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homes on August 26, with a Supreme Court ruling ending a national moratorium on eviction. The federal stay on evictions was put in place during the coronavirus pandemic to protect renters falling behind on monthly payments and therefore in danger of needing to stay at homeless shelters or with friends or relatives. This pandemic response was designed to keep tenants in their housing, prevent overcrowding in shelters and homes, and reduce the spread of COVID-19. In early August, 7.9 million renter households reported being in arrears, with 3.5 million saying they were at risk of eviction within two months. The large number of tenants with rental debt and susceptible to displacement underscores the importance of protecting vulnerable renters during the pandemic. As academic experts on homelessness and low-income housing at the University of Washington, we studied the housing experiences of lowincome renters during the coronavirus pandemic. Our research found that even when a ban on evictions was in place, landlords still had ways to force, or at least encourage, renters to leave. Indeed, these so-called “informal evictions” – in which landlords harass tenants out of their homes – may even have increased as a result of the stay on evictions. Different levels of protection The federal eviction moratorium imposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in September 2020 – along with similar actions by 43 states and dozens of cities and counties – undoubtedly saved many families from being evicted. Analysis of court records has found these moratoriums prevented millions of eviction fi lings during the pandemic. Each moratorium gave tenants different levels of protection. Some prevented landlords from fi ling eviction lawsuits in housing court, while others suspended only the fi nal stage of eviction: the removal of tenants and their possessions by law enforcement. Forced out of homes We studied the experiences of low-income renters between October 2020 and February 2021 in the state of Washington, considered to have one of the strongest eviction moratoriums in the country. Put in place on March 18, 2020, it prohibited landlords from fi ling, or threatening to fi le, evictions for unpaid rent – and banned rent increases and late fees. Despite these protections, we found that some low-income renters were still being forced out of their homes, outside the formal legal process. Landlords used a variety of tactics that put pressure on tenants to leave, such as harassing tenants through verbal abuse or making repeated requests to inspect or enter the rental unit, often without proper notice. Other landlords refused to make necessary repairs or, conversely, initiated noncrucial construction work on the unit, disrupting things while the tenant was living there. Such practices can put low-income tenants in an unenviable position: Either they leave their home or they continue to face nuisances and harassment from their landlord. Those who opt to remain may fi nd themselves facing even more severe pressure. Illicit eviction tactics The moratorium on evictions offered legal cover to tenants who refused their landlord’s order to leave. Tenants could contact the Washington State Attorney General’s Offi ce for assistance in preventing an unlawful eviction. However, there are no substantive consequences for landlords who tell tenants to vacate their rental units – prosecutions are very rare. Tactics such as changing front door locks to prevent tenant access and removing tenants’ possessions are illegal, but many renters don’t have the knowledge or resources to fi ght violations in a housing court and end up deciding to leave, even though they have the legal right to stay. We spoke with an older couple who had rented from the same landlord for more than a decade. During the early months of the pandemic, they could manage to make only partial, but consistent, rent payments. In June 2020 – two weeks after asking for an extension on the next month’s rent – they came home to fi nd that their landlord had changed the locks on their front door without informing them. He then refused to allow the couple to retrieve their possessions, leaving them to sleep in their car until they found a new place to live. A low-income single mother with two children told us her landlord refused to fi x a leaking roof that caused a severe problem with black mold. She believed the refusal was a result of her having missed multiple months of rent. Another tenant we interviewed was visited by their landlord, sometimes with only 20 minutes’ notice, more than a dozen times in a few weeks shortly after they lost their job and could no longer pay full rent. In all, with support from Violet Lavatai, executive director of the Tenants Union of Washington State, we spoke to 25 low-income tenants and analyzed 410 survey responses. All of our respondents had reached out to a tenants’ rights hotline at least once in the past few years. In 2017, a national study estimated that 4.5 percent of all renters faced an informal eviction that year. For every We’re All Losing the Eviction Crisis Debate By Dan Denton I had a recent discussion with a local union offi cial about the looming eviction crisis in the U.S. He was belly-aching that most union factories in the area have had staffi ng issues during the pandemic. “There are jobs available. Can’t pay your rent, go get a job. They just don’t want to work,” he said. This is a discussion heard every day in America. I hear so many negative opinions about panhandling, poverty, homelessness, addiction and evictions that my heart has sometimes grown numb to it. I work hard to not be numb-hearted, and I couldn’t let the unnamed offi cial’s remarks fl y without some pushback. I explained that, in my early 20s, I injured my knee playing in a pick-up football game. I had a temporary job with no health insurance or paid sick leave. I couldn’t walk much for 10 days. All my treatment came from a hospital emergency room. I lost my temp job, went three weeks without a paycheck, got evicted from my one bedroom apartment, and over the next few months I couch surfed, even spending a few nights sleeping in my car. After I shared some of my personal, anecdotal stories about eviction, I launched into some numbers with the unnamed offi cial. The average cost of rent in the U.S. has nearly doubled since 2000, and since the housing crisis and Great Recession, the amount of renters in America has increased by 25 percent. I continued to hammer my union brother with more factoids. Twenty million renters suffered Covid-19 related job and income losses. Food pantries have seen a 2,000 one formal eviction there were up to 5.5 informal evictions. Our research suggests that the stays on evictions during the pandemic might actually be driving an increase in informal evictions. Results of our survey indicate that informal evictions more than doubled during the pandemic compared with the prior year. Vulnerable to coercive landlords The Supreme Court’s decision to block the federal eviction moratorium leaves millions of renters in states that have no similar protection in place at risk of eviction, especially those who have not yet received rental assistance. Even for renters who are protected by state moratoriums, these protections ended in late September. Our research suggests that stays of evictions alone are not the solution to housing insecurity. Tenants who fi nd themselves unable to pay rent are still vulnerable to the unlawful tactics of landlords determined to force them out. The imposition of clear penalties for illicit evictions and greater support for low-income tenants could help many more low-income tenants stay in their homes. Matthew Fowle is an academic in public policy and governance at the University of Washington. Rachel Fyall is associate professor of public policy and governance at the University of Washington. percent increase in demand. People are hurting. And I hit him with the most staggering statistic I’ve seen in the middle of this whole messy pandemic: 90 percent of the $46.5 billion that the federal government earmarked for rent relief during the pandemic has gone unspent due to local and state government ineptitude, and their bias towards the poor. Like all hearty, passionate debates, no one won, and the people losing are the ones who don’t get a voice in the discussion. My unnamed, union offi cial friend shrugged his shoulders and said, “Well, we gotta do something.” He’s right. We do. Nearly 30 million Americans are on the verge of eviction. The federal eviction moratorium was recently struck down by the Supreme Court, leaving moratoriums in the hands of state and local governments. Ohio does not have an eviction ban. Most of those that are going to be evicted are going to “double up,” by moving in with friends and family. Some will wind up in shelters or on the streets. An eviction stays on your fi nancial record for seven years, adding another obstacle for fi nding a new place to rent. An eviction adds to the challenge of getting to work, or getting your children to school. An eviction drastically increases stress, anxiety, and rates of depression and suicidal ideation. That’s the only point I conceded to my unnamed, and unfeeling union brother; we have to do something. If only we could do more than debate amongst each other. If only we could fi nd a way to get that $40 billion dispersed. If only we could fi nd a way to keep our hearts from growing numb. Dan Denton UAW Chief Steward & Author of $100-A-Week Motel Page 5

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