What is driving the rise in homelessness across the United States?
NTD spoke to Jeffrey Tucker, a senior columnist at The Epoch Times, to find out more about the issue. He pointed to the knock-on effects of the eviction moratoriums imposed in 2020 and 2021 as a significant factor driving lower-income individuals out of housing.
At that time, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) prohibited eviction for non-payment of rent, causing widespread distress and financial loss among landlords. Despite the Supreme Court later declaring the rule to be unconstitutional, the damage had been done, he said.
Landlords, traumatized by the inability to collect rents and the massive intervention into their rights, became much more discerning about tenants, demanding higher standards, proof of income, and much larger deposits for lease approvals. Mr. Tucker highlighted the current difficulty in securing leases for new tenants, as landlords scrutinize applicants thoroughly.
Mr. Tucker said that the moratoriums and elevated rental standards may account for the entire increase in homelessness, as factors normally blamed for homelessness like drug problems and mental illness were evident before the COVID-19 policies.
He suggests incentivizing the development of lower-income housing as an immediate solution, advocating for a deregulated system that frees up land use and encourages investment—without imposing mandates on communities or developers.
