Make wishtv.com your home page

Mass evictions could widen gaps in racial economic inequality

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The housing crisis unfolding after the end of Indiana’s eviction moratorium could widen gaps in racial economic inequality.

The moratorium expired Friday after Gov. Eric Holcomb declined to extend the executive order protecting tenants struggling to pay rent.

By Thursday, court records indicated at least 600 post-moratorium eviction complaints had been filed in Marion County.

The county saw a total of 82 small claims filings of any kind during the same period in 2019.

Chase Haller, an attorney with Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic, said his team was “triaging cases” amid the influx of eviction filings.

“We [already had] an exceptionally high eviction rate here. This is only going to get worse,” said Molly Martin, director of nonprofit think tank New America Indianapolis.

Her work focuses on issues relating to racial and economic equity.

Mass evictions could exacerbate existing wealth gaps by sparking multigenerational setbacks in housing stability, education, health care access and overall upward mobility, Martin said.

A family that loses their home may no longer have WiFi for their children’s e-learning. People couch surfing or living in shelters are more likely to be exposed to COVID-19; workers who fall ill may experience wage loss and fall further behind in paying bills.

Black and Latino residents are more likely to experience housing loss in Indiana. Contributing factors include “systemic biases… in banking, borrowing, the way landlords treat people and the way landlords hand out information,” according to Martin.

An estimated 40% of landlords listed on applications for the Indianapolis rental assistance program refused to participate, according to a nonprofit organization helping the city distribute funds to eligible applicants.

There was no demographic data available for rental assistance applicants or tenants facing post-moratorium eviction filings.

Brad Grayson, a Columbus property manager and president of the Bartholomew County Landlord Association, said his company only evicted tenants they “would have had to evict anyway [without a pandemic].”

“We still have to pay the bills,” he said.

Grayson set up weekly payment plans for several tenants and offered others on-site work to help offset rent, including mowing, cleaning, landscaping and painting jobs.

The three households his company moved to evict after the moratorium “wouldn’t cooperate” when he attempted to negotiate agreements, he said, and included at least one tenant who stopped paying rent before the pandemic.

“The moratorium did not differentiate between those with a legitimate need and deadbeats or housebeaters. Every other business was still allowed to charge for their service or product,” Grayson said.

There are few reliable relief options for Hoosier tenants outside of the city and statewide rental assistance programs, according to Haller.

“We need as much funding to go towards [rental aid] as possible,” he told News 8.

The city program remained suspended Thursday after a flood of applications overwhelmed the system in July.

The statewide program is scheduled to end after Aug. 26, officials announced Wednesday.

Martin called for additional relief efforts targeting Hoosiers most likely to face eviction.

“Black housing loss is a problem… We can’t ignore it and we also can’t engineer a solution that simply says, ‘A rising tide lifts all boats,’” Martin told News 8. “The governor needs to be plain and blunt, and he needs to pursue solutions that serve specific races in communities.”

The governor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment from News 8.