July 22, 2021

New York City just purchased a 14-building cluster site in the Bronx for $122 million and plans to convert it into permanent affordable housing for more than 1,500 people experiencing homelessness. Critics argue cluster sites—privately owned apartments that charge high rents to house families experiencing homelessness—allow landlords to neglect tenants yet profit off them. “Through innovative strategies like this we have finally been able to break the trajectory of growth in homelessness,” says Steve Banks, department of social services commissioner.

In Philadelphia, 35,000 tenants have applied for rent relief, but only 16 percent of their applications have been approved. The city created an eviction diversion program to prevent evictions once the moratorium ends. The program connects tenants, landlords, and a mediator to determine payment arrangements, repairs and maintenance, voluntary exits, and other solutions that don’t require a sheriff or eviction court. “If localities want to be proactive in protecting households from eviction, they can connect enforcement around evictions to those resources,” says Vincent Reina, an associate professor in the department of city and regional planning at the University of Pennsylvania.

During the pandemic, Moab, Utah’s tourism boomed and caused an increase in Airbnb rentals, hotel development, and homeowners buying second homes. At the same time, Moab experienced a housing shortage that displaced many locals. Leaders blame Airbnb hosts for the lack of long-term rentals and have prohibited new Airbnbs in residential areas. New Airbnbs can exist only in commercial zones—and even these have been barred indefinitely since a 2019 moratorium on new tourist accommodations. With help from local nonprofits and private developers, Moab is developing more affordable housing units to address the housing shortage.

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 11 million families are at risk of losing their homes once the eviction moratorium ends. Nine in 10 at-risk tenants will likely face court without a lawyer to represent them, because the constitutional right to legal counsel does not extend to defendants in civil cases like eviction filings. However, several cities, counties, and states have passed or are passing right to counsel legislation to help tenants facing eviction. “It’s not fair because it was never designed to be fair. It was designed to be fast and cheap and easy for landlords,” says Eric Dunn, director of litigation at the National Housing Law Project.