Evictions Statewide Increase for the First Time in over Eight Years

2010 Kimball, Tirey and St. John LLP

Legal Alert:

Evictions Statewide Increase for the First Time in over Eight Years

During the State of California’s most recent fiscal year, which is between July 1, 2004 and July 1, 2005, there were almost 20,000 more evictions filed in California than the previous year. This was the first statewide increase in evictions since 1997.

There were over 161,000 evictions filed this year compared to 142,000 filed the year before. The record number of evictions filed in this state was in 1997 when almost 240,000 evictions were filed.

Even though evictions are up state wide, they are continuing to decline in some of the most populated counties including Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura and Los Angeles. In Northern California, San Mateo was the only county reporting fewer evictions than the year before.

Some of the counties with the largest gains include San Diego, San Francisco, Kern, Alameda, Merced, Santa Clara, Stanislaus, and Tulare. Counties that only had a slight gain in evictions included Sonoma, Solano, Santa Barbara and San Joaquin.

Los Angeles experienced the largest number of evictions with 57,074, followed by San Bernardino with 13,498, San Diego with 13,334, Orange County with 12,498, Riverside with 9,193, and Alameda with 6,135. Sacramento started keeping track of its eviction numbers for the first time, reporting 3,801.

The available statistics do not break down the reason for the eviction filings, but according to our law firm's internal statistics, over 75% of evictions are filed for non-payment of rent followed by 15% for other breaches, 5% for behavioral issues and illegal activity and 5% because the lease terminated.

Although a strong economy is certainly one of the primary reasons why evictions have dropped so much since 1997, the fact that residential property management has done a much better job of screening potential residents is a major reason for the decline. Also, there was a huge drop in evictions following foreclosures because of a robust economy and low interest rates.

While we are not able to pinpoint the exact reasons for this year’s increase in the number of evictions, it would appear that uncertainty in the economy and challenges to businesses in some parts of the state has resulted in an increased inability of some residents to fulfill their financial responsibilities despite management’s improved screening practices.

This legal alert is for general information purposes only. Before acting be sure to receive legal advice from our office. If you have questions about this alert, please contact the nearest KTS office in your location. For past alerts and articles on other topics, please consult the resource library section of our website at www.kts-law.com.

Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP is a law firm that specializes in landlord/tenant, collections, fair housing and business and real estate, with offices throughout California. Property owner's and manager's with questions regarding the contents of this article, please call 800.338.6039.