Why eviction filings are rising across Maricopa County
Nov 20, 2024, 4:35 AM | Updated: 7:08 am
A man is seen gathering his belongings after being evicted from a Phoenix residence. (File Photo by Frederic C.J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)
(File Photo by Frederic C.J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)
PHOENIX — New eviction filing data marked October as one of the top ten months in Maricopa County’s history in terms of eviction filings.
October saw a total of 7,688 eviction cases filed, a number that paints a stark picture of the Valley’s eviction crisis.
Not all eviction filings end with people being pushed out of their homes, but the numbers reflect a troubling trend, according to Drew Schaffer, the director of the William E. Morris Institute for Justice.
“Phoenix has become one of the eviction capitals of the United States of America over the last few years,” Schaffer told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News on Tuesday.
What could solve the eviction crisis in Maricopa County?
Many evictions are unnecessary and preventable, he added.
Reforming the eviction process is one of many solutions Schaffer foresees for a better future.
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Another is expanding the Valley’s affordable housing portfolio.
“The availability of affordable housing for low-income renters — and, really, for all Arizona renters — has reached an incredible level of scarcity,” Schaffer said. “That market pressure is causing a lot of housing instability and financial problems for vulnerable renters.”
It’s a complex problem with many exacerbating factors.
In addition to an expanded housing supply, Schaffer also wants to see out-of-control rent spikes reined in.
“Some of the rent increases that we’ve seen are unnatural,” he said.
In fact, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a lawsuit in February accusing nine landlords and a software company called RealPage of conspiring to raise rents on hundreds of thousands of residents in the Phoenix and Tucson areas.
Over 90% of eviction cases filed in the last year are due to allegedly unpaid rent, he added.
Could process reform help Arizona’s housing problems?
The William E. Morris Institute for Justice has studied the eviction crisis for decades.
“We’ve observed many eviction proceedings over the course of the last year,” Schaffer said. “One key observation that we’ve made is that the rents that we’re seeing in these eviction cases, over 90% of which are filed due to allegedly unpaid rent, are much higher than we’ve seen it any time in history.”
He said alleged rent defaults can total over $3,000 per case in many instances.
“We need process reform,” Schaffer said. “We have a very fast legal eviction process in Arizona. One of the fastest in the country. That process has harmful effects on the people that experience eviction.”
