Evictions in the Phoenix area have increased to the highest level in more than a decade.
With more than 6,500 filings, August was the busiest single month for eviction cases in Maricopa County since October 2008.
Filings plummeted in part of 2020 and 2021 when, in response to the pandemic, state and federal rules limited enforcement of some types of evictions. But Maricopa County Justice of the Peace Anna Huberman told KJZZ News the number of filings has steadily climbed since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's eviction moratorium was lifted last year.
“We got used to having lower numbers, always with the expectation, obviously, that they were going to go back to what we call normal," Huberman said. "But at this point, we’ve found that they have now surpassed the numbers prior to the pandemic.”
Huberman said eviction courts are now as busy as she’s seen in her career.
While the rise in filings clearly began with end of the federal limits on evictions, Huberman said she thinks other factors are driving the trends, too.
“It would appear to be the lack of affordable housing, coupled with the fact that rents are significantly higher,” Huberman said.
Huberman said rental assistance programs are still available across the state for tenants who fall behind.
