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Tenants Are Vulnerable
In FY2022, while 86.6% of landlords had legal representation, only 11.5% of tenants who faced eviction had representation. When people come to court they are scared. The stakes are high. The eviction process moves quickly. And despite the efforts of judges and court staff, the high number of tenants without lawyers creates a process that can be unbalanced and unfair. Assistance Makes a Difference Legal help and access to the right resources before a court eviction can prevent families from homelessness, prevent illegal or unnecessary evictions, prevent displacement, and create a path to housing stability. Court Evictions on the Rise As court eviction filing increase to pre-COVID levels, the need to invest in housing stability must be a high priority. For decades there has been an extreme imbalance of legal representation between tenants and landlords when tenants are facing eviction. |
Trauma of Eviction
Evictions can be devastating. They cause depression and illness, spiral into job loss, send people into shelters, and are uprooting entire neighborhoods. A court eviction also results in a permanent "eviction record" which can unfairly affect someone's ability to find an apartment. Who Is Facing Eviction Research demonstrates that women, families of color, and households with children face eviction in disproportionate numbers. With rents on the rise, more households are just one step away from eviction. Support a statewide access to counsel program
Co-Sponsor S.864 & H.1731 Fact Sheet |
