https://www.lascinti.org/wp-content/uploads/Eviction-Report_Final.pdf
Executive Summary
The lack of affordable housing throughout our nation is the root of several social problems, including poverty, homelessness, and educational and health disparities. Furthermore, the United States isamidst an eviction epidemic—millions of families are evicted each year. Evictions occur when landlords initiate the involuntary moves of their tenants formally through an eviction court or informally through other means. This report presents an analysis of formal eviction filings in Hamilton County, Ohio from four consecutive years, 2014 to 2017. The main findings follow:
- Nearly half (42.3%) of all residences are renter-occupied in Hamilton County. From 2014 to 2017, an average of 12,439 residential evictions were filed in Hamilton County. The eviction filing rate (8.7%), or percentage of renter-occupied units that experience an eviction filing, sits well above the nation’s average (6.3%).
- Importantly, less than one percent (0.4%) of eviction filings sampled in 2017 were decided in favor of the tenant. A large majority were either in favor of the landlord(47.6%) or were dismissed (49.9%). Cases may be dismissed at the landlord’s discretion for many reasons—due to their negotiation with the tenant, or due to the tenant’s decision to vacate the premises.
- Unlike in criminal court, defendants(tenants) in eviction court are not given the right to legal representation. In Milwaukee, Desmond (2016) found that approximately 90% of landlords were represented by lawyers, while 90% of tenants were not. In Hamilton County, these disparities are even more alarming—88.2% of landlords had legal representation, while 97.5% of tenants did not. As a result, knowing they must stand toe-to-toe with a lawyer, many tenants will not show up to court to fight an eviction.
- While all neighborhoods and communities in Hamilton County experienced at least one eviction filing between 2014 and 2017, they are highly concentrated in a few areas along patterns of racial residential segregation. On average, predominantly Black neighborhoods are those with the highest eviction filing rates, while neighborhoods with few Black residents experiences very few evictions. Additionally, neighborhoods experiencing high rates of eviction filings are also more likely to have lower household incomes and higher rates of poverty when compared to neighborhoods with low eviction filing rates. Eviction is more often identified as a major cause of poverty, rather than a consequence of it. As such, these neighborhoods remain poor because of systematic processes like eviction.
- Although there are thousands of landlords in Hamilton County, only a relatively small amount are responsible for most evictions. Half of landlords in Hamilton County file fewer than ten evictions per year. Agencies and landlords known for providing housing to those in poverty are largely responsible for eviction filings. In every year during the study period, Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) filed the most evictions, representing 3.7-7.6% of all residential eviction filings. In 2017, CMHA was responsible for 5,583 public housing rental units, which means that approximately 1 in 6 households received an eviction notice. Additionally, known landlords who manage HUD-subsidized housing complexes, Brickstone of The Model Group and Wallick Hendy Properties, are also in the Top Ten of Eviction-Filing Landlords. In total, the top ten eviction-filing landlords consistently represent about 20% of all filings in Hamilton County.