Here Are The States That Continue To Ban Evictions

It has been months since the U.S. Supreme Court brought an end to President Joe Biden’s eviction moratorium but various states continue to issue eviction protections to save millions of Americans from going homeless in the middle of winter.

More than 15% of adult renters are still behind on rent and struggles vary widely across the country.

Overall, renters owe an average of $3,700 in rent. However, the typical average debt in Alabama is $2,700. Meanwhile, in California, it is closer to $5,300.

The rental disparity is also noticeable across communities of color.

Of the 11 million Americans reporting being behind on rent in August, 24% were Black renters compared to 11% of white renters. Meanwhile, 18% of both Latino and Asian renters reported owing rent, a Center on Budget Policy and Priorities study found.

In response to the eviction crisis, many states and jurisdictions have put aside landlords’ heavy opposition to continue to protect tenants on a more local level.

Places like Connecticut, Virginia, Oregon, Massachusetts, Michigan and Minnesota as well as Washington, D.C., have limited evictions tied to the rental assistance process that will last until 2022, according to a COVID-19 Eviction Moratoria Team analysis.

This means that in some states a landlord has to file for federal rental assistance before filing an eviction while others cannot evict a tenant until their application for aid is complete.

Meanwhile, renters in New Jersey and New York can’t be evicted until January. New Mexico has also prohibited renters from being pushed out of their homes until further notice, CNBC reported.

In addition to state efforts, the White House has given $46 billion in federal rental assistance allocated by Congress. However, states and cities have been distributing the money at an extremely slow rate, with only 26 percent of emergency rental assistance distributed thus far, according to data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition.