Spatial and racialized disparities in total and no-fault evictions in New York and Maryland

Abstract Evictions are increasing across the U.S. with devastating consequences for neighborhood stability. Growing evidence suggests that Black renters are disparately impacted by eviction, though it is unclear how Black renters are uniquely impacted by no-fault eviction, specifically. This question is of particular interest as jurisdictions increasingly consider good cause eviction laws, which prevent evictions without a justifiable reason. The present study builds on the existing evidence by evaluating the association between an area’s racial composition and its 1) total eviction filing rate and 2) no-fault/holdover eviction filing rate in two states with large Black renter populations that have both had good cause evictions laws before their state legislatures in recent years (New York and Maryland). In both states, areas with higher percentages of Black renters face statistically significantly higher rates of eviction filings. Areas with higher percentages of Black renters also face significantly higher rates of no-fault/holdover eviction filings. These findings suggest that tenant protections to reduce evictions, and specifically no-fault/holdover evictions, like good cause eviction, have the potential to advance racial equality in housing.