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July 30, 2025 - Aditi Aravind
The Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) has released the first reports from the Bay Area Eviction Study. The purpose of this study is to better understand current eviction trends across all nine counties. This report is the first known attempt to compile eviction data from state, county, and local data sources to inform policies supporting stable and affordable housing.
The main results of this study were that formal eviction rates have now returned to or even surpassed pre-pandemic levels in eight of the nine Bay Area counties. The study cited the Inability to pay rent as the legal cause of eviction in 85-97% of formal eviction cases. However, formal evictions are only one part of the larger problem of housing instability in the Bay Area, which also includes informal evictions and court processes. Informal evictions can include illegal landlord tactics like harassing tenants or shutting off utilities. Because they do not follow proper court process, they are difficult to track and were not included in the Bay Area Eviction Study.
The study also discovered that tenants’ need for legal aid regarding evictions greatly outweighs the region’s current capacity for legal services. While the data was unavailable in some counties, the study determined that there is a significant gap in representation for tenants compared to landlords. The results from counties with available data follow the national rate, where approximately 83% of landlords, but only 4% of tenants, are represented in court.
Additionally, many eviction cases end in default judgments because tenants do not respond to the eviction lawsuit. The study found that tenants lose between 30% & 50% of eviction cases in the Bay Area because of this.
A final note from the study is that, consistent with other local and national research, renters of color, households with children, and female-headed households all face higher rates of eviction across the nine counties.
These findings highlight how tenant protections like the right to legal counsel and protection against discrimination are crucial to addressing housing instability in the Bay Area.
At Havensafe, these trends mirror some of the challenges we see tenants face. One of our primary goals is to connect people at risk of eviction with eviction support resources and educate them on their rights as tenants in order to prevent homelessness. In addition to the resources we have listed on our website, we help clients access legal help and financial assistance in order to ensure they stay housed.
For more information or to get involved, please visit our website at havensafe.org or email us at info@havensafe.org. Let’s work together to prevent homelessness!
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