The federal government has spent billions of dollars to address the eviction crisis — tens of millions of it in Shelby County — but hundreds of Shelby County residents are still getting evicted every month.

Even with federal assistance coming in and local officials spending it rapidly to provide relief and prevent evictions, some people slip through the cracks.

Federal rent assistance flowing much faster locally than at state level

Not everyone qualifies, and some who do qualify don’t have the proper documentation or aren’t aware of the federal assistance. Still others have landlords unwilling to deal with the application process, under the assumption their tenants don’t qualify or that they can find higher-earning renters on the open market.

Plus, a federal moratorium on evictions ended in Tennessee in August, after a federal judge decided the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not have the authority to prevent evictions.

In a high-poverty “eviction capital” with the lowest rate of Black homeownership in the country, Memphians are at greater risk of homelessness and housing instability than most Americans.

Federal spending on rent relief, along with moratoriums on evictions, are unlikely to go on forever. That means there have to be more solutions to preventing evictions and making them less harmful.

We heard from a handful of experts who shared their ideas to end the eviction crisis.

Right to counsel

A handful of cities have given renters the right to a free lawyer in eviction cases, including Baltimore, Cleveland and New York.

The Sixth Amendment gave criminal defendants the right to a lawyer in federal prosecutions, even if they couldn’t pay. That right was expanded to state prosecutions after the 1963 Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright.

Now, momentum is growing for a “housing Gideon.”

In Baltimore, one study found, an annual public investment of $5.7 million “would yield $35.6 million in benefits to Baltimore City and the State of Maryland.” Those savings would be seen in reduced need for services to homeless people, such as healthcare.

That study found 96% of landlords had a lawyer, but only 1% of tenants did. Similarly, the ACLU says more than 90% of landlords have lawyers, while less than 10% of tenants do.

“The disparity is bigger than big,” said Daniel Schaffzin, a professor at the University of Memphis School of Law, who directs the Neighborhood Preservation Clinic.

Many others, including Memphis public interest attorney Webb Brewer, support the right to counsel.

“There’s a tremendous imbalance of power there,” said Brewer, who oversees the lawyers helping Memphis renters access federal housing assistance.

But just being present can sometimes prevent the worst outcomes.

“I cannot stress enough that this hearing is the tenant’s opportunity to provide any available defense (against) the eviction,” said Vanderbilt Law School professor Jennifer Prusak, who directs Vanderbilt’s Housing Law Clinic. “Everything that can be done to get the tenant to court needs to be done.”

Prusak said a huge number of renters don’t show up for their hearings.

“You may still be evicted, but at least you’re there,” Prusak said in an interview. “And if you have a defense, you can raise it. But if you don’t show up, you will lose your housing.”

Sixth Circuit affirms Judge Norris: Eviction ban is not legal

‘Naturally occurring affordable housing’

Experts say the root of the problem, though, is the lack of affordable housing. A recent study said the United States is short at least 5 million houses.

“This is going to be a chronic problem,” Prusak said, unless more homes are built and incomes keep pace with increasing housing costs.

At a virtual summit earlier this month, state officials said solutions need to benefit landlords as well. They urged tenant advocates to understand the situation of landlords, particularly those that own a small number of properties. They stressed that the renter-landlord relationship is one based on a consensual contract with mutual rights and responsibilities.

“Keeping landlords solvent is one important aspect of keeping tenants housed,” said Ralph Perrey, executive director of the Tennessee Housing Development Agency.

Perrey praised “mom and pop” landlords for offering “naturally occurring affordable housing,” saying those landlords are a “largely overlooked group.”

Similarly, Tennessee Human Services Commissioner Clarence Carter said, “there are not villains and victims in this evictions discussion.”

“Both sides in this discussion have a mutual right and responsibility,” Carter said. “I think first it is important for us to not demonize any of the players in this.”

But in Memphis, at least, those “mom and pop” landlords own a fraction of the units occupied by low-income renters. Brewer estimated that figure at about a quarter to a third.

Most of the rest are corporate, many based in other states, Brewer said. After the 2008 housing crash, predatory lending led to a drastic decline in Black homeownership. Thousands of properties went from owner-occupied to renter-occupied.

“They’re motivated more by their own interests than humanitarian interests,” Brewer said.

Consequently, some advocates say, solutions need to focus on those corporate property owners, rather than the “mom and pops.”

‘Dramatic’ changes in local rental market meet old challenges in affordable housing

Organizing renters

The Memphis Tenants Union, an organized group of renters, demands better living conditions for renters and accountability for landlords.

“We have talked to tenants throughout Memphis who are dealing with unhealthy, dangerous living conditions - raw sewage leaks, black mold infestations, pests, etc. - because their landlords have refused to make repairs,” organizer Alex Uhlmann said in an email.

Uhlmann said all evictions should be heard in court; tenants on month-to-month leases can be evicted at will, and the landlord doesn’t have to provide a reason. Renters should also be able to withhold their money if the landlord isn’t providing reasonable living conditions.

“Being able to withhold rent because of an outstanding maintenance request (i.e.- landlords refusing to provide what they are contractually bound to provide) is a common-sense policy that would drastically change the landlord/tenant power imbalance,” he continued.

Prusak, of the Vanderbilt Housing Clinic, said Tennessee is more landlord-friendly than other states.

“In Tennessee, tenants really don’t have a lot of rights when it comes to making their landlords make repairs,” she said. “Unless it’s literally dangerous to live there, the tenant doesn’t have much right.”

Uhlmann rejected the economic model of housing and the premise that landlords’ rights need to be respected to the same extent as renters’ rights, and that a “massive investment in socialized housing” is the best way forward.

“There is no balance between the right of a person to have a home and someone else’s ‘right’ to make a return on a financial investment,” he said.

Nashville activist Melissa Cherry agreed.

“Sometimes you lose on an investment,” she said. “It’s inherently risky. Housing should not be.”

Schaffzin said part of the accountability problem is that many tenants don’t know who to contact with issues. And when they do request maintenance or try to file a complaint with Code Enforcement, they’re often ignored or retaliated against by the landlord.

“Sometimes it’s a struggle to know even who your landlord is,” he said. “that’s not always an easy thing to figure out.”

The lack of options low-income renters face, Schaffzin said, “Makes it so that tenants are willing to tolerate a lot more than anyone should have to tolerate—just to have a roof over their heads.”