Eviction filings are far above pre-pandemic levels in many cities across the country as pandemic relief disappears and inflation causes rents to spike
Maria Jackson, right, moves into a room at a home with the help of friend David Mcfarlan Monday, May 8, 2023, in Las Vegas. Jackson, a longtime massage therapist, lost her customers when the pandemic triggered a statewide shutdown in March 2020 and was evicted from her apartment earlier this year.
After a lull during the pandemic, eviction filings by landlords have come roaring back, driven by rising rents and a long-running shortage of affordable housing. Most low-income tenants can no longer count on pandemic resources that had kept them housed, and many are finding it hard to recover because they haven't found steady work or their wages haven't kept pace with the rising cost of rent, food and other necessities.
At the same time, rent prices nationwide are up about 5% from a year ago and 30.5% above 2019, according to the real estate company Zillow. There are few places for displaced tenants to go, with the National Low Income Housing Coalition estimating a 7.3 million shortfall of affordable units nationwide.a safety net created during the pandemicThe federal government, as well as many states and localities, issued moratoriums during the pandemic that put evictions on hold; most have now ended.
Housing advocates had hoped the Democrat-controlled state Legislature would pass a bill requiring landlords to provide justification for evicting tenants and limit rent increases to 3% or 1.5 times inflation. But it was excluded from the state budget and lawmakers failed to pass it before the legislative session ended this month.
“It’s a huge mistake to miss our shot here,” said Ben Martin, a research director at nonprofit Texas Housers. “If we don’t address it, now, the crisis is going to get worse.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
50 Greatest Rap Groups of All Time: Nos. 50-21Clipse (NoMalice757 & PUSHA_T) are Billboard's No. 30 Greatest Rap Group of All Time. 🔥 See Nos. 50-21 here:
Read more »
Gabrielle Union Talks Backlash Over Splitting '50-50' With Dwyane WadeThe actress previously shared that she and her husband split bills evenly in their household, which received mixed reactions.
Read more »
Congress’ Rail Safety Act has little to do about rail safety, more to do about special interestsOpinion: Congress’ Rail Safety Act has little to do about rail safety, more to do about special interests
Read more »
Eviction filings are 50% higher than they were pre-pandemic in some cities as rents riseEviction filings are far above pre-pandemic levels in many cities across the country as pandemic relief disappears and inflation causes rents to spike. According to the latest data from the Eviction Lab, filings in some cities are running as much as 50% above levels seen prior to the pandemic. Those numbers are especially stark, given that many tenants experienced a reprieve during the pandemic when eviction moratoriums were in place and billions of dollars in federal rental assistance was plentiful. Most of the moratoriums are now gone and many of the larger cities have exhausted their rental assistance.
Read more »
Rising rents and diminishing aid are fueling a sharp increase in evictions in many US citiesEviction filings are far above pre-pandemic levels in many cities across the country as pandemic relief disappears and inflation causes rents to spike. According to the latest data from the Eviction Lab, filings in some cities are running as much as 50% above levels seen prior to the pandemic. Those numbers are especially stark, given that many tenants experienced a reprieve during the pandemic when eviction moratoriums were in place and billions of dollars in federal rental assistance was plentiful. Most of the moratoriums are now gone and many of the larger cities have exhausted their rental assistance.
Read more »
What we're buying from Soho Home's 50% off saleFrom cushions and throws to lamps and tableware, now's a prime time to shop
Read more »