Photo via Tuko News
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Evictions in the United States are on the rise. Three-quarters of the cities tracked by the Eviction Lab—a Princeton University organization that compiles and publishes eviction data in the United States—have had an increase in evictions in the last two years.
Some cities, including New York City, have drastically reduced the number of evictions to well below their pre-COVID average despite being historical epicenters for housing crises. Other municipalities, typically seen as having plentiful and low-cost housing, including Gainesville, Florida; Las Vegas; Houston; Phoenix; Nashville, Tennessee; and Fort Worth, Texas, have seen eviction rates skyrocket since the COVID pandemic.
During the pandemic, many states joined forces with local and federal institutions to enact protections that lessened the financial burden on renters due to lockdowns and safety-related closures. These policies drastically reduced evictions, with the Eviction Lab citing a decrease of 57.6% in eviction filings that they attributed to COVID-era renter protections.
Unfortunately, many cities have recently terminated these favorable renter laws. This legislation was necessary to protect renters from hasty evictions. The consequences were swift: over a year ago, Los Angeles’ local COVID emergency order expired, which meant that starting on February 1, 2023, all tenants had to pay their entire month’s rent or risk immediate eviction.
National eviction filings relative to historical average
With many of these renter protections—which had tormented Republican lawmakers since their implementation—coming to an end, evictions across the country have seen sharp increases.
One city generating an uncharacteristically high number of eviction notices is Phoenix, Arizona, deemed the “Eviction Capital” by The Wall Street Journal. In January 2024, Maricopa County, home to Phoenix, saw a record-breaking number of eviction filings, with over 8,000 cases in just one month—the county’s highest monthly count ever recorded. With an average of 267 evictions a day, this uptick is part of a more significant trend, with the city recording over 65,000 eviction filings in the first nine months of 2024—a 20-year record for “The Grand Canyon State.”
The rise in evictions is not unique to Arizona, and the pressures that force renters to miss their monthly payments are similar across the nation. Post-pandemic rental hikes, a byproduct of a hot national housing market and the end of rental protections, have made housing less affordable for renters. Half of American renter households spend over 30% of their annual income on housing, well above the old-age heuristic that housing costs should not exceed 20%.
Population growth is also driving the rental squeeze in many American cities. A national urban exodus trend is driving an already-exacerbated housing shortage. This reality is causing cities historically considered safe havens to grapple with severe housing access inequities. Stagnant wages and decreased government assistance are also compounding the burden felt by renters.
The circumstances in Phoenix are particularly dire. The city’s rental prices rose 35% between 2019 and 2023, well outpacing inflation and increasing faster than its affordable housing infrastructure can handle.
Even worse, Phoenix’s eviction system is a well-oiled machine; evictions are sometimes filed within 5 days of a missed rental payment. Such favorable landlord legislation has made the city a hotspot for large real estate investors to purchase apartment properties.
The circumstances in Phoenix have created an environment catered to landlords. When an individual does not pay rent, these large investors become skeptical of the tenant’s future ability to make payments. As a result, landlords utilize Arizona’s favorable landlord laws to quickly file and evict tenants, thus allowing a new tenant who can hopefully make the monthly payments to move in. This practice is rooted in profit squeezing; landlords are becoming less willing to work with tenants because evictions are so accessible.
The issue of eviction increases is not just another example of market failures exacerbated by landlord-favorable legislation. In Phoenix, increased evictions raise serious human rights concerns due to the city’s extreme heat.
From June to July 2023, the city experienced 31 consecutive days above 110 degrees, breaking the previous record set in 1974 for 18 consecutive days over 110. The city hit another record this summer: 113 consecutive days over 100 degrees. Such sustained temperatures strain public infrastructure and regularly cause death. In 2023, for example, heat-related deaths hit a record high of 645 people, with many of the deaths occurring during a two-to-three-week stretch in July.
These heat records are not anomalies either. For the last 6 years, Maricopa County has set a new heat record annually. Phoenicians’ new normal is hotter, deadlier summers.
The record-setting heat, coupled with an increase in evictions, raises serious safety and ethical concerns. An uptick in evictions at certain times of the year could very likely contribute to an increase in heat-related deaths. If a family is thrown out of their home during peak summer time in Phoenix, they could be left with no viable housing alternatives (7,903 evictions occurred in July this year). These evicted families, particularly those who are left unhoused, become highly susceptible to heat-induced illness.
Individuals are advised by the National Weather Service to avoid outdoor activity once temperatures reach 105 degrees. Outdoor activity at that temperature can result in sunstroke, heat cramps, and heat stroke, with the government deeming these consequences “likely” during sustained exposure. In July, Phoenix regularly averages temperatures above 105 degrees, with July 2024 boasting an average temperature of 107 degrees.
These temperatures are alarming, irrespective of the eviction epidemic in the city. However, the intersectionality of these two crises raises more significant concerns about the safety of those evicted in Phoenix.
It is grossly irresponsible to be removing individuals from their residences during the summer months in Arizona. In a city where deathly high temperatures are the norm, it is the local government’s responsibility to protect the safety of renters. People can not be kicked to the curb in 119-degree heat.
These eviction practices become even more concerning when considering the reality that the most at-risk individuals for eviction are more likely to have existing poor health conditions and less likely to have medical insurance. Renters facing eviction often work in low-paying, exploitative industries such as hospitality, manufacturing and construction. These occupations often do not offer health insurance—only 35% of restaurants and bars nationwide offer coverage. The challenging conditions faced by these vulnerable populations are intensified by Phoenix’s lenient eviction laws, becoming even more dangerous when combined with extreme heat.
Landlords looking to squeeze higher profits by streamlining the eviction process and refusing to work with tenants who cannot make timely payments are risking the lives of renters. Local officials, judges, landlords, and real estate investors are obligated to address this crisis. Renters should not lose their homes over a few days delay in payment, especially when being outdoors poses life-threatening risks. Profits should not come before personal safety, yet the relentless drive for higher returns is still endangering the lives of vulnerable communities.
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This article was edited by Herman Singh and Katherine Hohman.
