New Research Shows Potential Impact of Nationwide Eviction Crisis
By Robert Davis
New research by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) shows the public costs of eviction-related homelessness could reach $129 billion if local governments fail to fund adequate rental assistance programs and protect renters from eviction.
All told, NLIHC estimates between 9.5 and 13.9 million renter households nationwide face increased risk of eviction, according to the study. If left unaddressed, the study says these evictions will both impact individual well-being and “further strain the budgets of public health and social service systems” of cities across the nation.
“A significant share of evicted renters is likely to need services, including shelter and emergency medical care, that require extensive financial resources,” the 13-page document concludes. “These costs are in addition to the well-documented personal costs of eviction on individuals and the costs to landlords of unpaid rent.”
To calculate the public cost, analysts compared five cost variables for renters facing eviction: shelter, inpatient medical treatment, emergency department usage, foster care, and juvenile delinquency. These costs were chosen because they best represent the costs to governments and public agencies, the study says.
Other costs such as longer-term housing assistance, the cost of child welfare investigations that precede foster care, or the costs of arrests and courts that involve juvenile delinquency cases were not included.
The study says the lack of funding available to renters is the catalytic driver of the potential impact. NLIHC’s estimates renters will owe between $26 billion and $29 billion in back rent by January 2021 because local eviction moratoriums do not protect renters from the accumulation of rent and late fees.
Meanwhile, federal CARES Act funding ended on July 25, and 30 percent of local assistance programs created to address housing insecurity have already run out of funds, the study found.
To provide adequate funding for renters facing eviction, NLIHC estimates Congress needs to apportion $100 billion solely for emergency rental funds to “not only help families avoid homelessness, but also help families who would otherwise double-up with others or be consistently on the edge of homelessness.”
In May, federal lawmakers introduced the Emergency Rental Assistance and Rental Market Stabilization Act, which would provide rental assistance funding within 45 days of its passage. The legislation has more than 200 cosponsors but has yet to move out of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. NLIHC says the Act should be included in the next federal stimulus package.
“Rental assistance is a better public investment and less expensive than the costs of evictions on renters, landlords, and the public,” according to the study.
Another aspect lawmakers need to address, according to NLIHC, is strengthening eviction protections for renters. The CDC’s moratorium is set to expire on December 31, as do several state orders if they have not already expired. With more than 11 million cases of COVID-19 nationwide and a rapidly approaching winter in our midst, NLIHC says now is the time for immediate intervention on behalf of renters.
“In addition to the cruelty of throwing people out of their homes during a pandemic, a wave of evictions would create significant downstream costs for public health and social service systems,” NLIHC’s 13-page report concludes.