Data gives us part of the picture of the so-called eviction avalanche in Chicago. Help us fill in the rest.
By Justin Agrelo
Renters and homeowners who lost their jobs due to COVID-19 were among those gathered at a “Pritzkerville” encampment outside of the Richard J. Daley Center in August. (Photo: Justin Agrelo)
In early September, just a week after Gov. JB Pritzker extended the state’s ban on evictions another 30 days, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention ordered a temporary halt in residential evictions, hoping to minimize the spread of COVID-19 by keeping people in their homes across the country. This national eviction moratorium, which expires on Dec. 31, arrived after months of warnings from housing advocates about a potential eviction “avalanche.” By some estimates, as many as 40 million U.S. renters could face eviction if rent relief isn’t soon implemented. In Illinois, as many as one million people may be displaced.
Since March, I’ve been reporting on the potential of an eviction crisis as well as the growing tenants movement to combat it. To get a better sense of how evictions are currently playing out in Chicago, I submitted a records request to the Circuit Court of Cook County in June, asking for all eviction filing records from Jan. 1, 2019 to July 31, 2020. My colleague Pat Sier asked the Metropolitan Tenants Organization, a local tenants’ rights group, for data from their hotline.
Below is a breakdown of what we learned from the data, coupled with context from conversations with researchers, lawyers, organizers and tenants over the past couple of months.
1. The statewide eviction moratorium effectively decreased eviction filings
Eviction filings in Cook County dropped significantly following the statewide eviction moratorium that went into effect in March. Filings dropped 40% between February and March of this year. By May 2020, eviction filings were 89% lower than the same month last year—287 evictions were filed in Cook County in May 2020 compared to 2,590 in May 2019. In the first half of the year, filings are down 53% compared to the same period last year.
A decrease in eviction filings has significant benefits for tenants. An eviction filing negatively impacts a person’s credit score and gets attached to their credit report, which makes it difficult to find future housing. A decrease in eviction filings, however, doesn’t mean people aren’t being displaced. It’s not uncommon for tenants to either self-evict (leave their apartment because they fear the consequences of an eviction lawsuit), or be forced out by their landlords, according to local housing experts.
While the moratorium was impactful at decreasing the number of eviction filings and possibly even evictions all together, rent is still due for thousands of struggling tenants throughout the state.
2. Why are evictions still being filed?
A common question I’ve received throughout my reporting is “why are evictions still being filed if there’s a statewide moratorium?” The simplest answer is because the moratorium did not halt eviction filings, it halted evictions themselves.This means your landlord can still start the legal process to regain possession of the unit despite eviction court being closed. But because of the moratorium, the sheriff will not show up at your door and force you from your home.
In April, Gov. JB Pritzker updated the executive order that implemented the March 9 statewide moratorium. A new clause in the updated executive order caused more confusion:
“...a person or entity may not commence a residential eviction action unless a tenant poses a direct threat to the health and safety of other tenants, an immediate and severe risk to property, or a violation of any applicable building code, health ordinance, or similar regulation...”
Some believed this meant that landlords can no longer file an eviction in Illinois, however, as we see in the data, evictions are still being filed. So what’s going on?
The filings on the eviction court docket reflect both residential and non-residential filings (think businesses, offices, even churches). The moratorium never applied to non-residential properties, therefore these types of properties are still represented in the data. But even if we ignore non-residential filings, residential filings are still present in the data because landlords are still allowed to file for the reasons listed above (if tenants pose a threat to the health and safety of others, and so on).
Whether a tenant actually meets those requirements is a different issue. According to Mary Wisniewski, the director of communications for the Office of the Chief Judge of Cook County, the Cook County Clerk’s office “cannot refuse to accept [an eviction] filing. Only the court can decide if the filing was permissible and take appropriate action.” In other words, whether a tenant was actually a “direct threat to the health and safety of other tenants” will be determined by the judge in eviction court after the filing has already been made (with all the baggage that comes with that). It’s unclear how the courts will determine if these cases actually meet the requirement set forth in Pritzker’s executive order when courts reopen.
3. Calls regarding eviction have increased
Housing experts at Metropolitan Tenants Organization help renters navigate tricky legal situations with their landlords through its tenants’ rights hotline. Metropolitan Tenants Organization answered 773 eviction-related calls from Jan. 1 to July 31, 2019. During the same period in 2020, they answered 1,113 eviction-related calls, an increase of about 44%. Total calls to Metropolitan Tenants Organization in 2020 are actually down compared to last year, but the organization still saw an increase in eviction-related calls.
Most of the calls regarding evictions came from 60623 ZIP code, which includes Little Village and North Lawndale, an area of the city that’s been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. The second most calls came from 60649 ZIP code, which includes most of South Shore, a community that has also experienced a high number of COVID-19 related deaths. Even prior to the pandemic, South Shore was seeing more evictions than any other neighborhood in the city.
4. What the data doesn’t show
Like any data set, what we reviewed doesn’t show the full picture of the eviction crisis in Chicago. Though the number of residential eviction filings in Cook County is considerably lower than last year, this data doesn’t include people who have been forced from their homes without involving the courts. According to experts, organizers and tenants I’ve spoken with, the so-called avalanche is already happening because displacement doesn’t need a judge’s order—it could be an eviction threat in a text message from a landlord or the fear of getting involved with the courts when you’re undocumented.
I wrote this blog because I’d like to help fill in this picture. If you or someone you know has been forced out of your home during the pandemic or are currently being pressured to move and you’d like to share your story, complete this form. If you include contact information and I will email you to set up a short phone call. You can also email me: justin@citybureau.org.
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