Last year, Tampa Bay experienced the highest rent increase (24 percent) of any metropolitan area in the nation. Price hikes, coupled with stagnant wages, have created housing instability for many locals. Now, many single people and families with low wages are at risk of losing their homes. Rent increases particularly threaten month-to-month renters, who can be evicted with just 15 days’ notice. “Eviction is a cause, not just a symptom, of poverty in America,” said Emily Lemmerman, a researcher with Princeton University’s Eviction Lab.