Eviction Diversion Efforts

THE NEED

Over the past two decades, housing costs have exploded. In Orange County, and around the country, eviction filings are dramatically increasing as COVID-19 protections expire. Between high inflation and a lack of affordable housing, low-income renters are facing a seriously challenging time.

Eviction is both a symptom and cause of poverty. Not having the financial cushion to weather a layoff or health crisis puts households at risk of eviction. And once you have an eviction on your record, very few landlords will rent to you. This leads to homelessness, mental health burdens, difficulty maintaining a job, and disruptions to a child’s healthy development. Essentially, evictions push people deeper into poverty.

WORKING TOWARD A SOLUTION

There are innovative as well as tried-and-true solutions to housing insecurity popping up all around us—and we know we can work collectively to bring some of these solutions to Orange County.

The Orange County Eviction Diversion Collaborative was established in December 2021 to seek and assess data, input, and expertise from more than 100 individuals and organizations through data collection, surveys, interviews, and focus groups.

These findings were organized into the below report and the result was a study of Orange County’s eviction landscape, which aims to understand the current context, as well as the supply and demand for eviction-diversion support. In this report, we share data, learnings, and recommendations for eviction diversion in our region.

Together, let us use these findings to address the eviction crisis in Orange County, and keep all our neighbors safely housed and supported.