Denver ballot initiative proposing free counsel for renters facing eviction fails to pass

According to Bossert, if Denver were to follow in the footsteps of the San Francisco's right-to-counsel, each eviction case would only cost $300, which, in comparison to evictions settled in court, would add up to a total need for only $1.2 million. The $12 million in tax revenue that the NEWR program is expected to bring in, Bossert argued, is excessive.

Echo shared that NEWR Denver got the $12 million figure from San Francisco, which experiences a similar amount of evictions as Denver. Data from the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Council stated “after initially facing a budget cut due to COVID-19, the City of San Francisco increased its investment by nearly $7 million to $16 million total.”

When asked about her sources for these numbers, Bossert did not name one directly but explained that 95% of eviction cases are for simple nonpayment, and out of those 800 cases filed, only 15% actually go to trial — so her numbers are based solely on cases that make it to trial. 

Bossert also argued that Denver already has programs in place that meet this need, referencing Denver’s Department of Housing and Stability which provides legal representation to tenants facing eviction who are under 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI), the State Eviction Legal Defense Fund and federal programs. 

Denver District 9 Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca, who worked alongside District 5 Councilwoman Amanda Sawyer to create the Department of Housing and Stability right to counsel Bossert referenced, endorses NEWR, stating “In 2021 I passed the Right to Counsel in Evictions. This has been one of the most effective programs implemented for plugging a hole in the pipeline to homelessness and now we need a dedicated funding stream. NEWR will provide that dedicated funding stream AND expand who is eligible to have an attorney in an eviction.”

Bossert also added that ordinance 305 will be addressing a symptom instead of a root cause, saying the root cause of rising home prices is a lack of supply. 

Echo responded by saying rent is already raised for reasons undisclosed to tenants, and that while she agrees a lack of supply is a factor, tenants need to be staying in their homes in order to avoid exacerbation of the issue. 

Finally, Bossert claimed that ordinance 305 is “unfair to the poor,” due to a lack of means testing, indicating a suspicion that those in lower income brackets will bear the brunt of the monthly fee imposed on landlords. Echo retorted in her closing statement that means testing can create barriers for the population’s most vulnerable and that ordinance 305 would help remedy this.

In an answer to Echo’s follow-up question regarding expenses to tenants, Bossert asserted that inflation in any industry trickles down to the consumers and real estate is no different. She said it is likely that the tenants will be taking on more than the $6.25 fee as landlords will be facing higher legal fees to combat those granted to tenants facing evictions, thereby increasing the cost of housing.

No on 305, a campaign funded by the conservative-leaning Common Sense Solutions, noted that the $75/year fee will increase along with inflation (the ballot measure says the tax rate on landlords will increase "every year thereafter at a rate that does not exceed the Colorado Consumer Price Index"). The campaign also highlights that this will likely encourage lawyers to seek disputes and “tap into this slush fund.”

The cause of rising eviction rates

When it comes to the causes of the housing crisis, general supply and demand rules are at play. According to state data from 2010-2019, the number of housing units for people with household incomes under $75,000 a year dropped significantly; for income levels under $45,000 a year, that drop was nearly 50%. Housing availability increased just as significantly for income levels over $75,000.

According to Echo, the issues run much deeper than the numbers.

“Part of that problem is about people from other cities coming into Denver, but part of it is about the sort of intentional redevelopment of certain areas to attract a higher income crowd, which results in the renovation and destruction of existing communities and that can displace people," Echo explained. “We're also living in a time when more and more and more of the market is taken over by big real estate companies who are owning these properties as speculative investments.”

The “speculative investment” model causes a trickle-down effect. When properties are bought by larger companies, their processes are often automated and remove the human-to-human connection individual owners are more likely to have with tenants. If a tenant doesn’t meet the terms of their lease, they can be evicted, no questions asked. 

Another cause for rising evictions is a lack of regulations for landlords, Echo said.

“There's no just cause eviction protections in Colorado. Landlords are essentially just being taken up their word right now and they get to evict people for basically any reason," she continued. “We certainly don't have rent control. Rent control's actually illegal at the state level, but even beyond that, there's all kinds of fees and stuff that people can get away with charging. I'd like to see more regulation around that, certainly long term.”

Echo recognizes not all landlords are malicious, and that many are just trying to pay their mortgage and get by like everyone else. Some landlords, for example, need to evict tenants who are destroying property.  But that is not often the case, and the lack of regulation can provide security for landlords who are evicting for reasons unavoidable to the tenants, Echo said.  

Some of these motives can include renovating a home to rent it out for a higher profit, or even raising the rent for a new tenant without completing renovations.

There’s also the risk of modernized redlining.

“It can be racism, ableism, all kinds of bigotry too. If a landlord is trying to cultivate an image or sort of design a community with a certain type of person that they feel is gonna make that property more attractive to investors, is gonna be able to pay the rent better, is gonna get along with them better personally, then they can often try to force people out that don't fit into that vision," Echo said.

Echo added that this is an even greater reason to allow for more legal representation in cases of eviction. Every case that’s heard can provide clues as to how to reform corrupt processes and help keep fair landlords paid and tenants housed.

The impact of eviction

There are many factors that lead to a lack of rent payments, especially in the current market. Denver is one of the most expensive cities in the country for renters. Denver’s minimum wage is $15.87 an hour (it's rising to $17.29 in 2023). The living wage for one single adult, however, is $20.31, according to an analysis by MIT. Even without children, an adult being paid minimum wage or even slightly above would need multiple jobs to make ends meet.

With children, the circumstances are much direr. In fact, research shows having one child increases a family’s risk of eviction by 30%. For two children, the risk increases by 60%. And for families from marginalized communities that are overrepresented in low-income levels due to other societal barriers, the risk is even higher.

Once someone is evicted, finding housing in the future is a greater challenge. An eviction stays on a record for seven years, and that, combined with the low supply of affordable housing can lead to homelessness. 

According to Echo, “it's gonna be much, much harder for the rest of your life to find a new place to live. A lot of the time people become homeless as a result of that, if not immediately, then, over the course of the next year or two. It can be this thing that just sort of snowballs and spirals out of control.”

The best-case scenario for eviction isn’t much better. 

Once an eviction goes to court, any challenges the tenant was experiencing can be amplified. They may have to miss work to go to court, or have to move far away from their job due to a shortage in rental units. Risking their job means risking more income and sometimes losing valuable health insurance as well. If the evictee has children, they may need to transfer schools.

Eviction doesn’t just impact the individuals experiencing it, either.

Echo said, “We're seeing what happens when we continue to ignore it, which is more and more and more people living on the street in horrible circumstances, being treated very poorly by the city while they're there. [They’re] using up money in emergency services, causing public health issues because they're forced to live in these terrible conditions.”

She continued:  “We're seeing the destruction of community in a lot of places, poorer communities particularly. It’s hard to get along with your neighbors — it's hard to know your neighbors in the first place if people are constantly moving in and out of these buildings, shuffling around the city and getting displaced from the neighborhoods that they grew up in.”

Running on 'people power'

Campaigning for a grassroots initiative like 305 isn’t easy. According to Echo, the opposition has thrown in around $120,000 dollars. NEWR, however, relies on a core team of 20-30 people and 100 canvassing volunteers.