This plot shows monthly eviction filings in Philadelphia over the past 12 months. Filings are displayed relative to average filings for the same set of months across 2023 and 2024 (the “baseline”). You can toggle the plot to display filing counts.1
Get the data for this figure
Eviction filings by defendant race/ethnicity and gender
There are often large racial/ethnic and gender disparities in eviction risk. Here, we estimate the demographic characteristics of those filed against for eviction over the past 12 months. We compare to data from the ACS that show the share of renters in the same categories.1
Share of eviction filings
Share of renters
Eviction filings aren’t spread evenly across cities: a small number of buildings are responsible for a disproportionate share of eviction cases. This pattern, which existed before the pandemic, continued in 2020 and beyond. We analyzed eviction records in Philadelphia to determine where the most cases are being filed. This is a list of eviction hot spots—the 10 buildings responsible for the most filings—over the course of the past 12 months. We also display the plaintiff name most often listed with a given building in the court filings. Below we map the top 100 hotspots across the county.
Eviction Hotspot data are updated semi-annually.
When a landlord files an eviction claim in Philadelphia, we observe the amount they claim the tenant owes in back rent, late fees, and damages. In this figure, we plot the typical (median) amount claimed in eviction filings for each month over the past 12 months. We exclude cases in which the landlord doesn’t make a monetary claim, and we drop months if there were fewer than 10 eviction cases filed. The dashed horizontal line on the plot marks the typical claim on an eviction case filed during 2023 and 2024 (our baseline).
Over the past 12 months, of all eviction claims,
Philadelphia County is divided into 408 census tracts. In each of those tracts, we map the number of eviction filings over the past 12 months. If you toggle below you can see these numbers as eviction filing rates—the number of eviction filings divided by the number of renter households in the area—or compared to the typical number of filings in 2023–2024 (the “baseline”).1 2
On map, we also plot the location of the top 100 eviction hotspots in the county (see above). Hover over the circles to see more information about filings from these locations.3
Get the data for tracts in this figure Get the data for top filers in this figure
Eviction filings by neighborhood race/ethnicity
American Community Survey (ACS) data allow us to categorize neighborhoods by their racial/ethnic majority: White, Black, or Other/None. This barplot shows the distribution of eviction filings in the past 12 months by neighborhood racial/ethnic majority.
Toggle the figure to compare recent filings to average filings in 2023–2024, keeping constant the racial/ethnic majority of each neighborhood.1
Get the data for this figure
Eviction filings by defendant race/ethnicity and gender
There are often large racial/ethnic and gender disparities in eviction risk. Here, we estimate the demographic characteristics of those filed against for eviction over the past 12 months. We compare to data from the ACS that show the share of renters in the same categories.1
Share of eviction filings
Share of renters
