In Texas, many are struggling to pay the high price of rent, leading to eviction filings increasing throughout the state. The number of eviction filings has gotten so high that it has officially surpassed the numbers seen prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to several state laws, tenants have little to no protection against these evictions, which is now causing the number of unhoused persons to raise drastically as well.
In just 2023, in the Houston, Dallas, Austin, and Fort Worth areas, about 177,000 eviction cases were filed.
This number came from Eviction Lab, a Princeton University based research center that focuses on tracking eviction filings around the country. The 177,000 eviction cases filed in these major Texas cities in 2023 display a slight increase from the number of cases seen in 2022. 2022 was the first year in which the federal government, by way of the U.S. Supreme Court, ended the nationwide eviction moratorium that had been set in place during the COVID-19 pandemic by the federal government. Since the eviction moratorium ended, Houston and Fort Worth have especially seen a steady increase in evictions. Their numbers have been consistently higher than the numbers that were seen pre-pandemic for the last two years.
Texas once used to be considered one of the most affordable states in the country. However, with inflation, that is not the case anymore, now with several cities ranking high on lists ranking the cost of living throughout the country. According to one analyst at Eviction Lab, laws simply do not exist to protect renters anymore, which has caused many to greatly suffer.
Throughout the pandemic, Texas had received around $1.8 billion in federal rent relief.
The federal rent relief funding helped over a quarter of a million families in Texas remain in their homes. However, that funding has long since run out, which is why evictions have been so prevalent. Additionally, any other local, state, and/or federal rent assistance programs that were in place have ended. Now, despite the fact that Texas’ economy boomed during the pandemic, residents across the state have no choice but to accept being forced out of them homes because the state did not invest in ways to take care of those who live there.
