
⚠️ 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
🏘️ Communities & Screening Tips
Key communities: Cameron, Hackberry, Grand Lake, Johnson Bayou.
Cameron market: Louisiana’s most hurricane-exposed parish. Every lease must include flood zone disclosure, mandatory renter’s insurance, and evacuation compliance provisions. LNG construction workers screen for project longevity. Offshore oil rotation workers use 3-month averaging. Commercial fishing households need full-year income documentation.
Background checks, eviction history, credit reports — get the full picture before handing over the keys.
Cameron Parish Louisiana Landlord-Tenant Law: A Guide for Rental Property Owners on Louisiana’s Gulf Coast
Cameron Parish is like no other parish in Louisiana — and no other place in the country quite like it either. A vast coastal marsh parish of approximately 1,400 square miles with a permanent population of only about 6,800 people, Cameron sits at the edge of the continent where the Gulf of Mexico meets the Louisiana coastal prairie, and it has been shaped and reshaped repeatedly by the hurricanes that have swept across it over the past century. Hurricane Audrey in 1957 killed more than 400 people in the parish. Hurricane Rita in 2005 flooded the entire parish and destroyed most of its structures. Hurricane Ike in 2008 caused additional devastation before the parish had fully recovered from Rita. And Hurricane Laura in 2020 made a direct Category 4 landfall over the town of Cameron with a storm surge that inundated much of the parish and winds that flattened what the surge didn’t flood. That history is not background information for landlords in Cameron Parish — it is the central operating reality of property ownership here.
Hurricane Risk: The Non-Negotiable Foundation of Every Cameron Parish Lease
Every residential lease in Cameron Parish must be drafted with hurricane risk as a foundational consideration, not an afterthought. The minimum provisions every Cameron Parish lease should contain are: explicit flood zone disclosure stating the property’s FEMA flood zone designation (virtually every property in the parish is in a Special Flood Hazard Area — verify at msc.fema.gov before signing any new lease); a mandatory renter’s insurance requirement covering the tenant’s personal property; an explicit tenant obligation to comply with all mandatory evacuation orders issued by parish or state authorities; a storm damage reporting requirement obligating the tenant to notify the lessor immediately of any storm or water damage discovered; and an acknowledgment that the property may be inaccessible and the lease suspended or terminated in the event of major storm damage.
Landlords must carry separate flood insurance on the structure — this is non-negotiable in Cameron Parish. Standard homeowner’s and landlord policies have never covered flood damage and never will. National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) coverage through FEMA or private flood insurance is essential. Coverage limits should reflect full replacement cost of the structure, and loss-of-rents coverage during reconstruction should be included. Louisiana Civil Code Article 2696 governs total and partial destruction: if the leased property is totally destroyed by hurricane or flood, the lease terminates by operation of law. If partially damaged, the tenant is entitled to a proportional rent reduction or may terminate the lease if the damage substantially impairs use of the premises.
LNG, Offshore Energy, and the Cameron Parish Workforce
Cameron Parish is home to the Venture Global Calcasieu Pass LNG terminal — one of the first large-scale LNG export facilities to reach commercial operation on the U.S. Gulf Coast — along with additional LNG and energy infrastructure projects in various stages of development along the Calcasieu Ship Channel. These projects have brought significant construction employment to the area and will bring operational employment as facilities come online. LNG construction workers are a specific screening category: they may earn very high wages for the duration of a major construction phase, but that income is tied to a specific project with a defined end date. Screen LNG construction worker applicants by requesting both recent pay stubs and prior-year tax returns to establish baseline income history, confirming the expected project duration and their continued role in it, and assessing whether they have plans for continued local employment after the construction phase ends. An applicant planning to move on when their construction contract concludes is a higher turnover risk than one with permanent operational employment at a completed facility.
Offshore oil and gas workers based in Cameron Parish work on rotation schedules with inherently variable pay stubs. Use three months of stubs averaged for these applicants. Commercial fishing income — from shrimp, crab, and finfish operations that have been conducted in Cameron Parish waters for generations — is seasonal and subject to both market prices and regulatory changes. Request prior-year tax returns or 12 months of bank statements for commercial fishing household applicants.
Louisiana Law and the Eviction Process in Cameron Parish
All Cameron Parish evictions are filed in the 38th Judicial District Court, Cameron Parish Courthouse, 119 Smith Circle, Cameron, LA 70631, phone (337) 775-5316. Given the parish’s repeated hurricane experience, confirm current courthouse operating status with the clerk before filing — the Cameron Parish Courthouse has been rebuilt following storm damage. Begin with a 5-day written notice to vacate for nonpayment or lease violation, properly served per CCP Art. 4704. After expiration, file a Rule to Show Cause. The court schedules a hearing, serves the rule at least 2 days before, and the judge rules. If the lessor prevails, the lessee has 24 hours to vacate before the Cameron Parish Sheriff enforces a writ of possession. Month-to-month leases require 10-day written notice to terminate. Security deposits are capped at 2 months’ rent and must be returned with itemized deductions within 30 days.
This guide is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Flood zone status should be independently verified using current FEMA flood maps. Louisiana landlord-tenant law is governed by the Civil Code. Consult a licensed Louisiana attorney or contact the 38th Judicial District Court at (337) 775-5316 for guidance. Last updated: March 2026.
⚠️ Legal Disclaimer: This page is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Flood zone status must be independently verified using current FEMA flood maps. Louisiana landlord-tenant law is governed by the Civil Code. Flood and wind insurance are essential for all Cameron Parish properties — consult an insurance professional and a licensed Louisiana attorney. Last updated: March 2026.
