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Public Benefits
Across the FieldWe wrote an op-ed in Shelterforce describing how tenant screening companies profit from eviction records and drive housing insecurity. Drawing from our recent paper, "How to Seal Eviction Records," we describe the tenant screening industry and how sealing eviction records at the point of filing is an important step toward dismantling the industry's harmful practices:
Eviction is a consequence of an unaffordable housing system that prioritizes the interests of investors and owners and is built on a history of segregation and discrimination. In a world in which evictions persist, sealing eviction records not only lessens the impact of evictions on tenants, but also delegitimizes the tenant screening industry and its claims that these records can or should be used to predict tenancy outcomes. Restricting access to eviction records also helps shift the power relationship between landlords and tenants by limiting landlords’ ability to threaten tenants’ future housing access.
Related Work
We wrote an issue brief offering guidance and recommendations for advocates and policymakers who seek to draft or support eviction record sealing laws.
HousingWe sent a memo to agency leaders in the Biden administration on technology’s role in housing discrimination.
HousingUpturn submitted this testimony in support of DC legislation that would seal many eviction records and limit their use to make housing decisions.
HousingWe argued that HUD’s proposed changes to its disparate impact rule would undermine crucial housing protections for vulnerable communities by reducing plaintiffs’ ability to address discriminatory effects from the use of algorithmic models.
Housing