{"id":21917,"date":"2023-08-23T09:00:47","date_gmt":"2023-08-23T13:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=21917"},"modified":"2023-08-22T10:24:38","modified_gmt":"2023-08-22T14:24:38","slug":"rural-evictions-have-dramatically-increased-and-so-has-rural-homelessness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/rural-evictions-have-dramatically-increased-and-so-has-rural-homelessness\/","title":{"rendered":"Rural Evictions Have Dramatically Increased, and So Has Rural Homelessness"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;\" class=\"sharethis-inline-share-buttons\" ><\/div><h4><em><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Proof that\u00a0<\/span><\/em><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/survey-reveals-lack-of-affordable-housing-is-a-key-driver-of-homelessness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">homelessness is a housing issue<\/span><\/em><\/a><em><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u00a0abounds, particularly when you look at the numbers. One recent example can be seen in rural America, where increased eviction rates coincide with increased rates of homelessness, specifically between 2020 and 2022.<\/span><\/em><\/h4>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Homelessness Can Happen Anywhere<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Imagery is a powerful thing. It can alter an entire nation\u2019s mindset, causing people to see things as they have been presented by multimedia outlets rather than seeing things as they are. Few things exemplify this phenomenon quite like homelessness which has been branded deceptively by mainstream media and politicians.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Homelessness has been paraded before us as something that only happens due to poor choices, or something that only happens to people who are lazy or unemployed, or something that only happens to people in cities, and of course, as something that could never happen to us.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">A bit of research proves that all of the above-listed assumptions are false.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Homelessness can happen to anybody, regardless of circumstance or employment status. Whether you live in a bustling city, a status-driven suburb, or a quiet rural town,\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/emergence-of-unsanctioned-in-homeless-propaganda-is-ominous\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">homelessness<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u00a0can absolutely happen to you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Today, we will look at the dramatic increase in homelessness that is silently wreaking havoc on rural America and note how a lack of affordable housing has played a vital role in fueling that crisis.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">No Coincidences: Rural Homelessness Increases Alongside Rural Eviction Rates<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">According to the\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyyonder.com\/report-homelessness-in-rural-increased-from-2020-to-2022\/2023\/02\/21\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Daily Yonder<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">, rural homelessness rose 6% in provincial regions of America between 2020 and 2022, despite the nationwide increase being significantly lower during that same time. Experts cite several contributing factors to the dilemma including:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Higher healthcare costs<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Lower economic stability<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">And the leading factor for homelessness across the board continues to be a lack of affordable housing<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Jeff Olivet, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, told reporters that housing markets vary across different regions of rural America, making it challenging to identify a solitary root cause of the region\u2019s homeless crisis.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cEvery community is different. The housing markets are different, and the access to health care and behavioral health services are different. Wages, as compared to housing, are different. So, it\u2019s likely that if you go to one rural part of the country, there might be one story to tell about the loss of economic opportunity and jobs to pay a livable wage. In another area, maybe there\u2019s a dramatic increase in the cost of housing,\u201d Olivet explained.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">While many variables are at play, one glaring similarity cannot be ignored \u2013 the alarming rates by which rural residents are being\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/evictions-are-violent-interview-with-tenants-rights-attorney-leah-goodridge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">evicted<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Rural Evictions Peaked This Summer, Exceeding Even Pre-Pandemic Era Levels<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Since the end of the eviction moratorium, rural America has become one of the regions in the U.S. to struggle with astronomical eviction rates.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">In July 2023,\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.timesunion.com\/hudsonvalley\/catskills\/article\/sullivan-county-evictions-rural-housing-18200709.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The Times Union<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u00a0reported that the number of evictions reached pre-pandemic rates and eventually exceeded rates from 2019. One eyewitness pointed out that food-insecure individuals and families in the Catskills seemed to be simply vanishing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Like something out of an eerie thriller, the mystery in this small town is not a monster, a spaceship, or a wacky weather phenomenon. Instead, it is rental prices driving people out of town by the dozens, leaving behind them a sea of vacant apartment complexes and dilapidated housing units.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">And unlike in big cities, where the lack of supply is mostly at lower income levels, rural communities like Sullivan County and its neighboring towns are short on every kind of housing &#8211; from inexpensive and modest apartments to lofty single-family homes and just about everything in between.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The limited housing supply is met with exceedingly high demand as corporate real-estate developers, hardworking locals, and out-of-state city dwellers seeking idyllic countryside vacation properties all vie for the same rundown and dwindling supply of homes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Sadly, the utter lack of inventory is not only driving housing prices up but also driving rental rates through the roof and ultimately driving locals out of their hometowns and into homelessness. The increase in rental rates and evictions places much of its burden on available community funding. As a testament to this, government spending on emergency housing has more than doubled since 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The Myth That Homelessness is Restricted to Urban Spaces Poses Unfathomable Obstacles for Rural Government Leaders<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The myth that homelessness is an urban problem persists in public conversations. In turn, it even influences public policy. Speaking eloquently on the subject, Cornell University\u2019s Director of Research Russel Weaver explained that while evictions often hit rural communities the hardest, they had fewer renter protection policies in place.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cSo much of the eviction policy solution does focus on cities, especially downstate,\u201d he explained. He also alluded to the fact that rural homelessness lacked funding and data.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">This lack of funding means that people enduring homelessness in rural communities have fewer resources. Homeless services like shelters and outreach teams are scattered and difficult to obtain.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">According to\u00a0<\/span><a class=\"editor-rtfLink\" href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/health-shots\/2019\/07\/04\/736240349\/in-rural-areas-homeless-people-are-harder-to-find-and-to-help\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">NPR<\/span><\/a><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">, rural funding is so inadequate in the homeless sector that many regional leaders can\u2019t even afford to quantify the problem, let alone present solutions. The problem is twofold. Renters lack the necessary protections to avoid becoming homeless through eviction, and people made homeless through eviction lack the necessary services to exit the dire situation.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Talk to Your Representatives About Increasing Tenant Rights in Rural Communities<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">With the prospect of work-from-home employment driving housing costs up in previously affordable rural communities, locals continue to be priced out of housing. As a result, rural homelessness is increasing, and evictions can only worsen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Rural communities need stronger renter protections to thrive in this new environment. Please urge your representatives to consider rent control as a possible solution to the onslaught of evictions and, as always, to make housing a human right.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Proof that\u00a0homelessness is a housing issue\u00a0abounds, particularly when you look at the numbers. One recent example can be seen in rural America, where increased eviction rates coincide with increased rates of homelessness, specifically between 2020 and 2022. Homelessness Can Happen &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/rural-evictions-have-dramatically-increased-and-so-has-rural-homelessness\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":21918,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[456,681],"tags":[14403,10800,9265,1196,7482,644],"coauthors":[8785],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21917"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21917"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21917\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21920,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21917\/revisions\/21920"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21918"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21917"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21917"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21917"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=21917"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}