Americans Face Major New Crisis
President Biden could have prevented this.
In 2022, the United States experienced a surge in evictions after implementing temporary bans and rental assistance programs for two years in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Eviction Lab, a research group at Princeton University, court filings increased by double or triple-digit percentages in 32 metropolitan areas. Additionally, 14 cities reported higher than pre-pandemic levels of filings, with Las Vegas having the highest number.
Currently, Las Vegas, Nevada, tops the list for evictions in the United States.
According to Newsweek, last year, the number of eviction cases in Las Vegas surged to over 57,000, which is significantly higher than the average annual figure of 36,500 filings in the region. The busiest court in Southern Nevada reported filings at a ten-year high in January and February of this year, but officials clarified that many tenants are facing multiple cases.
Between 2021 and 2022, Minneapolis and Austin, Texas experienced a fivefold increase in eviction filings, while Houston, Philadelphia, and New York saw more than a twofold increase, with only Houston surpassing pre-pandemic levels. According to legal aid organizations in some states, the numbers indicate that there will be no slowdown in evictions this year. Mary Kaczorek, the managing attorney for Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, said, “I keep expecting the numbers to decrease each month, but the last few months have actually seen an increase.”
The recent increase in evictions may have dire consequences for tenants. Aside from the immediate risk of homelessness, many landlords are unwilling to rent to individuals with prior evictions on their records, thereby limiting their housing options for years to come. Displaced families typically relocate to new areas, enroll their children in new schools, and travel farther to work. Furthermore, rent prices across the country have risen by an average of over $400 per month since early 2020. “We are currently facing a situation that is even more challenging than the one we encountered prior to the pandemic,” stated Daniel Grubbs-Donovan, a research specialist at Eviction Lab.
In addition to the housing crisis, Americans are experiencing financial strain in other areas. Record-breaking inflation caused by President Biden has led to a sharp increase in fuel and grocery prices, and utility companies are raising their rates. A report by LendingClub showed that as of January, over half of the country’s population was living from one paycheck to the next. Furthermore, in the wake of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in March, a monthly survey of economists conducted by Bloomberg revealed that almost two-thirds of them believed that a recession was likely to occur within the next year.
Overall the sad truth about this year is that things do not look like they will be getting any better. President Biden and the Democrats don’t know how to fix these issues and it’s hurting the most vulnerable of Americans.
