New Report Puts Back Due Rent in the Rears for Tens of Billions of Dollars
2020 is on its way out and many have joked about needing a reboot. The internet is teeming with memes about how we don’t need another hour/minute/second of this pandemic-ridden year.
It has been presumed that the end of the year will mark something celebratory for the vast majority of Americans, as if it will be an off switch or a restart button. But don’t be so quick to assume that what lies ahead of us is better. That’s not to put a damper on the optimism. Rather, it is meant to inspire a much-needed sense of urgency.
Maya Angelou once said, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
There could not be a more applicable expression for what has unfolded before us during this tumultuous time. At the beginning of the pandemic, there were those who truly believed that the distancing, the loss of work hours, the stalling of education, the panic buying, the price gauging, and the overall uncertainty that suddenly swept over everything would only last a couple of weeks.
Weeks passed. Then months passed. By the time we crossed the six-month mark, we knew better.
In terms of housing advocacy, the same sentiment applies.
There was a time when we truly believed that moratoriums would hold, that rental assistance would be supplied, and that hard-working Americans would not be put out on the streets to wade through the wastelands of a quarantined world.
Now, 10 months into a devastated economy, we must accept the truth. Moratoriums have already expired once. Many landlords have evicted families in spite of these laws. Rent relief is just a whisper in the background behind the microphones of protest and presidential debate.
No long-term solutions have been presented for the rent-burdened and recently unemployed/underemployed. Without them, homelessness will rise and from it, the virus will become even more widespread.
As Presidential candidate Joe Biden pointed out in regards to the pandemic, “There’s not another serious scientist in the world who says it’s going to be over soon.”
So, in the spirit of acceptance, we must work toward creating feasible solutions because a new report from STOUT shows that somewhere between 23 million and 34 million individuals will be at risk for eviction in 2021. That’s nothing to celebrate.
A Look at the Most Recent Report on Rent: The Astronomical Rent Shortfall is Estimated to Peak at $25-$34 Billion
This collective summary was prepared for the National Council of State Housing Agencies at the end of September this year. Unlike previously released reports, the in-depth analysis does take into account partial payments made by renters with access to credit or other capital. It does not, however, calculate any possible interest, penalties, or fees (late fees, legal fees, or otherwise). That number reflects only the back rent itself as it applies to the approximately 10-14 million renter households who have fallen upon hard times.
While it might not seem imaginable to have this much money owed in back rent, consider the following:
The rent shortfall as it stands right now in early November is already estimated to be more than $12.2 billion. Some experts mark it as high as $16.7 billion. As is usually the case, low-income families are disproportionately at risk for eviction filings. However, all of us will pay a hefty price if tens of millions of people wind up living on the streets.
Homelessness Hurts. It Hurts Individuals and Communities Alike.
Whether you’re an essential employee or a recently laid off worker, whether you live in a flourishing suburb, a bustling city, or a rolling rural estate, a spike in homelessness will hurt you and your entire community on multiple different levels.
Firstly, homelessness brings about economic instability by draining community resources and taxpayer dollars.
Secondly, homelessness creates health hazards that put a massive strain on the hospitals already burdened by the COVID-19 crisis.
Thirdly, homelessness increases the spread of all infectious disease. It creates communities of people whose immune systems have been weakened by enduring unfavorable living conditions. Then it leaves them in cramped quarters with few (if any) sanitization options and poor ventilation.
Lastly, and importantly, homelessness can happen to you.
If you thought 2020 was a rough year because you had to wear a mask and stand on little pictures of feet at the grocery store, imagine how devastated you’d be if you wound up homeless.
If we allow corporate interests to overshadow everyday people’s rights, the first round of mass evictions will be just that – the first. This is why these figures matter. This is why we advocate for rental assistance and rent relief in troubled times.
The most recently published data strongly suggests that national economic recovery is stalling. This creates a U-shaped pattern that falls short of early, more optimistic expectations. According to an Apartment List survey that was cited in the report, 66% of renter households fear eviction looming in the next six months due to late payments or the inability to pay their rent at all.
Please talk to your representatives regarding this troubling report, which emerges as even more evidence that we need #RentReliefNow.
